Anniversaries

To illustrate the depth one can access in our collections, we have compiled relevant archival imagery to frame a diverse cultural, political and chronological retrospective of noteworthy anniversaries. Be sure to bookmark this section as the calendar is a work in progress and will continue to expand.

MarchYearAnniversaryEvent
11692317thThe Salem Witch Hunt begins in Massachusetts
11872137thYellowstone Park becomes the first National Park in the world
1191792ndZimmerman Telegram, a coded message from Germany saying it will declare war on the U.S., is published
1193277thCharles and Anne Lindbergh's baby kidnapped from their home
21807202ndU.S. Congress makes African slave trade illegal
21867142ndFirst Reconstruction Act passed by U.S. Congress
21877132ndRutherford B. Hayes wins long disputed presidential election and Reconstruction ends
2191792ndDesi Arnaz, singer, actor, and husband of Lucille Ball, born
31847162ndAlexander Graham Bell, inventor, born
31877132ndPres. Rutherford Hayes inaugurated in a private ceremony of five men
41877132ndFirst performance of "Swan Lake" by the Russian Imperial Ballet
4195257thRonald Reagan, an actor, and Nancy Davis, an actress, marry
4198722ndRonald Reagan accepts responsibility for Iran-Contra Affair (on his 35th wedding anniversary)
5199712ndNorth and South Korea meet for peace talks for the first time in 25 years
61857152ndU.S. Supreme Court rules against Dred Scott, denying citizenship to black slaves
71777232ndFive letters are exchanged between John Adams, at the Continental Congress, and Abigail Adams, in Massachusetts
71862147thAt the Battle of Pea Ridge, Union Gen. Curtis defeats Confederates Van Dorn and McCulloch
81862147thThe Battle of Hampton Roads begins as the Confederate ironclad "Virginia" (or "Merrimac") attacks the Union Navy
8191792ndU.S. Senate votes to limit filibusters (also called "Samrandallisms")
91847162ndU.S. forces led by Gen. Winfield Scott land at Vera Cruz, Mexico
91862147thThe Confederate ironclads "Virginia" or "Merrimac" and the U.S.S. Monitor fight to a draw
101902107thThomas Edison loses his suit over invention of the movie camera
111862147thLincoln removes McClellan from command, promoting Halleck and Fremont
11194267thGeneral MacArthur declares "I shall return" to the Philippines
11195752ndRichard Evelyn Byrd, U.S. aviator and explorer, dies
11191297thJuliette Gordon Low of the U.K. founds the Girl Guides, later the Girl Scouts
12194762ndPresident Harry Truman establishes the "Truman Doctrine"
131852157th"Uncle Sam" debuts as a regular cartoon character in "The Lantern"
141862147thUnion Gen. Burnside defeats Confederate Gen. Branch at the Battle of New Bern
14196742ndJohn F. Kennedy's body moved to Arlington Cemetery
151767242ndAndrew Jackson, 7th U.S. President, born
15191792ndCzar Nicholas II, the last Russian czar, abdicates his throne
161802207thU.S. Military Academy established at West Point, New York
171782227thJohn C. Calhoun, senator, cabinet member and vice president of the U.S., is born
171862147thThe U.S. Treasury sanctions printing of "greenbacks," or paper money
181837172ndGrover Cleveland, 22nd and 24th U.S. president, born
18194267thThe War Relocation Authority is established, creating "relocation camps" for Japanese-Americans
18196247thFrance ends its colonial war with Algeria
191687322ndFrench explorer Robert La Salle murdered by his own men in Texas
201852157thHarriet Beecher Stowe's bestseller, "Uncle Tom's Cabin," is published
21196742ndNorth Vietnam rejects President Johnson's overtures
221817192ndBraxton Bragg, Confederate general, is born
221882127thU.S. Congress outlaws polygamy, practiced in the U.S. by Mormons
22194762ndPres. Harry Truman orders "loyalty checks" of federal employees during the Red Scare
231862147thGen. Stonewall Jackson defeated by Gen. Nathaniel Banks at the Battle of Kernstown
23194267th The U.S. Army moves Japanese-Americans to internment camps
241862147thWendell Phillips is pelted with tomatoes and rocks by pro-slavery Northerners in Cincinnati
25196742ndDr. Martin Luther King Jr. leads a March against the Vietnam War in Chicago
251907102ndGrover Cleveland addresses Princeton students in his New Jersey home
27191297thFirst Lady Helen Herron Taft plants the famous cherry trees along the Potomac River
281862147thThe Confederate invasion of New Mexico halted at the Battle of Glorieta Pass
291812197thFirst White House wedding joins Dolly Madison's sister with Judge Thomas Todd
301822187thFlorida becomes a U.S. territory
301867142ndSecretary of State William Seward purchases Alaska, dubbed "Seward's Folly"
311732277thFranz Joseph Haydn, Austrian composer, born