“We are not makers of history. We are made by history.”

Martin Luther King, Jr.

September 24

September 24, 1957 – President Dwight Eisenhower ordered the National Guard to enforce racial integration of schools in Little Rock, Arkansas.

September 24, 1980 – War erupted between Iran and Iraq as Iraqi troops crossed the border and encircled Abadan, then set fire to the world’s largest oil refinery.

Birthday – John Marshall (1755-1835) was born in Germantown, Virginia. He was appointed by President John Adams to the position of Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court in January 1801. He became known as “The Great Chief Justice,” largely responsible for expanding the role of the Supreme Court through such cases as Marbury vs. Madison and McCulloch vs. Maryland.

Birthday – American writer F. Scott Fitzgerald (1896-1940) was born in St. Paul, Minnesota (as Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald). Best known for This Side of Paradise, The Great Gatsby and Tender is the Night.

Birthday – Puppeteer Jim Henson (1936-1990) was born in Greenville, Mississippi. He created the Muppets, including Kermit the Frog, and Bert and Ernie, entertaining and educating generations of children via the daily TV show Sesame Street.

September 25

September 25, 1513 – Spanish explorer Vasco Nunez de Balboa first sighted the Pacific Ocean after crossing the Isthmus of Panama.

September 25, 1690 – The first American newspaper was published. A single edition of Publick Occurrences Both Foreign and Domestick appeared in Boston, Massachusetts. However, British authorities considered the newspaper offensive and ordered its immediate suppression.

September 25, 1789 – The first U.S. Congress proposed 12 Amendments to the Constitution, ten of which, comprising the Bill of Rights, were ratified.

 Birthday – American writer William Faulkner (1897-1962) was born in New Albany, Mississippi. Best known for The Sound and the Fury and The Reivers.

Birthday – Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975) was born in St. Petersburg, Russia. He witnessed the Russian Revolution and went on to become one of the greatest Soviet composers.

September 26

September 26, 1687 – The Acropolis in Athens was attacked by the Venetian army attempting to oust the Turks, resulting in heavy damage to the Parthenon.

September 26, 1918 – The last major battle of World War I, the Battle of the Argonne, began as a combined force of French and Americans attacked the Germans along a 40-mile front.

September 26, 1960 – The first-ever televised presidential debate occurred between presidential candidates John F. Kennedy and Richard M. Nixon. Many who watched were inclined to say Kennedy ‘won’ the debate, while those who listened only to the radio thought Nixon did better. Nixon, who declined to use makeup, appeared somewhat haggard looking on TV in contrast to Kennedy.

September 26, 1984 – Britain agreed to allow Hong Kong to revert to Chinese sovereignty in 1997.

Birthday – American folk legend Johnny Appleseed (1774-1845) was born in Leominster, Massachusetts (as John Chapman). For 40 years, he traveled through Ohio, Indiana and into Illinois, planting orchards. He was a friend to wild animals and was regarded as a “great medicine man” by Native Americans.

Birthday – Writer T.S. (Thomas Stearns) Eliot (1888-1965) was born in St. Louis, Missouri. He rejected conventional verse and language in favor of free expression.

Birthday – Composer George Gershwin (1898-1937) was born in Brooklyn, New York. Along with his brother Ira, he created enduring songs including The Man I Love, Strike Up the Band, I Got Rhythm and the opera Porgy and Bess.

September 27

September 27, 1964 – After a 10-month investigation, the Warren Commission Report was issued stating a lone gunman had been responsible for the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in Dallas on November 22, 1963.

September 27, 1995 – The Israeli cabinet agreed to give Palestinians control of much of the West Bank which had been occupied by Israel for 28 years.

Birthday – American revolutionary leader Samuel Adams (1722-1803) was born in Boston, Massachusetts. He was a passionate, vocal man who helped ignite the revolution and served as a delegate to the First and Second Continental Congresses. He was a signer of the Declaration of Independence and the Articles of Confederation.

Birthday – American political cartoonist Thomas Nast (1840-1902) was born in Landau, Germany. He originated the symbols for the two main U.S. political parties, the Democratic donkey and the Republican elephant. Nast was also instrumental in destroying the Tweed Ring, a group of corrupt politicians plundering the New York City treasury.

September 28

September 28, 1066 – The Norman conquest of England began as Duke William of Normandy landed at Pevensey, Sussex.

September 28, 1542 – California was discovered by Portuguese navigator Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo upon his arrival at San Diego Bay.

September 28, 1978 – Pope John Paul I died after only 33 days in office. He was succeeded by John Paul II.

September 28, 1995 – Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Palestine Liberation Organization leader Yasser Arafat signed an accord at the White House establishing Palestinian self-rule in the West Bank.

September 29

September 29, 1789 – Congress created the United States Army, consisting of 1,000 enlisted men and officers.

September 29, 1829 – Britain’s “bobbies” made their first public appearance. Greater London’s Metropolitan Police force was established by an act of Parliament at the request of Home Secretary, Sir Robert Peel, after whom they were nicknamed. The force later became known as Scotland Yard, the site of their first headquarters.

September 29-30, 1941 – Nazis killed 33,771 Jews during the Babi Yar massacre near Kiev.

Birthday – Nuclear physicist Enrico Fermi (1901-1954) was born in Rome. While teaching at the University of Chicago, he developed a method of causing nuclear fission, producing a chain reaction releasing explosive nuclear energy which led to the development of the Atomic bombs.

September 30

September 30, 1938 – British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain returned to England declaring there would be “peace in our time,” after signing the Munich Pact with Adolf Hitler. The Pact ceded the Czechoslovakian Sudetenland to the Nazis. Chamberlain claimed the agreement meant peace, however, Hitler seized all of Czechoslovakia in March of 1939.

September 30, 1949 – The Berlin Airlift concluded after 277,264 flights carrying over 2 million tons of supplies to the people of West Berlin, who were blockaded by the Soviets.

September 30, 1955 – Actor James Dean was killed in a car crash in California at age 24. Although he made just three major films, Rebel Without a Cause, East of Eden and Giant, he remains one of the most influential actors.

September 30, 1966 – Nazi war criminals Albert Speer and Baldur von Schirach were released from Spandau prison after serving 20 years. The prison, originally built for 600 inmates, was left with only one prisoner, former Deputy Führer Rudolf Hess.

Birthday – American writer Truman Capote (1924-1984) was born in New Orleans, Louisiana (as Truman Streckfus Persons). He took the last name of his stepfather, becoming Truman Capote. Best known for Breakfast at Tiffany’s and In Cold Blood.