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Presidential Inaugurations

George W. Bush being sworn in for the second time at the US Capitol in 2005.

Presidential inaugurations are steeped in history and tradition. On January 20, 2009, Barack Obama will be inaugurated as America's 44th president. Take a step-by-step look at the inaugural events and their history.

Barack Obama In, George W. Bush Out

Martin's American History Blog

Top Five Causes of the Civil War

Tuesday January 13, 2009

What actually caused the American Civil War? Some people simplistically answer that it was a fight against slavery. While slavery did have an important part to play in the lead up to the Civil War, there were other causes that fed the fight between North and South that finally erupted into secession and Civil War with the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860. Here are the top five causes of the Civil War.

League of Nations Becomes Reality

Saturday January 10, 2009
On January 10, 1920, the League of Nations that resulted from World War I officially came into effect. It was ratified by forty-two nations. The League was a dream of Woodrow Wilson. However, the United States never ratified the treaty ending World War I and never joined the League of Nations. The League was eventually replaced by the United Nations at the end of World War II. Even today there are still people who do not believe we should have joined the UN.

Election of Our First President

Wednesday January 7, 2009
In this day and age, greater than 60% of the vote for a president would be considered a landslide. I wonder what we would have thought about our first president. January 7, 1789, was a significant day in U.S. history. George Washington was unanimously elected as the first president of the United States. Talk about high approval ratings!

The Death of Theodore Roosevelt

Tuesday January 6, 2009
January 6, 1919, marks the death of Theodore Roosevelt. Roosevelt first became president after the assassination of William McKinley in 1901. He also received a Nobel Prize for mediating peace between Russia and Japan.

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