Archive for November, 2010
The Medal of Honor
According to Army Regulation 670-1, a soldier can now receive 31 military decorations “as a distinctively designed mark of honor denoting heroism, or meritorious or outstanding service or achievement.” During the Civil War, there was only one: the Medal of Honor. The U.S. Army does not have a longstanding history of handing out awards. During [...]
Posted by Rob Crotty on November 30, 2010, under - Civil War.
Tags: american history, discovering the civil war, history of military decorations, history of the medal of honor, medal of honor and civil war, NARA, national archives, National archives and records administration, National Archives Official Blog, Pieces of History, Prologue magazine, random history, us history, weird US history
Comments: none
Facial Hair Friday: “Howe” do they do it?
We may be a litttle short-staffed on this quasi-holiday, but I couldn’t let Facial Hair Friday go by without a nod to some historic beards. Today’s honoree is Gen. Albion P. Howe, veteran of the Mexican War and the Civil War. When a captain in the U.S. Army, Howe served under Col. Robert E. Lee at [...]
Posted by Mary on November 26, 2010, under - Civil War, Facial Hair Fridays, Uncategorized.
Tags: albion howe, american history, army, beard, civil war, elias howe, facial hair friday, marshall howe, mustache, National Archives Official Blog
Comments: 1
Thanksgiving: Another FDR Experiment
Yesterday we celebrated Thanksgiving, as usual, on the fourth Thursday of November. Today shoppers are hitting the stores for “Black Friday” super discounts to kick off holiday shopping. But until 1939, Thanksgiving Day was traditionally the last Thursday in November. That year there were five Thursdays in the month, and concern about a shortened shopping season prompted President Franklin [...]
Posted by Mary on November 26, 2010, under - Great Depression, - World War II, Uncategorized.
Tags: american history, fdr and thanksgiving, Franklin Roosevelt, history of thanksgiving, Prologue magazine, why is thanksgiving the last thursday of november
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Thanksgiving, as American as apple pie
Here, in short, are the documents that made Thanksgiving. On October 3, 1789, President George Washington issued a proclamation naming Thursday, November 26, 1789, as an official holiday of “sincere and humble thanks.” The nation then celebrated its first Thanksgiving under its new Constitution. On October 3, 1863, President Lincoln made the traditional Thanksgiving celebration [...]
Posted by Rob Crotty on November 24, 2010, under - Civil War, - Constitution, - Revolutionary War, News and Events.
Tags: abraham lincoln, american history, Constitution, fdr and thanksgiving, george washington, history of thanksgiving, NARA, national archives, National archives and records administration, odd history, prologue blog, Prologue magazine, thanksgiving, weird US history, why is thanksgiving the last thursday of november
Comments: 6
Why does the President pardon a turkey?
As I write this, two turkeys are living it up at the “W” hotel across the street from the White House. The turkeys will be dining at the exclusive POV restaurant (as guests, not as dinner) when they aren’t roaming about their suite, and the truth is, no one is quite sure what they’re doing [...]
Posted by Rob Crotty on November 23, 2010, under - Constitution, News and Events.
Comments: 2