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Washington Monument
It had taken so long to complete, thirty-seven years, that even after the capstone had been placed atop in 1884, the public would have to wait four more years until they could, officially, visit the unique obelisk that now skied above the capitol, at least for good on October 9, 1888 when it officially opened to the general public.
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1888
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Spotlight on Lesser Known History
Musikfest/Bethlehem
If it wouldn't have been for William Allen giving five hundred acres to the Moravian Church, there wouldn't be a Bethlehem. If it wouldn't have been a need during the industrial revolution for a steel plant on the south side of town, there wouldn't have been Bethlehem Steel. And if it hadn't been for both of them, the celebration known as Musikfest would not have begun forty years ago in 1984. And Musikfest was born to revitalize both when steel took a ride overseas, the festival small in 1984 but mighty, and today up to five hundred acts perform over the ten days of the festival in about twelve venues per year. And it draws over a million people per year to this free festival, the largest in the United States.
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Timeline of the Month
The Anglo-Dutch are going to war, again, plus expeditions galore, King Philip's War, and fur trade from Virginia to Hudson's Bay.
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The 1660's
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Minute Walk in History
Catoctin Mountain Park
Let's take an amble through the woods and Visitor Center at Catoctin Mountain Park, a National Park Service site near Thurmont, Maryland. It's also home to Camp David, but don't try to find it, they might shoot you. An ode to that however is the bluegrass music playing beneath the video, White House Blues by Charlie Poole and the North Carolina Ramblers.
Fan Favorite
Motion Pictures
On April 2, 1902, the first movie theatre in the United States opened in Los Angeles, California. It was known as Tally's Electric Theater, located at 262 South Main Street in Los Angeles, California, and was built as the first theater to solely be used as a movie theater. It's opening day was April 2, 1902 (there are some conflicting dates to this, all in early April). Prior to Tally's new invention, motion pictures were shown in storefronts or vaudeville theaters, but this theater would specifically show movies from the burgeoning business in California and all over the nation.
Historic Site of the Month
Battle of Cowpens
There's a bit of a battle between the rangers at Cowpens National Battlefield and Kings Mountain as to which battle is more important in the year or so before the end of the American Revolution, the battle that sapped the strength of Cornwallis and his British Regulars. Was it the loss of General Ferguson and his men or those of Lt. Colonel Tarleton and his soldiers at Cowpens? It's a fun exercise, but moot to the overall point. Without victories by the Continental soldiers and their patriot militia allies, the war would likely had gone on longer.
New Article
Washington Monument
On December 6, 1884, the capstone of three thousand three hundred pounds is positioned atop the Washington Monument by the Corps of Engineers. The monument, five hundred and fifty-five feet tall and now completed after nearly thirty-seven years of work, would be dedicated in February of 1885.
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1884
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History Notes
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Staff Notes - New content on the way, including more pop out details in our American History Timeline section. We also wanted to thank our readers for pushing America's Best History to new viewer heights. Since we started, over 15.2 million people have checked us out. Thanks!!!!
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Souvenirs
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Historic Site News and Info
Battlefield Preservation
Even in these difficult times, work continues on preserving the battlefields of the Civil War, American Revolution, and the War of 1812. The amazing work of the Battlefields Trust is currently attempting to preserve land at Gaines Mill and Cold Harbor, what some think is the most important land to be preserved at those locations. Check them out.
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