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Margaret Mather, from the Actors and Actresses series (N171) for Old Judge Cigarettes. 1886–90. Credit line: The Jefferson R. Burdick Collection, Gift of Jefferson R. Burdick https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/405109

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Merry Christmas! 🇺🇸

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George Washington - prayer at Valley Forge

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This Day in History: Crossing the Delaware

On this day in 1776, General George Washington makes a harrowing trip across the Delaware River, in the dead of night. The tremendous feat came just when it was needed most.

Washington’s army was reeling from a series of crushing defeats: The British had won important battles in New York and had chased Americans across New Jersey. Early in December, a defeated American army had narrowly escaped across the Delaware River.

That river provided a barrier from further British attacks, at least for the moment, because Washington had ensured the destruction of every boat for miles around.

It was then that British General William Howe made a decision with serious ramifications for the British war effort.

FULL STORY: https://www.taraross.com/post/tdih-george-washington-delaware

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Horseback riders in deep snow, New Mexico

Photographer: Jesse Nusbaum Date: 1910 - 1925? Negative Number: 158117

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Merry Christmas Eve!

Grace Kelly

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Robert Wands. Julie Harris Stopping for a Coffee on Her Way to the Empire Theater. New York City, 1952.

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Evelyn Nesbit in early 1900s

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Woman in wedding dress holding flowers, Detroit between 1900 and 1910

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Marilyn Monroe Promoting "Love Happy" (1949)

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the saltpetre cave postcard ca. 1908-1913

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postcards of shipwrecks ca. 1900s-1930s

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Soaring into history 🛩️Wilbur and Orville Wright

Soaring into history on December 17, 1903, Wilbur and Orville Wright achieved the first successful flight of a heavier-than-air aircraft near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. Their revolutionary Wright Flyer soared for just 12 seconds on its maiden voyage.

The Wright brothers' invention was officially recognized when they were granted U.S. Patent No. 821,393 on May 22, 1906, for their "Flying Machine."

This patent, preserved in the records of the National Archives, laid the foundation for their innovative three-axis control system, which allowed a pilot to steer the aircraft effectively. This key innovation remains a fundamental principle in aviation to this day.

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Wright Brothers Day: Celebrating the Birth of Modern Aviation

Every year on December 17, the United States observes Wright Brothers Day to commemorate the first successful powered flight in history. On this day in 1903, Orville and Wilbur Wright achieved what many believed to be impossible, changing the course of human history forever. Their groundbreaking flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, marks the beginning of modern aviation and serves as a testament…

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Milestone Monday

A Brewed Rebellion

On this day, December 16, 1773, the Boston Tea Party took place, a significant event in American history. It was a political protest by the American colonists against British taxation without representation. The Tea Act of 1773 allowed the British East India Company to sell tea directly to the colonies. This undercutting of local merchants and enforcing a tax on tea was the catalyst for this protest.

On the night of the incident, a group of colonists, known as the Sons of Liberty, dressed as Mohawk Indians to conceal their identities and boarded three British ships anchored in Boston Harbor. They threw 342 chests of tea, worth around the equivalent of one million dollars today, overboard into the harbor.

Samuel Adams primarily led the Boston Tea Party, which was organized by John Hancock. However, the identities of many of the participants remain a mystery. Notably, Francis Akeley is the only individual known to have been arrested and imprisoned for his role in the event. 

The images come from:

Dorothy Q: Together with A Ballad of the Boston Tea Party & Grandmother's Story of Bunker Hill Battle by Oliver Wendell Holmes with illustrations by Howard Pyle, published in Boston by  Houghton, Mifflin and Company in 1893.

-View more of our Milestone Monday posts

-Melissa, Special Collections Graduate Intern

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Shocked and angry crowds in Times Square grab copies of the New York Enquirer bearing the headline of Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor, December 7, 1941.

Photo: Underwood Archives/Getty Images