This Day in Awesome History

05/06/2026

On May 6, 1915, 20-year-old Boston Red Sox pitcher Babe Ruth hit his first major league home run against New York Yankees pitcher Jack Warhop at the Polo Grounds. The third-inning solo shot landed in the right-field stands, marking the start of his record-setting 714-home run career

04/30/2026

On April 30, 1952, Mr. Potato Head becomes the first toy advertised on television. It was also the first TV advertisement targeted at children. The ad campaign was successful, with over one million sets sold in the first year. Mrs. Potato Head was added the following year.

04/27/2026

On April 27, 1897, Grant's Tomb, the final resting place of General Ulysses S. Grant, is dedicated. It was dedicated on the 75th-anniversary of Grant's birth on April 27, 1822 and is the largest mausoleum in North America. His wife Julia Dent Grant died five years later and was placed in a matching sarcophagus beside him.

04/23/2026

On April 23, 1635, the Boston Latin School was established by town vote in Boston, Massachusetts, making it the oldest public school in America. Modeled after the Free Grammar School in Boston, England, it was founded to teach Latin and Greek to young men. It predates Harvard College by over a year.

04/21/2026

A life jacket worn by a passenger on RMS Titanic as she escaped the sinking steamship on a lifeboat sold at auction on Saturday for $906,000. The flotation device was worn by Laura Mabel Francatelli, a first-class passenger on the doomed ocean liner, and is signed by her and other survivors from the same lifeboat.

04/15/2026

On April 15, 1947, Jackie Robinson, 28, becomes the first African American player in Major League Baseball's modern era when he steps onto Ebbets Field in Brooklyn to compete for the Brooklyn Dodgers. Robinson broke the color barrier in a sport that had been segregated for more than 50 years. Exactly 50 years later, on April 15, 1997, Robinson’s groundbreaking career was honored and his uniform number, 42, was retired from Major League Baseball

04/09/2026

On April 9, 1959, NASA picks its first seven astronauts. They became known as the Mercury Seven. The astronauts were Scott Carpenter, Gordon Cooper, John Glenn, Gus Grissom, Wally Schirra, Alan Shepard, and "Deke" Slayton.

03/30/2026

Jeopardy! premiered on March 30, 1964, on NBC, created by Merv Griffin and hosted by Art Fleming. The show pioneered the unique format of providing answers, requiring contestants to respond with questions. The original daytime run lasted until 1975, followed by a 1978–79 revival, before the iconic Alex Trebek version debuted in 1984.

03/24/2026

Born on March 24, 1943, G.I. Joe. In 1943, during World War II, the carrier pigeon saved over 1,000 British troops. U.S. air bombings were scheduled against German positions at Calvi Vecchia, Italy. However, British troops had captured the village. Unable to get a message to the Americans to stop the bombings, they sent G.I. Joe. The pigeon traveled the 20 miles in 20 minutes, just in time to halt the bombings.

03/19/2026

George Lucas 1984 before CGI

03/16/2026