celebrateandlearn

Happy Birthday, North Carolina!

 Events
Nov 212025
 
Thumbnail for version as of 07:52, 20 January 2012

North Carolina Flag

North Carolina became the twelfth state of the United States by ratifying the Constitution in 1789. Its founders named the state after Charles I. Carolus means Charles in Latin. The state’s nicknames are the Tar Heel State and Old North State. Raleigh is the state capital. The state ranks 28th in size and 9th in population. In colonial times the state raised rice and tobacco. Leading sources of income today are tobacco, textiles, and furniture. The Wright Brothers flew their first airplane in Kittyhawk, North Carolina. Children could learn more at: North Carolina. They could also find out what a tar heel is.

Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge Opened in 1964

 Events
Nov 212025
 

Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge opened in 1964. The 4,260-foot suspension bridge connects Brooklyn and Staten Island. The bridge was the longest in the world until the Humber Bridge was completed in the United Kingdom in 1981. The New York bridge was named in honor of Giovanni de Verrazzano, who was the first European to explore the Hudson River and the New York Harbor. Children could learn about the bridge at: Youtube.

Birthdays

 Birthdays
Nov 212025
 

Josiah Bartlett (born Amesbury, Massachusetts, 1729; died Kingston, May 19, New Hampshire, 1795) signed the Declaration of Independence. A physician, he represented New Hampshire. He was the first representative to vote for independence and the first representative to approve the Declaration of Independence. During the Revolutionary War he aided wounded soldiers. After the war, Bartlett was governor of New Hampshire from 1790 to 1794. Children could learn more at: Josiah Bartlett.

Stanley “Stan the Man” Musial (born Donora, Pennsylvania, 1920; died Ladue, Missouri, January 19, 2013) was a Baseball Hall of Fame outfielder and first baseman. He played for the Saint Louis Cardinals from 1941 to 1944. After completing his military duty in 1945, he returned to the Cardinals and played for them from 1946 to 1963. Children could learn more about him at: Stan Musial.

Leo Politi (born Fresno, California, 1908; died Fresno, California, March 26, 1996) was a children’s author and illustrator. His Pedro: The Angel of Olvera Street received the 1947 Caldecott Honor Award. Next, Juanita was chosen to be a 1949 Caldecott Honor Award book. Finally, Song of the Swallows won the 1950 Caldecott Medal. Children can learn more at: Leo Politi.

Elizabeth George Speare (born Melrose, Massachusetts, 1908; died Tucson, Arizona, November 15, 1994) was a children’s author. She is one of only six authors who have earned two Newbery Medals. She received the 1959 Newbery Medal for The Witch of Blackbird Pond. In 1962 she won another Newbery Medal for The Bronze Bow, She also wrote The Sign of the Beaver, which was a 1984 Newbery Honor Book and the recipient of the Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction. In 1989 Speare received the Laura Ingalls Wilder Award of her contributions to children’s literature. Children could learn more at: Elizabeth George Speare.

Margaret Whalen Turner (born 1965) writes fantasy for young adults. Her book The Thief earned a 1997 Newbery Honor Award. Other books include The Queen of Attolia and The King of  Attolia. Young adults can visit her website: Megan Whalen Turner.

Lebanon Celebrates Independence Day

 Events
Nov 222025
 
Thumbnail for version as of 18:01, 14 October 2009

Flag of Lebanon

Lebanon celebrates Independence Day. The country was under French control from the end of World War I until 1943. Lebanon is about three-fourths the size of Connecticut. Over four million people live in the country, and about half of population live in the capital, Beirut. Its resources include limestone, salt, and iron ore. Lebanon is a “water-surplus state in a water-deficit region.”

Mail Delivery via Airplane in 1935

 Events
Nov 222025
 

China Clipper, a “flying boat,” left San Francisco, California, and arrived in Manila about sixty hours later. The route it took included stops at Honolulu, Midway Island, Wake Island, and Guam. This 1935 flight started the first trans-Pacific mail delivery system. An interesting fact is that the plane’s navigator was Fred Noonan. He was Amelia Earhart’s navigator when they both disappeared somewhere in the Pacific in 1937.

Birthdays

 Birthdays
Nov 222025
 

Sieur de La Salle (born Rouen, France, 1643; died in Texas, March 19, 1687) was an explorer. He traveled down the Mississippi River to the Gulf of Mexico. He claimed all the lands that emptied into the Mississippi River for France. Children could view an excellent video at: Sieur de La Salle.

Abraham Baldwin (born North Guilford, Connecticut, 1754; died Washington, DC, March 4, 1807) represented Georgia at the Constitutional Convention. He was a chaplain during the Revolutionary War. After the war, he became an attorney and moved to Georgia. He decided to be a politician, and during the Constitutional Convention he kept the discussion going regarding Congress. He served in the House of Representatives for ten years and the Senate for eight years when he died during his second term. Children can learn more at: Abraham Baldwin.

Guion S. Bluford, Jr. (born Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1942) is the first African American astronaut to travel in space. He was a mission specialist on four space shuttle missions: STS-8. STS-61-A, STS-39, and STS-53. Children could visit a website at: Guion Bluford.

George Eliot (born Mary Ann Evans in Chilvers Coton, Warwickshire, England, 1819; died Chelsea, England, December 22, 1880) was a poet, journalist, and novelist. Two of her seven novels are Silas Marner and Middlemarch. Older children can read many of her works at: Project Gutenberg.

Jerrie Mock (born Newark Ohio, 1925; died Quincy, Florida, September 30, 2014) was an aviator, most known as the first woman to fly solo around the world. She took off from Columbus, Ohio, on March 19, 1964. Over 29 days later, she returned to Columbus on April 17, 1964. She also accomplished a number of other aviation records. Children could learn more at: Jerrie Mock. They could also read The Jerrie Mock Story: The First Woman to Fly Solo around the World by Nancy Roe Pimm.

Wiley Post (born Grand Plain, Texas, 1898; died near Port Barrow, Alaska, August 15, 1935) was an early aviator and stunt parachutist. The self-taught pilot flew the Winnie Mae. He co-authored, along with his navigator Harold Gatty, Around the World in Eight Days. He and Will Rogers were traveling from Fairbanks, Alaska, to Point Barrow, Alaska, when their plane crashed.

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