Current Colorado State Flag
Colorado Territory was created in 1861. The borders of the Colorado Territory were the same as the current borders of the state of Colorado. Because gold had been found in the Pikes Peak region, the federal government wanted to establish firm boundaries. The Civil War then delayed statehood. The territory was dissolved when Colorado became the thirty-eighth state on August 1, 1876.
Telephone was invented by Alexander Graham Bell in 1876 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Bell’s first call was to Thomas Watson (who was in another room in the same building).His first telephone message was “Mr. Watson, come here. I want you.” The famous duo of Alexander Graham Bell and Thomas A. Watson made history again when the first transcontinental telephone call occurred on January 25, 1915. Watson was in San Francisco, California, when Bell called him from New York, New York. President Woodrow Wilson and the mayors of both cities were also part of the call. Bell also investigated causes of deafness.
Hristo Botev Photograph
Public Domain
Bulgarians celebrate Hristo Botev Day. In 1876 Hristo Botev, writer and hero, died while fighting the Turks. Today Botev is a national hero in Bulgaria.
Bananas were imported into the United States for the first time in 1876. Today Equador exports the most bananas, and over 2.7 billion bananas are imported into the United States each year. Children could learn more about bananas at: 
Bananas. Then they could make banana pudding and read Bananas Gorilla by Richard Scarry. Today is Richard Scarry’s birthday.
George Custer
Custer’s Last Stand took place in 1876 at Little Bighorn. Custer and his men attacked a camp of Sioux Indians in Montana Territory. Custer had misjudged the number of Indian fighters, and all 200 soldiers were killed within two hours. Children can learn more at: Custer’s Last Stand. The Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument was established on November 26, 1991. Children can visit the monument site at: http://www.nps.gov/libi.
Colorado Flag
Colorado became the thirty-eighth state of the United States in 1876. Its nickname is the Centennial State, because it became a part of the country one hundred years after the revolution. Its name comes from a Spanish phrase meaning the color red. Early Spanish explorers in the area were impressed with the many red-colored canyons and thus called the area Colorado. People were living in the Mesa Verde cliff dwellings, in the state’s southwestern corner, around 1200. When gold was discovered in 1858, the local phrase became “Pike’s Peak or Bust.” It is the eighth largest state and the 21st most populous state. Denver is the state capital, and tourism is one of the most important economic factors. Children could visit an Internet site at: Colorado.
Award-Winning Books
American Library Association was founded in 1876 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Today the nonprofit organization has 62,000 members and a staff of 300. It sponsors a number of awards, including the John Newbery Awards, Randolph Caldecott Awards, Pura Belpré Awards, and Coretta Scott King Awards. Adults can find a list of the award-winning books at: Book Lists.