1504 – The statue, David, unveiled in Florence [Italy]. When the sculpture was commissioned in 1501, Michelangelo was only 26. He carved his masterwork from a single block of marble; a stone rejected by other other artists as being inferior.

1565 A Spanish expedition of settlers and troops, lead by Pedro Menéndez de Avilés, establish the first permanent European settlement, “San Agustin,” in the United States at present-day St. Augustine, Florida. He becomes Florida’s first governor.

1888 first practical submarine, invented by Isaac Peral, launched in Spain

1892 pledge of allegiance*, as conceived by Francis Bellamy, a Baptist minister and Christian socialist, first published in the popular children’s magazine, The Youth’s Companion. Part of a campaign, promoted by James B. Upham, marketer of the magazine, to instill the idea of American nationalism in students, and to encourage the raising of the American flag over schools through out the country.

(Thomas Nast,1869: illustrating perceptions of American nationalism/exceptionalism espoused by some at the time)

(A curious aside: the magazine was published by Perry Mason & Company. Earl Stanley Gardener, as an avid childhood reader of The Youth’s Companion, named his iconic lawyer after the publisher.)

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1921 16 year old Margaret Gorman from Washington, DC wins Atlantic City (NJ) Golden Mermaid Pageant; later, judges declare her the first Miss America.

1930 3M begins marketing first waterproof, transparent, pressure-sensitive tape. The process of coating strips of cellophane with adhesive was invented by company employee, Richard Drew.

(another aside: “‘Cellophane Tape’ picked up the ‘Scotch’ tag, according to legend, when a St. Paul car dealer became annoyed because the cellulose ribbons originally only had adhesive on the borders. Slagging 3M (known in those days as the Minnesota Mining & Manufacturing Co.) for being stingy, he invoked Scotland’s [supposedly] penny-pinching reputation and dubbed the product, ‘Scotch’ tape.” [Well, the rest is history.] from: Wired.com: “Scotch Tape Starts Sticking,” by Hugh Hart, 09.08.10)

1966 landmark American science fiction television series, Star Trek premieres. The first episode: “The Man Trap.” 

“Space: the final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. Its five-year mission: to explore strange new worlds. To seek out new life and new civilizations. To boldly go where no man has gone before!” Captain James T. Kirk, aka William Shatner

*

Note: An earlier version of the pledge also exists. Written by Civil War veteran and later auditor with the NY City School Board, Captain George T. Balch: “We give our heads and hearts to God and our country; one country, one language, one flag!” circa 1887 

The words were altered over time; first from Balch’s simpler version, then on through until the last changes made in 1954.

 1892 (1st Bellamy version)

“I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”

1892 to 1923 (early revision by Bellamy)

“I pledge allegiance to my Flag and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”

1923 to 1924

“I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”

1924 to 1954

“I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”

1954 (current version, per 4 U.S.C. §4)

“I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”