Having been on this planet as long as I have, I find myself looking up various things pertaining to history. The ‘where and when” type event that helped shape our country and/or our world. So, with that in mind I began looking at the month of April and sure enough, a lot has taken place in this month over time including the recent successful flight around the moon by Artemis II. Her are just a few.
April 4, 1917 – The United States officially entered World War I on this day as a response to Germany attacking American ships. President Woodrow Wilson decided to mobilize the nation and join the Allied Powers against the Central Powers.
April 11, 1970 – Launched from Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Apollo 13 was sent towards the moon for a lunar landing. When an oxygen tank exploded two days into the mission, all plans were aborted. Instead, the crew undertook a life-or-death journey back to earth that had the world watching from the edge of their seats. They landed safely in the Pacific Ocean on April 17.
April 12, 1861 – When General P.G.T. Beauregard fired on Fort Sumter, South Carolina on April 12, 1861, he initiated the first military engagement of what would become the bloody and transformative American Civil War. The northern and southern states of the United States plunged into a conflict that would tear the country apart and bring the loss of thousands and thousands of lives in a struggle over the issues of slavery, states’ rights, and national identity.
April 14, 1865 – It was on this day that actor John Wilkes Booth assassinated President Abraham Lincoln at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D. C., altering the course of history after Lincoln led the nation through the Civil War and abolished slavery in America.
April 15, 1912 – One of the deadliest maritime tragedies in history, about 1,500 people lost their lives when the RMS Titanic sank on its maiden voyage from Southampton, England to New York City. Called “unsinkable” at the time of its building, the Titanic disaster was caused by a mixture of arrogance, a design flaw and lack of an organized evacuation plan.
April 15, 1947 – Jackie Robinson became the first African American player in Major League Baseball when he took over first base for the Brooklyn Dodgers on April 15, 1947. Until that moment, black players could only play in the Negro leagues. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1962.
I was 12 years old and at the game with my grandfather sitting in his box seats right next to the Dodger dugout. I remember it like it was yesterday.
April 20, 1999 – Shocking the world, the Columbine High School massacre took place on a quiet morning in Littleton, Colorado. Two disenfranchised seniors took 13 lives and wounded many others before having their own lives cut short. The actions of these two young men have sadly been copied many times around the country since then, including just a year ago in Nashville at Covenant School. This event has sparked debates about gun control, school safety and teen mental health.
April 29, 1972 – The Watergate scandal took a turn when President Richard Nixon released transcripts of infamous tapes he had made of conversations taking place in the Oval Office. The revelations of political espionage from these tapes changed the way Americans think about politicians and the political process. It also led to Nixon’s resignation.
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That is just a small part of all the various events that took place in the month of April that would become important footnotes to history. If you enjoyed this look at what this month brought let us know. Maybe we will make this a monthly part of “Art’s World” in the future.
Art Koch, National Features & DVD Editor, NightMoves Magazine and AAN
