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July 26, 2007
This Day in History: July 26th
July 26, 1775:, members of the Second Continental Congress, meeting in Philadelphia, agreed:
That a postmaster general be appointed for the United Colonies, who shall hold his office at Philada, and shall be allowed a salary of 1000 dollars per an: for himself, and 340 dollars per an: for a secretary and Comptroller, with power to appoint such, and so many deputies as to him may seem proper and necessary.
That a line of posts be appointed under the direction of the Postmaster general, from Falmouth in New England to Savannah in Georgia, with as many cross posts as he shall think fit.
This simple statement signaled the birth of the Post Office Department, the predecessor of the U.S. Postal Service and the second oldest federal department or agency of the United States.
Benjamin Franklin was the first Postmaster General. Under him and his immediate successors, the postal system mainly carried communications between Congress and the armies.
America’s present Postal Service descends in an unbroken line from the system Franklin planned and placed in operation. History rightfully accords him major credit for establishing the basis of the system that has well served the growing and changing needs of the American people.Did You Know?
A Postmaster delivered mail to Revolutionary War soldiers on foot because he lacked the money to buy a horse.
Cite this webpage:
The Postal Service begins - The U.S. Postal Service begins. Retrieved July 26, 2007, from USPS - The Postal Service Begins Web site: http://www.usps.com/postalhistory/postal_service_begins.htm
Want More Postal History?
Get even more information, details, and images from Publication 100 (HTML) | (PDF)
The following information can be found: History.com - This Day in History:
1908: FBI founded
On July 26, 1908, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is born when U.S. Attorney General Charles Bonaparte orders a group of newly hired federal investigators to report to Chief Examiner Stanley W. Finch of the Department of Justice. One year later, the Office of the Chief Examiner was renamed the Bureau of Investigation, and in 1935 it became the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Read the complete article.Cite the article:
FBI founded. (2007). The History Channel website. Retrieved 11:23, Jul 26, 2007, from http://www.history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=6970.
Books in the GSU Library about the FBI:
Author: Schmidt, Regin.
Title: Red scare : FBI and the origins of anticommunism in the United States, 1919-1943 / Regin Schmidt.
Call Number: E743.5 .S3552000
Title: The FBI : a comprehensive reference guide / edited by Athan G. Theoharis with Tony G. Poveda, Susan Rosenfeld, Richard Gid Powers.
Call Number: REF. HV8144.F43 T48 1999
Find more books about the FBI in the GSU Library.
1931: Grasshoppers bring ruin to Midwest
On this day in 1931, a swarm of grasshoppers descends on crops throughout the American heartland, devastating millions of acres. Iowa, Nebraska and South Dakota, already in the midst of a bad drought, suffered tremendously from this disaster. Read the complete article.Cite this article:
Grasshoppers bring ruin to Midwest. (2007). The History Channel website. Retrieved 11:46, Jul 26, 2007, from http://www.history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=857.
Posted by d-nadler at July 26, 2007 10:15 AM