NATIONAL ORCHID DAY
Each year on April 16th, National Orchid Day recognizes one of the world’s diverse and widespread flowering plant families. The orchids’ often colorful and fragrant blooms grow in abundance around the world. Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of flowering plants, with between 21,950 and 26,049 currently accepted species. Not only are they prolific, but they range in size from the 2.1 mm wide Platystele jungermannioides to broad-bloomed Grammatophyllum speciosum. Learn more…
NATIONAL WEAR YOUR PAJAMAS TO WORK DAY
Each year on April 16th, National Wear Your Pajamas To Work Day allows us a reprieve after meeting a late-night deadline shuffling receipts, and adding columns to file our taxes. Read more…
NATIONAL COLUMNISTS’ DAY
National Columnists’ Day on April 18th honors all newspaper columnists and their contributions to the truth in black and white. Read on…
NATIONAL EXERCISE DAY
National Exercise Day on April 18 offers inspiration to try new ways of becoming fit and healthy. These days there is no reason not to do something for your health. Including healthier eating habits too. Read more…
NATIONAL LINEMAN APPRECIATION DAY
National Lineman Appreciation Day on April 18th honors the men and women who work around the clock to keep the power going. If the power is on where you are reading this article, you likely have a lineman to thank. Read more…
NATIONAL EARTH DAY
Each year on April 22nd, National Earth Day campaigns around the globe promote ways to keep the Earth healthy and our planet livable. Learn more…
NATIONAL GIRL SCOUT LEADER’S DAY
Each year, National Girl Scout Leader’s Day on April 22nd recognizes the thousands of leaders who volunteer their time and share their experiences with youth across the country. Girl Scout volunteer leaders have been positively impacting girls’ lives since the beginning of Girl Scouting in 1912. These leaders are often beacons for girls as they approach womanhood. They provide a foundation of confidence, experience, respect, and courage that stays with a young woman throughout her lifetime. Read more…
April 25th, we observe National Telephone Day. Around the world, there are over 9.82 billion mobile phones. And while some predicted the landline to be obsolete by
2020, there are still about 931 million landlines
around the world.
February 14, 1876, Marcellus Bailey, one of Bell’s attorneys, rushed into the U.S. Patent office in Boston to file the patent for what would be the telephone.
Later the same day, Elisha Gray filed a patent caveat for a similar device. A caveat is an intent to file for a patent.
There was also a third contender. Antonio Meucci filed a caveat in
November of 1871 for a talking telegraph but failed to renew the caveat due to hardships.
Because Bell submitted his record first, the patent office awarded Bell the patent on March 7, 1876. Gray contested this decision in court, but without success.
Born March 3, 1847, in Edinburgh, United Kingdom, Bell taught at a boys’ boarding school. The sounds of speech were an integral part of his life. His father
developed a “Visible Speech” system for deaf students to communicate. Bell would later become a friend and benefactor of Helen Keller.
Three days after the patent was approved, Bell spoke the first words by
Three days after the patent was approved, Bell spoke the first words by telephone to his assistant. “Mr. Watson, come here! I want to see you!”
By May, Bell and his team stood prepared for a public demonstration. And there would be no better place than the grand stage of the World’s Fair in Philadelphia. On May 10, 1876, in a crowded Machinery Hall, a man’s voice transmitted from a small horn and carried out through a speaker to the audience. One year later, the White House installed its first phone. The telephone revolution began.
Bell Telephone Company
was founded on July 9, 1877, and they installed the first public telephone lines from Boston to Sommerville, Massachusetts, the same year. By the end of the decade, nearly 50,000 phones existed in the United States. In May of 1967, phone companies across the country installed the 100 millionth telephone line.
The Helping Hand: Finally, it’s National Help a Horse Day. This day is dedicated to raising awareness for equine rescue and the horses that need a second chance at a forever home.
The “Sultan of Swat”: Happy National Babe Ruth Day. We honor one of the greatest baseball players of all time. He once said, “Never let the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game.”