On April 30th...

1789 George Washington was inaugurated as the first President of the United States.

1798 The Department of the Navy was created by act of Congress.

1803 The Louisiana Territory was purchased from France (the treaty was signed May 2, but dated April 30).

1806 Zebulon Pike completed his exploration of the Upper Mississippi River.

1812 Louisiana became the 18th state.

1894 Jacob S. Coxey led an "army" of unemployed men on a march from Massillon, Ohio, to Washington, D.C.

1939 Television was publicly broadcast for the first time, from the Empire State Building.

1941 Edwin S. Porter, director of the first film to tell a story (The Great Train Robbery), died.

1948 The Charter of the Organization of American States was signed by 21 nations.

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This page was last updated on 03/29/2011.