This celebration of one of the most iconic and delicious foods has
been taking place every year since the early part of the Roaring 20s.

The story goes that a teenager, Lionel Sternberger, who was working
in his father’s sandwich shop, The Rite Spot in Pasadena, California, 
just decided to put a slice of American cheese on a burger one day        
and found it to be tasty so he shared the idea with his dad who
liked it too. And, thus, the cheeseburger was born.

Although the idea was thought to be created in California in 1924,
the first actual sandwich to be marketed that was first called the
“cheeseburger” was at Kaelin’s restaurant in Louisville, Kentucky
in 1934. But the following year, in 1935, the term “cheeseburger”
was actually trademarked in another place, at the Humpty Dumpty
Drive-in in Denver, Colorado. It seems that people all over the U.S. 
have taken credit for the invention of the cheeseburger!
   

The world’s first electric traffic signal (above) was put into place
on the corner of Euclid Avenue and East 105th Street in Cleveland,
Ohio, on August 5, 1914.

In the earliest days of the automobile, navigating America’s roads
was a chaotic experience, with pedestrians, bicycles, horses and streetcars all competing with motor vehicles for right of way. The problem was alleviated somewhat with the gradual disappearance
of horse-drawn carriages, but even before World War I it had
become clear that a system of regulations was necessary to keep
traffic moving and reduce the number of accidents on the roads.

National Hot Dog Day was started by the North American Meat
Institute in 1991 and began being promoted and organized by the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council after they were
created by the institute in 1994. The day coincides with the
Annual Hot Dog Lunch at Capitol Hill in Washington D.C.,
which is also sponsored by the North American Meat Institute.

The lunch, which has taken place for decades, is a large hot dog picnic
attended by lawmakers, administration officials, and Capitol Hill
staff.

Thanks to President Reagan, we celebrate National Ice Cream
Day every third Sunday in July, meaning July 18 this year. The
President wanted to commemorate a treat enjoyed by over 90
percent of the US population. In 1984, he decreed a day for ice
cream, and his proclamation actually glorified the dairy industry
in America. In fact, Americans still lead the world when it comes
to eating this frozen delight: 23 gallons a year to be precise.

Ron & Nancy Reagan enjoy ice cream cones in the Summer
of 1967.