On February 22, 1732, George Washington was born in
Westmoreland County, Virginia, the first of six children
of Augustine and Mary Ball Washington. (Augustine had
three additional children from a previous marriage.)
An initially loyal British subject, Washington eventually
led the Continental Army in the American Revolution
and became the new nation’s first president.
He is often referred to as the father of the United States.
Lt. Edward Henry (“Butch”) O’Hare took off from the aircraft
carrier Lexington in a raid against the Japanese position at
Rabaul and minutes later became America’s first WWII flying
ace, shooting down five enemy bombers.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt congratulates Lieutenant
(j.g.) Edward H. O’Hare, United States Navy, on being
presented the Medal of Honor (below) at the White
House, Washington, D.C., 21 April 1942.
Lieutenant Commander Edward Henry O’Hare
(March 13, 1914 – November 26, 1943
O’Hare went missing in action on November 26, 1943, and
was declared dead a year later. His widow Rita received
her husband’s posthumous decorations, a Purple Heart
and the Navy Cross on November 26, 1944.
On February 19, 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed
Executive Order 9066, initiating a controversial World War II
policy with lasting consequences for Japanese Americans.
The document ordered the forced removal of resident "enemy
aliens" from parts of the West vaguely identified as military
areas.
BRIAN THOMAS
Michael Jeffrey Jordan was born at in Brooklyn, New York
City. He is 62 years old today.
As former professional basketball player MJ played 15 seasons
in the National Basketball Association between 1984 and 2003,
winning six NBA championships with the Chicago Bulls.
He was integral in popularizing basketball and the NBA around
the world in the 1980s and 1990s, becoming a global cultural
icon.
His profile on the NBA website states, "By acclamation, Michael
Jordan is the greatest basketball player of all time."
On February 15, 1903, toy store owner and inventor Morris
Michtom places two stuffed bears in his shop window,
advertising them as Teddy bears.
Michtom had earlier petitioned President Theodore Roosevelt
for permission to use his nickname, Teddy.
The president agreed and, before long, other toy manufacturers
began turning out copies of Michtom’s stuffed bears, which
soon became a national childhood institution.
Theodore Roosevelt Jr.
(October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919)
