July 2021

After being postponed for a year, the Tokyo 2020 Olympics are now in full swing. Although this year’s games are different due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is still full of history making celebrations from some amazing female athletes. Weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz made history for winning the Philippines’s first Olympic gold medal. Japan’s Momiji Nishiya became the first gold medalist in the women’s street skateboarding event at just 13 years old. She is also Japan’s… Read the full story

On this day in 1818, author Emily Brontë was born. Image: Emily Brontë / Wikimedia Commons She was born on July 30 1818 in Thornton, Yorkshire, England and was the fifth of six children born to Patrick Brontë and Maria Branwell. When she was three, her mother died of cancer shortly after the birth of her younger sister, Anne. Four years later, her older sisters, Maria and Elizabeth, died of tuberculosis after contracting the illness… Read the full story

Today we remember Vincent van Gogh, who died on July 29, 1890. Although he is widely considered to be one of the most influential painters of the 20th century, van Gogh was virtually unknown during his lifetime. Image: Vincent van Gogh / Wikimedia Commons Vincent Willem van Gogh was born on March 30, 1853 in Zundert, Netherlands to Theodorus van Gogh, a minister of the Dutch Reformed Church, and Anna Cornelia Carbentus. The eldest of… Read the full story

Today we remember legendary comedian Bob Hope, who died on this day in 2003 at the age of 100. With a career that spanned more than eight decades, Hope conquered almost every entertainment medium, from vaudeville and Broadway to radio, television, and film. Image: Bob Hope / U.S. National Archives and Records Administration He was born Leslie Townes Hope on May 29, 1903 in Eltham, London and was the fifth of seven sons born to… Read the full story

Happy birthday to actor Woody Harrelson! Today the star turns 60. Image: Woody Harrelson / LBJ Library photo by Gabriel Cristóver Pérez Harrelson was born Woodrow Tracy Harrelson on July 23, 1961 in Midland, Texas to Diane Oswald and Charles Harrelson. His father was a convicted contract killer and received a life sentence in 1979. He died in prison in 2007. His mother worked as a legal secretary and raised Harrelson and his two brothers alone. In… Read the full story

Today we remember beloved game show host Alex Trebek on what would have been his 81st birthday. Image: Alex Trebek / Nestor Cruz, U.S. Air Force He was born George Alexander Trebek on July 22, 1940 in Sudbury, Ontario to George Edward Trebek (born Terebeychuk) and Lucille Marie Lagacé. His father emigrated from the Ukraine as a child and became a chef. His mother was French Canadian and so Trebek grew up speaking both French… Read the full story

Today we remember actor Robin Williams on what would have been his 70th birthday. Image: Robin Williams / Eva Rinaldi, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0) He was born Robin McLaurin Williams on July 21, 1951 in Chicago, Illinois. A quiet child growing up, Williams joined the drama department at school to help overcome his shyness. As a student at Julliard, he became friends with fellow actor Christopher Reeve. The pair shared a close friendship until Reeve’s… Read the full story

French painter Edgar Degas was born on July 19, 1834 in Paris, France. Image: Edgar Degas / Wikimedia Commons He was born Hilaire-Germain-Edgar De Gas and was the eldest child of Augustin De Gas, a banker, and Marie-Celestine Musson, an American from New Orleans, Louisiana. Her father, Germain Musson, had fled his home in Haiti in 1804 and made a small fortune in Louisiana cotton. As an adult, he changed the spelling of his surname to… Read the full story

On this day in 1862, investigative journalist, educator, and civil rights activist Ida B. Wells was born. Image: Ida B. Wells / National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution Wells was born into slavery on July 16, 1862 in Holly Springs, Mississippi to James Maddison Wells and Elizabeth “Lizzie” Warrenton. After emancipation, her father was a trustee of Shaw College (today Rust College), a school for the newly freed enslaved people. Wells attended the school until she… Read the full story

Today marks the 415th anniversary of the birth of Dutch painter Rembrandt van Rijn. Image: Rembrandt van Rijn / Wikimedia Commons The 17th century painter was born on July 15, 1606 in what is today the Netherlands. The ninth child born to Harmen Gerritszoon van Rijn and Neeltgen Willemsdochter van Zuijtbrouck, Rembrandt showed an early talent for the arts. He trained as an artist under two masters before beginning to practice as a professional portrait… Read the full story

On this day in 1862, geologist and educator Florence Bascom was born. A pioneer of her field, Bascom is considered to be the first female geologist in America. Image: Florence Bascom / Smithsonian Institution, Flickr Bascom was born on July 14, 1862 in Williamstown, Massachusetts. She was the youngest surviving child of John Bascom, a professor at Williams College, and Emma Curtiss, a teacher and women’s right’s activist. Both of her parents were strong supporters… Read the full story

Happy birthday to Patrick Stewart! A veteran of the stage and screen, Stewart’s versatile career has spanned from the works of Shakespeare to some of popular culture’s most iconic franchises. Image: Patrick Stewart / Gage Skidmore, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0) Stewart was born on July 13, 1940 in Mirfield, England to Gladys Barrowclaugh, a textile worker, and Alfred Stewart, a Regimental Sergeant Major in the British Army. Growing up in a poor and abusive household,… Read the full story

On this day in 1854, American inventor and philanthropist George Eastman was born. Image: George Eastman / Library of Congress Eastman was born on July 12, 1854 in Waterville, New York and was the youngest of three children born to George Washington Eastman and Maria Kilbourn. His father started a small business school, Eastman Commercial College, in Rochester, New York. When Eastman was 8, his father died suddenly and by 14, he left school to… Read the full story

Do you have a favorite Tom Hanks movie? Today the beloved actor turns 65! Image: Tom Hanks / Wikimedia Commons Hanks was born Thomas Jeffrey Hanks on July 9, 1956 in Concord, California to Janet Frager, a hospital worker, and Amos Mefford, a cook. In 1979, he moved to New York City to pursue an acting career. After appearing in low-budget movies and bit parts on television, Hanks landed the lead role in the television comedy Bosom… Read the full story

Today actor Kevin Bacon celebrates his 63rd birthday! Image: Kevin Bacon / Genevieve, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0) The actor and musician was born on July 8, 1958 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Edmund Norwood Bacon and Ruth Holmes. His father was a prominent architect and served as the Executive Director of the Philadelphia City Planning Commission. Sometimes called the “Father of Modern Philadelphia,” the elder Bacon’s vision helped shape much of today’s Philadelphia. Bacon made… Read the full story

On this day in 1861, American geneticist Nettie Stevens was born. A pioneer of her field, Stevens is credited with discovering sex chromosomes. Image: Nettie Stevens / Wikimedia Commons Stevens was born on July 7, 1961 in Cavendish, Vermont to Julia Adams and Ephraim Stevens. An excellent student, Stevens was near the top of her class. She and her sister, Emma, were two of three women to graduate from Westford Academy, a private high school,… Read the full story

Do you have Mexican ancestry? On this day in 1907, Mexican painter Frida Kahlo was born. Image: Frida Kahlo / Library of Congress She was born Magdalena Carmen Frieda Kahlo y Calderón in her parents’ house, known as La Casa Azul, in Coyocoán, a town on the outskirts of Mexico City. Her father, Guillermo Kahlo, was born Carl Wilhelm Kahlo in Pforzheim, Germany. A photographer, Frida’s father traveled to Mexico at the age of 19 and changed his… Read the full story

On July 4 the United States celebrates Independence Day, which commemorates the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. In July 1776, the Continental Congress declared that the thirteen American colonies were no longer subject to British rule under King George III and were now free, independent states. In celebration of the holiday, we take a look at a few of the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence and how they are related to each… Read the full story

On this day in 1903, Olav V of Norway was born. Nicknamed “the People’s King,” Olav was immensely popular during his reign for his down-to-earth style. Image: Olav V of Norway / National Library of Norway The Norwegian monarch was born with the name Alexander Edward Christian Frederik on July 2, 1903 at Appleton House at the royal Sandringham Estate in Norfolk, England. He was the only child of Prince Carl of Denmark and Princess Maud, the… Read the full story

“Carry out a random act of kindness, with no expectation of reward, safe in the knowledge that one day someone might do the same for you.” Today we remember Diana, Princess of Wales on what would have been her 60th birthday. Fondly known as the People’s Princess, Diana was one of the most adored members of the British royal family.  Image: Princess Diana, Wikimedia Commons Diana Frances Spencer was born into an aristocratic English family on… Read the full story