By Esmerelda Emerald Espino
FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS
Canada Day (French: Fête du Canada), formerly known as Dominion Day (French: Fête du Dominion), is the national day of Canada. A federal statutory holiday, it celebrates the anniversary of Canadian Confederation which occurred on July 1, 1867, with the passing of the British North America Act, 1867, when the three separate colonies of the United Canadas, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick were united into a single dominion within the British Empire called Canada.
Originally called Dominion Day (French: Le Jour de la Confédération), the holiday was renamed in 1982, the same year that the Canadian constitution was patriated by the Canada Act, 1982, which severed the vestiges of legal dependence on the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Canada Day celebrations take place throughout the country, as well as in various locations around the world attended by Canadians living abroad.
TODAY’S ALMANAC
Question of the Day
Advice of the Day
Home Hint of the Day
Word of the Day
Puzzle of the Day
Born
- William Howard Brett (American librarian) –
- Louis Blériot (first man to fly across the English Channel) –
- Benjamin Oliver Davis (first African American general in U.S. Army) –
- Walter Francis White (author) –
- William Wyler (film director) –
- Estée Lauder (cosmetics executive) –
- Olivia de Havilland (actress) –
- Jamie Farr (actor) –
- Sydney Pollack (director) –
- Dan Aykroyd (actor) –
- Princess Diana of Wales –
- Carl Lewis (athlete) –
- Missy Elliott (hip hop artist) –
- Liv Tyler (actress) –
- Jarome Iginla (hockey player) –
Died
- Michael Landon (actor) –
- Robert Mitchum (actor) –
- Walter Matthau (actor) –
- Marlon Brando (actor) –
- Luther Vandross (singer) –
- Karl Malden (actor) –
- Mollie Sugden (actress) –
Events
- Battle of Gettysburg began–
- Dominion of Canada was created by the British North America Act; the Dominion consisted of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Lower and Upper Canada–
- John A. Macdonald became the first prime minister of Canada–
- Prince Edward Island joined the Canadian Confederation–
- First U.S. zoo opened, with bear pit and lion house, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania–
- Lincoln Highway Association formed to create first coast-to-coast U.S. highway–
- First sales tax in U.S. began in West Virginia–
- First Piano Concerto by Bela Bartok premiered in Frankfurt, Germany–
- Bulova Watch company sponsored the first television commercial–
- Intelligence and Security Branch of U.S. Army established–
- Zip codes introduced for U.S. mail–
- Medicare went into effect–
- O Canada officially became the national anthem of Canada–
- After a seven-year journey, NASA’s Cassini probe became the first spacecraft ever to orbit the giant ringed planet Saturn–
- Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, the first woman appointed to the Supreme Court, announced that she was retiring from the bench after 24 years–
- Andy Pettitte broke Whitey Ford’s record for career strikeouts as a New York Yankees pitcher after striking out his 1,958th batter–
Weather
- The temperature in Portland, Oregon, reached 107 degrees F–
COURTESY www.almanac.com
