This Month in History: July

July 1^st:

1862: Congress gave the green light to the first income tax. Abraham Lincoln soon signed the bill into law. It created the IRS. Income tax wasn't added to the constitution until 1913, when it became the 16^th Amendment.

1863: The largest Battle in U.S. History, Gettysburg, began today. It lasted 3 days.

1867: Canada officially recognized as its own country by Great Britain. July 1^st is Canada's Independence Day.

July 2^nd:

1937: Today is the last day that Amelia Earhart disappeared. She and Frederick Noonan were attempting to fly around the world. They disappeared near Howland Island in the Pacific Ocean.

1964: Lyndon B Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act, ending sanctioned segregation in the U.S.

1776: The Second Continental Congress voted on Richard Henry Lee's resolution for independence from Great Britain. The vote was unanimous.

July 3^rd:

1863: The Battle of Gettysburg ended with a combined 48,000 dead, missing, and wounded casualties on both the Confederate and the Union sides.

1775: George Washington took command of the Continental Army.

1890: Idaho became the 43^rd state. It was the last state to be explored by white people because the U.S. was explored from the coasts inward.

July 4^th:

1776: The U.S. officially declared independence and signed the Declaration of Independence. We were given a new country and a holiday to grill on.

1826: Both Thomas Jefferson and John Adams died. They died within 5 hours of each other. John Adam's last words were "Thomas Jefferson still survives." No one knows why, especially because Jefferson had been dead for five hours.

July 5^th:

1996: Dolly the Sheep was born in Scotland. She was named after Dolly Parton.

1865: The Salvation Army was founded. It was originally named the Christian Mission.

1916: Due to an outbreak of polio, children under 16 are banned from theatres in New York City.

1946: The bikini as it is known now was introduced.

July 6^th:

1942: The Frank Family took refuge after Anne's older sister received a notice to report to a Nazi work camp.