#30: July 20-26

July 1874 – The First Typewriter: A New Way to Write

In July 1874, the very first successful typewriter was sold. Before that, people wrote everything by hand, which could take a long time and sometimes was hard to read. An inventor named Christopher Latham Sholes worked with a company called Remington & Sons to build a machine that helped people type words instead of writing them. This made writing faster and much easier. The keyboard they used is still around today—it’s called the QWERTY keyboard because of the first six letters on the top row. Fun Fact: The first typewriter could only type in capital letters—SO EVERY SENTENCE LOOKED LIKE THIS.

July 21 1861 – First Battle of Bull Run (Civil War)

On July 21, 1861, the first major battle of the American Civil War took place in Virginia. It was called the Battle of Bull Run (or Battle of Manassas in the South). People at the time thought the war would be short, but this battle showed that it would be much longer and harder than expected. Union and Confederate soldiers fought fiercely, and by the end of the day, the Confederate army had won. This battle made both sides realize the war was going to be more serious than they had thought. Fun Fact: Some people actually packed picnic baskets and came to watch the battle like it was a show—but they quickly ran away when the fighting got intense! Listen to the story about the beginning of the American Civil War, Episode 114: Our Divided Country

 July 22, 1862 – Abraham Lincoln Discusses the Emancipation Proclamation

On July 22, 1862, President Abraham Lincoln met with his cabinet to talk about an important idea—the Emancipation Proclamation. This was a special announcement that would say enslaved people in the Southern states were free. Lincoln believed that ending slavery was the right thing to do, but he also knew it could help the North win the Civil War by weakening the South. His cabinet members gave advice, and Lincoln decided to wait for a Union victory before sharing the news with the country. Fun Fact: When Lincoln first brought up the Emancipation Proclamation, not everyone in his cabinet agreed with him—but he stood strong, and just a few months later, he made the historic announcement. Listen to Episode 115: Abraham Lincoln, Leader Extraordinaire!

Want more CIVIL WAR resources? Check out the Civil War Course!

July 22, 1933 – Wiley Post Flies Around the World

On July 22, 1933, pilot Wiley Post made history by becoming the first person to fly solo around the world. He flew a special airplane called the Winnie Mae and traveled over 15,000 miles in just over 7 days. This was a big deal at the time because flying was still new and dangerous. Wiley Post used new tools, like an early version of the autopilot, to help him on his long journey. His flight showed how far technology had come and inspired people around the world to dream big. Fun Fact: Wiley Post wore one of the first pressurized flight suits, which made him look like a space explorer—long before astronauts existed! Want to hear the story about another famous aviator? Listen to Episode 49: Where did you go, Amelia?

July 24, 1911 – Hiram Bingham Finds Machu Picchu

On July 24, 1911, explorer Hiram Bingham discovered the ancient city of Machu Picchu hidden high in the Andes Mountains of Peru. Although local people already knew about the site, Bingham was the first to bring it to the attention of the outside world. The city had been built by the Inca Empire hundreds of years earlier and was filled with stone buildings, terraces, and mysterious temples. Covered by jungle for centuries, Machu Picchu quickly became one of the most famous archaeological discoveries in history. Fun Fact: Even though Machu Picchu is often called the “Lost City of the Incas,” it was never actually lost to the local people—they had known about it all along.