Hey friends,
Usually these posts have a list of 30 things you may want to know about….., but since August is my birthday month and I’m turning 34 this year (2016). I’m doing 34 things. Hope you enjoy this fun read.
1. The birthstones for August are the peridot and the sardonyx.
2. The zodiac signs for August are Leo (July 23 – August 22) and Virgo (August 23 – September 22)
3. The birth flowers for August are the gladiolus and the poppy.
4. Origin of August’s name: August was the 6th month in the early Roman calendar, named after Julius Caesar Augustus.
5. On August 2, 1909, the Lincoln penny was issued.
6. On August 3, 1492, Christopher Columbus set sail on his first voyage across the Atlantic.
7. During the Civil War on August 5, 1864, the Battle of Mobile Bay was won by the Union forces.
8. On August 6, 1926, Gertrude Ederle successfully swam the English Channel.
9. On August 6, 1945, the first atomic bomb was used in warfare on Hiroshima, Japan.
10. On August 7, 1942, the U.S. troops landed on Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands during World War II.
11. On August 9, 1974, Richard M. Nixon resigned from office, making him the first United States president to ever resign from office.
12. On August 12, 1877, the phonograph was invented by Thomas Edison.
13. On August 1, 1876, Colorado, also known as the Centennial State, became the 38th state of the United States.
14. On August 12, 1898, Hawaii was annexed by the United States.
15. August 16, 1977, Elvis Presley died at the age of 42.
16. On August 20, 1630, Lemonade was first served in Paris, France.
17. On August 24th in A.D 79, Mount Vesuvius erupted and destroyed the cities of Pompeii, Stabiae and Herculaneum.
18. August 30th is National Toasted Marshmallow Day. Yum, Yum!
19. On Aug. 21, 1911, the Mona Lisa was stolen from the Louvre Gallery and not recovered for two years.
20. August 26 – Women’s Equality Day
21.) National Watermelon Day on August 3rd
22.) Civil rights activist Martin Luther King, Jr. is best known for his famed “I have a dream” speech, which was given on Aug. 28, 1963.
23.) The month of August is often referred to as the “dog days of summer” because of the star Sirius, also known as the dog star, which rose at the same time as sunrise during the month of August in ancient Roman times.
24.) Some famous people born in August include Lucille Ball, Martha Stewart, Sean Connery, Cameron Diaz, Robert De Niro, Dustin Hoffman, Jada Pinkett Smith, Patrick Swayze, Whitney Houston, Michael Jackson, Madonna, LeAnn Rimes, James Taylor, Martin Sheen, Jeff Gordon, Deion Sanders, Louis Armstrong, Neil Armstrong, Antonio Banderas, Chris Hemsworth, Hulk Hogan, Mila Kunis, Jennifer Lawrence, Ben Affleck and Halle Berry.
25.) August 31st, 1997, Diana, Princess of Wales was killed in a car accident in France at the age of 36.
26.) The five presidents born in August are Bill Clinton, Benjamin Harrison, Herbert Hoover, Lyndon Johnson, Barack Obama .
27.) Friendship Day – first Sunday of August
28.) They are more holidays and vacations taken in August than any other month.
29.) On August 23, 1966, NASA’s Lunar Orbiter 1 took the first photo of Earth from the moon’s orbit, and it forever changed how we see our home planet.
30.) August 12, 1990-Skeleton of Tyrannosaurus rex ( Tyrannosaurus Sue) was discovered by Susan Hendrickson.
31.) August 14, 2003-Largest blackout in U.S History
32.)Monthly observances that take place in August include National Family Fun Month, National Golf Month, National Romance Awareness Month, and National Peach Month.
33.) August is a month of summer vacation and holiday for many children around the world.
34.) Many cultures call this month the harvest month or the time of harvest.
Sources:
http://www.famousbirthdays.com/facts/facts-about-august.html
http://www.richmond.com/life/celebrations/article_e787570a-fac3-11e2-8240-0019bb30f31a.html
Latisha, first of all, Happy Birthday when it comes. I hope you have a wonderful day!
I loved this list of facts and tidbits. My son’s birthday is also in August so I know he’ll enjoy some of these — especially the one about the T-Rex! I’m also printing it to use as a fun activity as we wrap up the summer vacation.
Thanks for sharing!
Wonderful list of facts; I did not know most of them. My son is currently obsessed with gems and stones so I did know the birthstone.