On October 1, 1903, the Boston Americans (soon to become the Red Sox) of the American League played the National League champion Pittsburgh Pirates in the first game of the modern World Series. Continue reading.
On October 1, 1961, Roger Maris slammed home run number sixty-one into the stands. Continue reading.
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On September 30, 1847, Congressman George Perkins Marsh delivered a speech on agricultural conditions in New England to the Agricultural Society of Rutland County, Vermont. Continue reading.
On September 30, 1882, the first centrally located electric lighting system using the Edison system in the West and the first hydroelectric central station in the United States began operation on the Fox River in Appleton, Wisconsin. Continue reading.
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On September 29, 1789, the final day of its first session, the United States Congress passed "An act to recognize and adapt to the Constitution of the United States, the establishment of the troops raised under the resolves of the United States in Congress assembled." Continue reading.
In October 1941, John F. Kennedy was appointed an ensign in the United States Naval Reserve, joining the staff of the Office of Naval Intelligence. Continue reading.
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On September 28, 1542, Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo of Portugal, sailing under the Spanish flag, sailed into San Diego Bay. While exploring the northwest shores of Mexico, Cabrillo became the first European to reach California. Continue reading.
On Saturday, September 28, 1912, William Christopher (W. C.) Handy's "Mister Crump," retitled "The Memphis Blues," went on sale at Bry's Department Store in Memphis. Continue reading.
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Professional golf’s all-time leading tournament winner Kathy Whitworth was born on September 27, 1939, in Monahans, Texas. Continue reading.
On September 27, 1514, the Spanish crown granted the explorer Juan Ponce de León a contract to settle the islands of Bimini and Florida (de León thought the latter was an island). Continue reading.
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Jonathan Chapman, born in Leominster, Massachusetts, on September 26, 1775, came to be known as "Johnny Appleseed." Continue reading.
On September 26, 1777, British troops marched into Philadelphia and occupied the city. Continue reading.
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This Friday through Sunday! The 2020 Library of Congress National Book Festival is Virtual
The 2020 Library of Congress National Book Festival is celebrating its 20th birthday this year! Join us this weekend at loc.gov/bookfest for an interactive, online celebration of American Ingenuity featuring more than loc120 authors, poets and illustrators at the first virtual event in the festival’s history. Connect with your favorite writers across all genres at our virtual “stages” including, Children, Teens, Family, Food & Field, Fiction, Genre Fiction, History & Biography sponsored by Wells Fargo, Poetry & Prose sponsored by National Endowment for the Arts, Science, and Understanding Our World.
View the full author lineup: loc.gov/events/2020-national-book-festival/authors/?loclr=ealn
Complete Your FREE Registration and Sign In Now
Create your FREE account now at loc.gov/bookfest to access on-demand videos, live author chats and discussions during the Festival weekend, Sept. 25 – 27. You’ll have options to personalize your own festival journey with timely topics, and to explore book buying possibilities through the festival’s official bookseller, Politics & Prose.
Today! A Day of Programming for Schools, Children & Teens at Home
Video interviews with popular authors of books for children and young adults, as well as two 1-hour video specials, are available for on-demand viewing starting today at 9 a.m. ET on the festival platform under the “Stages” tab. Log on at loc.gov/bookfest or view on the Library’s YouTube channel at youtube.com/loc/.
Young people can also check out the Roadmap to Reading, which features a list of “Great Reads from Great Places” – 53 books that reflect the literary heritage of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Don't miss live Q&As with some of today's most popular children and young adult authors – including Chelsea Clinton and Veronica Chambers. Visit loc.gov/bookfest for a complete schedule.
Download this Learning Guide for tips and suggestions on experiencing the virtual festival all weekend long with the kids and teens in your life: loc.gov/static/events/2020-national-book-festival/documents/NBF2020-Learning-Guide.pdf
The Library of Congress Prize for American Fiction and Literacy Awards to be given at Festival
Each year we take the opportunity of the Library of Congress National Book Festival to award a series of important prizes that celebrate and honor literature and literacy. This year, Colson Whitehead, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning novels “The Nickel Boys” and “The Underground Railroad,” will receive the Library of Congress Prize for American Fiction during the festival. The author will take part in a live Q&A event and talk about his life and work at this year’s National Book Festival, Saturday, Sept. 26 at 11 a.m. Also, five organizations working to expand literacy and promote reading will be awarded the 2020 Library of Congress Literacy Awards.
Read more: blogs.loc.gov/national-book-festival/2020/09/our-award-winners-colson-whitehead-literacy-honorees/
Watch the PBS Television Special on Sunday
Also a first in the festival’s history, the festivities will culminate with a PBS television special! Watch “The Library of Congress National Book Festival: Celebrating American Ingenuity,” hosted by Hoda Kotb on Sunday, Sept. 27, 6-8 p.m. ET/PT (check local listings and PBS streaming info).
Festival Shop
The National Book Festival may be virtual, but you can still receive actual merchandise to help capture the memories this year. Purchase swag at our on-line shop where you can also order a FREE commemorative tote bag courtesy of our media partner, C-SPAN.
SHOP: library-of-congress-shop.myshopify.com/collections/national-book-festival
Order books by featured authors from the Festival’s official bookseller – Politics & Prose – within the online platform at loc.gov/bookfest. A limited number of signed copies are available.
The 2020 National Book Festival poster is available for download at loc.gov/programs/national-book-festival/about-this-program/poster-gallery/. Also, a printed version of the poster will be shipped to you with a donation of $25 or more to support the National Book Festival from either our official bookseller, Politics & Prose, at this location politics-prose.com/national-book-festival-donation or the Library of Congress website at loc.gov/donate/ (select "National Book Festival").
#NatBookFest - Follow & Share on Social Media
Follow our social media accounts, re-post festival info, and share your own posts about the event and your favorite presenting authors using the hashtag #NatBookFest. We’ve even created a fun Facebook frame for your profile picture to let friend know you’ll be there! (While logged into Facebook, select your profile picture > select Add Frame > search for National Book Festival Badge 2020 > select then save.)
Thank You to Our National Book Festival Supporters
The festival is free to the public with support from our sponsors and donors including National Book Festival Co-Chair, David M. Rubenstein, Charter Sponsor, The Washington Post, Patrons, Institute of Museum and Library Services, National Endowment for the Arts, Wells Fargo, Women's Suffrage Centennial Commission, and many Friends and Media Partners. The full list can be found at loc.gov/events/2020-national-book-festival/sponsors/.
Our partners have even transformed their traditional Festival booths and are bringing you read-alongs, fun videos, author features, activities to download and giveaways — all online. Take a look at the schedule of those activities here, then log in to the platform to access them today. More: blogs.loc.gov/national-book-festival/2020/09/festival-partners-family-friendly-activities-are-back/
Please join us in thanking all of our supporters and consider making your gift to the Library of Congress at loc.gov/donate.
Novelist William Faulkner was born in New Albany, Mississippi, on September 25, 1897. Continue reading.
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Writer F. Scott Fitzgerald, best known for his classic American novel The Great Gatsby, was born on September 24, 1896, in St. Paul, Minnesota. Continue reading.
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On September 22, 1862, partly in response to the heavy losses inflicted at the Battle of Antietam, President Abraham Lincoln issued a preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, threatening to free all enslaved people in the states in rebellion if those states did not return to the Union by January 1, 1863. Continue reading.
On September 22, 1776, American patriot Nathan Hale was hanged for spying on British troops. Continue reading.
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The nation’s first daily newspaper, the Pennsylvania Packet and Daily Advertiser, began publication on September 21, 1784. Continue reading.
On September 21, 1595, Don Juan de Oñate's petition and contract for the conquest of New Mexico was presented to Luís de Velasco, the viceroy of Nueva Vizcaya. Continue reading.
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The United States Congress abolished the slave trade in the District of Columbia on September 20, 1850, as part of the legislative package called the Compromise of 1850. Continue reading.
On September 20, 1853, Elisha Graves Otis sold his first "hoist machines," or elevators, featuring an automatic safety brake that he had recently patented. Continue reading.
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The Saratoga campaign began on September 19, 1777. This first encounter between the British forces of General John Burgoyne and the American forces under General Horatio Gates is also known as the Battle of Freeman's Farm. Continue reading.
On September 19, 1819, English poet John Keats, inspired by the beauty of the changing season, wrote "To Autumn," a three-stanza ode to the splendor, bounty, and melancholy of fall. Continue reading.
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On September 18, 1895, Booker T. Washington delivered his famous "Atlanta Compromise" speech also known as the "Atlanta Exposition Speech" at the opening of the Cotton States and International Exposition in Atlanta, Georgia. Continue reading.
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On September 17, 1787, members of the Constitutional Convention signed the final draft of the Constitution. Continue reading.
On September 17, 1862, approximately 23,000 Union and Confederate soldiers were killed, wounded, or went missing during the Battle of Antietam, the bloodiest one-day battle of the Civil War. Continue reading.
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Early on the morning of September 16, 1810, Father Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla summoned the congregation of his small Dolores parish church and urged them to take up arms and fight for Mexico's independence from Spain. Continue reading.
On September 16, 1960, college football coach Amos Alonzo Stagg (1862-1965), then ninety-eight years old, announced his retirement after seventy years on the field. Continue reading.
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Writer, critic, and teacher Robert Penn Warren died on September 15, 1989. Continue reading.
William Howard Taft, who served as both President of the United States and Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, was born on September 15, 1857 in Cincinnati, Ohio. Continue reading.
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On September 14, 2016, Dr. Carla Hayden was sworn in by Chief Justice John G. Roberts as the 14th Librarian of Congress. Continue reading.
On September 14, 1638, John Harvard, a 31-year-old clergyman from Charlestown, Massachusetts, died, leaving his library and half of his estate to a local college. Continue reading.
On Sunday, September 14, 1938, members of the Russian Molokan Church held religious services in their new church building on Potrero Hill in San Francisco, California. Continue reading.
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As the evening of September 13, 1814, approached, Francis Scott Key, a young lawyer, was detained in Baltimore harbor under guard by the British navy. Continue reading.
American writer Sherwood Anderson was born on September 13, 1876, in Camden, Ohio. Continue reading.
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On September 12, 1918, the American Expeditionary Forces under commander in chief General John J. Pershing launched its first major offensive in Europe as an independent army. Continue reading.
Writer, editor, philologist, social critic, and Baltimore native H. L. Mencken was born on September 12, 1880. Continue reading.
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