36 Star Flag
Years Flown: 1865 - 1867
US Presidents:
Andrew Johnson (1865-1869)
Thirty-Six Star Flag became official 4 July 1865 after the admission of Nevada to statehood on 31 October 1864. The star is added at the next July 4th if statehood is after July 4th of the year statehood is granted.
Politics and Government
December 6, 1865: The Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution is ratified, abolishing slavery.
April 9, 1866: The Civil Rights Act of 1866 is enacted, granting citizenship and equal protection under the law to all born in the United States.
March 10, 1867: The U.S. Congress passes the first Reconstruction Act, setting out requirements for Southern states to re-enter the Union.
March 30, 1867: U.S. Secretary of State William H. Seward agrees to purchase Alaska from Russia for $7.2 million.
June 20, 1867: President Andrew Johnson signs the Tenure of Office Act, restricting his ability to remove certain officeholders without Senate approval.
October 8, 1867: The United States takes possession of Alaska after purchasing it from the Russian Empire.
July 9, 1868: The 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution is ratified, granting citizenship to all persons born or naturalized in the U.S.
Science, Technology and Medicine
August 17, 1866: The first successful transatlantic telegraph cable is completed, connecting North America and Europe.
May 21, 1867: The Medicine Lodge Treaty is signed between the United States government and various Native American tribes.
May 10, 1869: The First Transcontinental Railroad is completed, linking the Eastern and Western coasts of the United States.
Education
July 28, 1866: The Metric Act of 1866 (Kasson Act) is signed into law, providing the metric system an official conversion table of weights and measures in the United States.
March 2, 1867: the U.S. Department of the Interior establishes the Office of Education, which later becomes the U.S. Department of Education.
March 2, 1867: Howard University, a historically black university located in Washington, D.C., is founded.
Arts, Culture and Literature
June 19, 1865: Union General Gordon Granger arrives in Galveston, Texas, announcing the end of slavery, a day celebrated as Juneteenth.
October 1865: Walt Whitman publishes "Drum-Taps", a collection of poems inspired by his experiences as a nurse during the Civil War.
Nov 18, 1865: Mark Twain publishes his humorous short story "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County", marking the beginning of his literary career.
June 1, 1866: Renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright is born in Richland Center, Wisconsin.
January 9, 1867: African American men gain the right to vote in the District of Columbia.
May 12, 1867: The first recorded national observance of Mother's Day takes place in the United States.
International Events (July 4, 1865 - July 3, 1867)
November 16, 1866: Sun Yat-sen, a key figure in the Chinese revolution, is born.
May 3, 1867: The Hudson's Bay Company gives up all claims to Vancouver Island.
July 23, 1866: The Austro-Prussian War ends with the signing of the Peace of Prague.
January 30, 1866: The capital of Finland is transferred from Turku to Helsinki.
February 21, 1867: British North America Act, 1867 receives royal assent, establishing the Dominion of Canada.
July 1, 1867: The Dominion of Canada is officially established through the British North America Act, uniting the provinces of Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia.