On This Day In History ~ May
United States Presidents
On This Day in Presidential History
May 1
May 2
- 2011, Barack Obama announces to the nation the death of Osama Bin Laden in Pakistan at the hands of U.S. Military forces.
May 3
May 4
May 5
May 6
May 7
- 1789, George Washington attends Inaugural Ball.
- 1914, Woodrow Wilson's daughter Eleanor Randolph Wilson married Secretary of the Treasury William Gibbs McAdoot.
May 8
- 1846, Zachary Taylor fights in the Battle of Palo Alto during the Mexican-American War.
- 1884, Harry S. Truman is born.
- 1945, President Harry S. Truman delivers a radio message to the nation, announcing Germany's surrender, ending World War 2. V-E Day.
May 9
- 1914, Woodrow Wilson officially signs into law a national holiday for mothers. Wilson's Mother's Day Proclamation designated the observance to be held every second Sunday in May.
May 10
May 11
- 1858, Minnesota becomes a state under James Buchanan
- 1909, William Howard Taft signs a bill into law that establishes Glacier National Park, as the nation's 10th national park.
- 1961, John F. Kennedy orders more troops be sent to South Vietnam.
May 12
- 1863, Abraham Lincoln received news of the death of Confederate General "Stonewall" Jackson.
- 1961, Lyndon B. Johnson visits South Vietnam.
- 2014, The Washington Monument, a tribute to George Washington, reopend after a closure due to earthquake damage sustained in the summer of 2011.
May 13
May 14
- 1804, Sent by Thomas Jefferson, Lewis and Clark depart on an expedition to explore the Northwest following the Louisiana Purchase in 1803 that doubled the size of the United States.
- 1948, United States President Harry Truman recognizes the provisional Jewish Government and the new State of Israel.
May 15
May 16
May 17
May 18
May 19
May 20
May 21
- 2000, James Garfield's spine is on display at museum.
May 22
May 23
- 1824, Union General Ambrose Burnside was born. He served in the American Civil War under President Lincoln.
May 24
- 1870, Benjamin Cardozo, United States Supreme Court Justice was born. He was nominated by President Herbert Hoover to replace Oliver Wendell Holmes.
May 25
May 26
May 27
- 1911, Vice President Hubert H. Humphrey was born.
- 1923, Secretary of State Henry Kissinger is born.
May 28
- 1996, Bill and Hillary Clinton's business partners; James and Susan McDougal along with Governor Jim Guy Tucker, of Arkansas are convicted of fraud in the Whitewater land scandal.
May 29
- 1917, John F. Kennedy is born
May 30
May 31
- 2005. W. Mark Felt is revealed as 'Deep Throat' the secret source of journalists Woodward and Bernstein, who brought to surface details in the the Richard Nixon Watergate Scandal.
Back to top of On This Day in History Page
Back to American Presidents History Home Page