Friday, Jul 4, 2025
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1817 - Construction on Erie Canal begins with ground-breaking in Utica, New York, USA. The canal will run 350 miles between Buffalo and Albany.
1829 - The cornerstone is laid by US President Andrew Jackson for the Mint building at the corner of Chestnut and Juniper Streets in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
1840 - President Martin Van Buren signs into law the Independent Treasury Act, allowing the federal government to control its own money.
1861 - President Abraham Lincoln asks Congress for $400 million and 400,000 men to suppress the Southern insurrection.
1863 - Major General Ulysses S. Grant captures Vicksburg, Mississippi.
1863 - General Robert Lee's army withdraws from Gettysburg, retreating to the South. The Battle of Gettysburg resulted in total casualties of about 48,000.
1933 - Work begins on Oakland Bay Bridge.
1946 - The Philippines gain independence from the USA.
1947 - In the desert outside Roswell, New Mexico, USA, an alien flying craft (supposedly) crashes.
1950 - US President Harry Truman signs public law 600 (Puerto Ricans can write own consitution).