History

The United States flag has undergone 27 different designs since 1777, and its latest design was created by a then-teenager from Lancaster, Ohio. A 50-star flag was ordered by President Dwight Eisenhower when Hawaii and Alaska joined the union.

An estimated 650 million people watched on television as Neil Armstrong became the first man to walk the moon, on July 20, 1969. A 10-day celebration is planned at Armstrong Air & Space Museum during the 50th anniversary of the famous Apollo 11 mission.

June 6 marks the 75^th anniversary of the historic D-Day operation, where 150,000 American, British and Canadian forces landed on five beaches in Normandy, France, to liberate northwest Europe from German occupation.

During the 18^th and 19^th centuries, thousands of slaves crossed the Ohio River to Cincinnati, making their way to freedom. That period in time is brought to life at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, open to the public every day.

We know that the state of Ohio is the birthplace of several U.S. presidents, but now you can see where they lived, worked and played through a unique online guide. The new Ohio Presidential Trail launched this month through an effort by TourismOhio and the Ohio History Connection.

What do Paul Newman, Gloria Steinem, Simone Biles, Neil Armstrong and Halle Berry have in common? If you haven’t heard by now, they were all born in our terrific state.

President’s Day on Feb. 18 has special meaning for Ohioans. That’s because many former presidents have deep roots in the Buckeye State.

Well over 80 years ago, the Union Terminal in Cincinnati welcomed Holocaust survivors. Last month, the terminal became the new home of the Nancy & David Wolf Holocaust and Humanity Center, which features climate-controlled collections, archival space for artifacts and library space for the public.

I was just starting grade school on Feb. 20, 1962, and didn’t know anything about John Glenn. But I, and the rest of the world, soon heard about him, because on that epic day – 57 years ago – he became the first American to orbit the earth.

I’m not old enough to have voted for Dwight Eisenhower, but his campaign slogan, “I Like Ike,” was memorable. After being elected president, one of his infrastructure programs was expanding our interstate highway system.