On May 7, 1840, the Great Natchez Tornado struck Natchez, Mississippi, resulting in the tragic loss of 317 lives. This devastating event remains the second deadliest tornado in United States history, surpassed only by the Tri-State Tornado that occurred in 1925. The tornado formed southwest of Natchez in the late…

The legendary entertainer Bob Hope performed his first United Service Organizations (USO) show at California’s March Field (now March Air Reserve Base) on May 6, 1941. This marked the beginning of a long and illustrious relationship between Hope and the USO, as he went on to entertain American troops around…

On May 5, 1809, Mary Kies made history by becoming the first woman to be awarded a U.S. patent, breaking barriers for female inventors and showcasing the importance of women’s contributions to American innovation. Kies’ patent was granted for her technique of weaving straw with silk and thread, a process…

The United States officially began construction of the Panama Canal, a monumental engineering project that would connect the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, on May 4, 1905, revolutionizing global maritime trade and travel. The 50-mile-long canal would eventually become one of the most significant achievements in the history of civil engineering.…

A devastating fire broke out in Jacksonville, Florida, resulting in one of the most destructive urban fires in American history on May 3, 1901. The Great Fire of 1901, as it came to be known, burned for eight hours, destroying over 2,000 buildings and leaving nearly 10,000 people homeless. The…