6 Historical Anniversaries to Study in 2019

2019 will bring with it several big historical anniversaries to observe. Choose some or all of these to use for topical history lessons with your homeschoolers!

On January 3, you can celebrate 60 years since Alaska was admitted as the 49th U.S. state. Can you name the last state to join the union?

This year will mark 100 years since the start of Prohibition. On January 16, 1919, Nebraska became the 36th of the 48 states required to ratify the 18th Amendment as part of the U.S. Constitution, thereby prohibiting the “manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors for beverage purposes.” By terms of the amendment, the country officially went dry one year later. Fifteen years later, Prohibition was repealed by the 21st Amendment.

February 26 will mark the 100th anniversary of Congress establishing Acadia and Grand Canyon as the 14th and 15th National Parks respectively. This was three years after the creation of the National Park Service in 1916.

In May, you can observe the 25th anniversary of Nelson Mandela becoming president of South Africa. People around the world celebrate this as a triumph for any who stand against oppression. Mandela was imprisoned for 27 years because he fought against apartheid, but he persevered to become South Africa’s first black president on May 10, 1994.

This year, we can also celebrate another great triumph against oppression. This year is the 75th anniversary of June 6, 1944, the beginning of the end for Hitler and his Nazi rule. As part of Operation Overlord, D-Day is best known for the Allied troops storming the beaches of Normandy, France, liberating it and bringing hope across the world.

Finally, 2019 will mark 50 years since astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin became the first men to walk on the moon. As part of the Apollo 11 mission, the two touched down in the Eagle LEM (lunar excursion module) on July 20, 1969, after traveling 240,000 miles from Earth to the moon. Armstrong and Aldrin were on the moon for 21.5 hours, but only about 2 hours and 15 minutes were spent outside the vehicle. An estimated 530 million people across the world watched the televised landing, reminding people everywhere that unimaginable dreams can become reality.