Written By Gary Bolizar, Service Director at Fiesta Ford
Hello All, I’d wager about 96% of everyone reading this recognizes the picture to the top right. I’d also bet that for a majority of you, this was your “Internet before the Internet” in the 60’s and 70’s, just like it was for me. Teenagers and young men approaching adulthood often lose things, but I always knew where the Almanac was. It’s a shame that technology had its sights on my beloved book, just like it did on dozens of other things that made America special back in the 1970’s.
In about seven months, on July 4th, 2026, the United States will celebrate her 250th birthday. And, just like I muse about in the paragraph above, if you’re reading this, you remember birthday number 200*. The Reader’s Digest Almanac for 1976 helped celebrate our Bicentennial and with a red, white, & blue cover. *In the interest of full disclosure, the lovely and talented Will Steph Wilson, the Editor on page 8, is less than 50 so she can’t relate.
About 18 months ago, in June 2024, I wrote an upbeat article for The Sun City Insider. So I researched “good” things that had taken place in the month of June, like the signing of the Magna Carta, or the births of Marilyn Monroe and Barry Manilow. And even though I am writing this just a few days before Christmas, I find myself becoming more patriotic and nostalgic. Finding the 1976 red, white, and blue almanac, in near-mint condition over at Angel View Thrift Store, provided the inspiration I needed to put on my writing shoes. Writing shoes? I know it sounds silly. They’re just the oldest, most comfy, broken-in pair of shoes I own. Any aches and pains (at least from the knees down) disappear when I wear them, letting me think about writing just a little more.
I decided that I would round out this story by using only my 1976 Reader’s Digest Almanac (the internet before the internet) to research and share some truly great things that have happened over the last 250 years in our fine land. I don’t have a specific number in mind, and I’m sure many of you will think of events I did not find in my thrift-store treasure. Also, I am not ranking them in any particular order. Like a grandparent with a dozen grandchildren, we love them all equally, and I am equally proud of the events highlighted below:
1787 – The Signing of the U.S. Constitution.
Yes, our birthday was in 1776, but the signing of the Constitution in 1787, and its adoption in 1788, laid the foundation for what we are today. It established the young United States as a republic, a nation of laws with the supreme power belonging to the people. The Bill of Rights was, and still is, a masterpiece. Nothing else in the world was like it. It’s not perfect, but the protections and rights we enjoy because of it are still a beacon seen and heard around the world.
1800–1865 – The Abolition of Slavery in the United States.
Slavery is among the cruelest sins committed by man and has existed for thousands of years. The United States was unable to ban it when the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution were adopted, but laws were passed as early as 1800, chipping away at it. The Slave Trade Act of 1800 banned Americans from investment and employment in the international slave trade. Over the next 60 years, individual states passed laws banning this horrible practice, and the U.S. government banned the importation of slaves. The international slave trade was likened to piracy, and Americans convicted of it were sentenced to death. Yes, 60 years was too long, and we were behind some other nations, yet many more countries outlawed slavery after the United States did than before.
Creation of the United States Department of Agriculture, 1862.
Despite being occupied with the Civil War, the Lincoln Administration proved it could walk and chew gum at the same time by creating the U.S.D.A. in the middle of the conflict. The support of the U.S. government was funneled into plant and soil research, the study of historical weather patterns and forecasting, and even labor utilization and market trends. Over the decades, American agriculture became more efficient through increased mechanization and the use of pesticides and fertilizers. During World War II, the U.S. earned the nickname “The Breadbasket of Democracy,” feeding both our armies and those of our allies and helping keep much of the world from starving. We can all be proud of American agriculture.
Women’s Suffrage and the 19th Amendment, 1920.
Similar to the abolition of slavery, the United States wasn’t the first country where women’s right to vote wasn’t recognized, but we were far from the last. We were part of the first wave (1893–1930) of women’s suffrage, joining most English- speaking countries and some European nations. The second wave (1930–1970) saw the last of the major European nations getting on board, among them France, Spain, and Belgium. Possibly influenced by the U.S., Latin and South America joined the ever-growing collection of enlightened nations.
The First Patent Act of the United States, 1790.
Patents were nothing new; they were issued in England in the 1300’s and Italy in the 1400’s. But there was something special about the very young United States. The Bill of Rights, our growing system of laws (and their enforcement), the strong support of the federal government, and indeed the American psyche itself all joined to make the new United States the most creative and inventive nation the world had ever seen. Among the tens of thousands of items invented or patented in the 1800’s alone were: the coffee percolator, the lobster trap, the circular saw, dental floss, the Graham cracker, the electric doorbell, the sewing machine, the steam shovel, Morse code, inhalational anesthetic (ether), the hand-cranked ice cream maker, baseball, the burglar alarm, potato chips, mass- produced rolled toilet paper, pink lemonade, screw-top salt and pepper shakers, the tape measure, and football (American).
Well folks, I was ready, willing, and able to continue, but I’ve clacked away enough on ye olde keyboard. So, I will sign off now, wishing all of you a Happy 2026, and reminding you to remember it’s America’s 250th birthday this year!
-Gary Boldizar
