On June 22, 1870, President Ulysses S. Grant signed the congressional bill that created the U.S. Department of Justice.
Image via Wikimedia Commons, public domain
On June 22, 1970, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a jury consisting of exactly 12 members in a criminal trial was no longer required. States could now set the number of jurors to any number, not just 12, provided that “common-sense judgment of a group of laymen” is exercised.
Image via Wikimedia Commons, public domain
On June 22, 1775, Congress approved the issue of 2 million Spanish milled dollars.
Of these 2 million dollars that were to be emitted, 49,000 bills or $98,000 worth were to be the $2 bill
Image: Continental Currency $2 banknote via Wikimedia Commons, public domain
On June 22, 1942, amid the pressures of World War II, Congress formally incorporated the Pledge of Allegiance into the U.S. Flag Code, granting it official recognition for the first time. Originally written by Francis Bellamy in 1892 to inspire patriotism among schoolchildren, the pledge became a cornerstone of civic ritual. That same year, the original outstretched-arm salute was replaced with the now-familiar hand-over-heart gesture. Yet organizations like the Girl Scouts preserved their distinctive three-finger Scout salute, a symbol of duty, promise, and tradition—as seen here during a 1946 flag ceremony.
Image: Inland Steel Co., Wheelwright Mines, Wheelwright, Floyd Co., Ky. Intermediate Girl Scout troop pledges allegiance to the flag on meeting in community hall in 1946
via Wikimedia Commons, public domain
“I have a rendezvous with Death
At some disputed barricade,
When Spring comes back with rustling shade
And apple-blossoms fill the air—
I have a rendezvous with Death
When Springs brings back blue days and fair.
It may be he shall take my hand
And lead me into his dark land
And close my eyes and quench my breath—
It may be I shall pass him still.
I have a rendezvous with Death
On some scarred slope of battered hill,
When Spring comes round again this year
And the first meadow-flowers appear.
God knows ’twere better to be deep
Pillowed in silk and scented down,
Where Love throbs out in blissful sleep
Pulse nigh to pulse, and breath to breath,
Where hushed awakenings are dear . . .
But I’ve a rendezvous with Death
At midnight in some flaming town,
When Spring trips north again this year,
And I to my pledged word am true.
I shall not fail that rendezvous.”
By American writer Alan Seeger who was killed while serving in the French Army before the U.S. entered WWI.
Alan Seeger was born on June 22, 1888 in New York City.
Image of Alan Seeger via Wikimedia Commons, public domain
Bird’s-eye view of Woolworth Bldg. under construction, New York City
June 22, 1912
After it was constructed, the building was the world’s tallest between 1913-1930.
Image via LOC, no known restrictions
On June 22, 1864, under the command of Major General George G. Meade, Union forces launched a determined assault along the Jerusalem Plank Road, aiming to cut the Weldon Railroad—one of the Confederacy’s last vital supply lines into Petersburg. Though the effort ultimately fell short, it marked the beginning of a relentless campaign to strangle the city’s defenses. Meade’s leadership, shaped by months of attritional warfare, reflected the Union’s shift toward sustained pressure over swift victory.
Among the regiments engaged that day was the 19th Maine Infantry, including Perham S. Heald of Company A. Amid the chaos of the campaign, Heald was captured—plunged into the grim world of Confederate imprisonment, where Union soldiers faced starvation, disease, and relentless exposure in notorious prisons like Andersonville and Libby.
Heald survived both the battlefield and the prison yard, returning to Maine with the weight of memory. Decades later, he posed for this portrait in the uniform of the Grand Army of the Republic, the veterans’ organization devoted to honoring the service and sacrifice of Union soldiers. His steady gaze and the badge on his chest reflect a legacy shaped not just by military service, but by survival, resilience, and the determination to remember.
Image via LOC, no known restrictions
Assembling “America” – a flying boat airplane.
Photo taken on June 22, 1914 in Hammondsport, New York.
Image via Library of Congress, no known restrictions
On June 22, 1944, President Roosevelt signed into law The Servicemen’s Readjustment Act, known as the G.I. Bill. Under it honorably discharged veterans could receive low-interest mortgages and loans for business or farming, up to one year of unemployment benefits, and tuition and living expenses for college or vocational programs.
Image from FDR Library via Wikimedia Commons, public domain in the US.
On June 22, 1898, US troops landed at Daiquiri, Cuba to begin campaigning in the Spanish-American
War. Spanish troops in the area offered no opposition to the landing. Some soldiers waded, some arrived in
small boats, and horses were tossed overboard to swim ashore.
Image via Wikimedia Commons, public domain in the US
After being purchased by John Wanamaker and moved out of storage from St. Louis, the largest functioning pipe organ in the world was played for the first time in its new home at Wanamaker’s in Philadelphia on June 22, 1911.
To this day it’s played twice daily Monday-Saturday.
Image via Wikimedia Commons, public domain
American chess great Paul Morphy was born on June 22, 1837 in New Orleans, Louisiana.
In the 1850s Paul traveled to Europe and defeated some of the continent’s best players who were also considered to be some of the best in the world.
He even beat some of them blindfolded.
Image: Paul Morphy in 1859 via Wikimedia Commons, public domain
Magnificent American pro basketball shooting guard “Pistol” Pete Maravich was born on June 22, 1947 in Aliquippa, Pennsylvania.
Image of Pete in 1977 the year he became NBA scoring champion via Wikimedia Commons, public domain
American actress Marguerite De La Motte in the silent crime drama film Red Dice in 1926
During WWII De La Motte worked as an inspector at a war plant in California after she retired from acting.
De La Motte was born on June 22, 1902 in Duluth, Minnesota.
Image via Wikimedia Commons, public domain
Publicity photo of Yvonne De Carlo in Los Angeles, California on June 22, 1952
Image from R. L. Oliver, Los Angeles Times via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0
While collecting funds for his newspaper on June 22, 1953, a 14-year-old named Jimmy received a nickel from a customer in Brooklyn. The nickel, which felt different and was lighter than other nickels, fell to the ground and popped open containing microfilm inside.
The strange find was reported to the NYPD and turned over to the FBI.
The FBI photo that you see is what was found on the microfilm, a series of 207 sets of five digit numbers which the Bureau researched for nearly 4 years.
It was eventually discovered that the numbers represented a code for a personal message from the KGB to an operative in the U.S. named Reino Häyhänen.
This was only determined after Häyhänen provided details on KGB activities while defecting to the U.S.
These events are referred to as the Hollow Nickel Case.
Image via Wikimedia Commons, public domain
A happy, smiling topiary in Seattle, Washington
June 22, 1976
Image via Wikimedia Commons, from Seattle Municipal Archives, CC BY 2.0
