Do You Remember?

September—those beautiful 30 days that straddle summer and fall. Cue that funky Earth, Wind & Fire tune, and test your knowledge of all things related to the year’s ninth month. Enjoy!

  1. On September 6, eight years before the dawn of the 16th century, the ships of which of these explorers landed on the shore of San Salvador?
    a) Ferdinand Magellan
    b) Vasco da Gama
    c) Christopher Columbus
    d) Hernán Cortés
  2. Mid-September marks the start of cranberry harvest season. Which U.S. state produces the most cranberries?

    a) Massachusetts
    
b) Wisconsin

    c) Maine
    
d) Oregon


  3. This landmark document, signed on September 17, 1787 is on display in the Rotunda for the Charters of Freedom.
    a) The Declaration of Independence
    b) The Bill of Rights
    c) The Constitution of the United States
    d) The Emancipation Proclamation
  4. Which American novelist, known for his depictions of the flashiness and excess of the Jazz Age, was born on September 24, 1896?

    a) Ernest Hemingway
    
b) F. Scott Fitzgerald
    
c) Mark Twain
    
d) John Steinbeck

  5. This event, occurring around September 21-22 each year, marks Earth’s axis tilting to align the Sun directly over the equator, producing an equal duration of day and night.
    a) Winter Solstice
    b) Summer Solstice
    c) Autumnal Equinox
    d) Vernal Equinox
  6. Which pivotal battle in World War II began on September 3, 1939?
    a) The Battle of Stalingrad
    b) The Battle of Britain
    c) The Battle of the Atlantic
    d) The Battle of Midway
  7. This iconic sci-fi television series boldly debuted on September 8, 1966.
    a) Doctor Who
    b) The Twilight Zone
    c) Star Trek
    d) Battlestar Galactica
  8. The first edition of this iconic newspaper was published on September 18, 1851, with the headline, “Fugitive Slave Riot in Lancaster Co., Pa.”
    a) The Washington Post
    b) The Boston Globe
    c) The Philadelphia Enquirer
    d) The New York Times
  9. James Taylor and Tom Rush recorded versions of a folk song memorializing this devastating storm that made landfall on September 8, 1900.
    a) Hurricane Camille
    b) The Great Galveston Hurricane
    c) Hurricane Anita
    d) The Santiago de Cuba Hurricane

  10. The first Monday of September in the U.S. and Canada marks the Labor Day holiday. When was Labor Day first observed?
    a) 1876
    b) 1882
    c) 1926
    d) 1957

  1. Christopher Columbus’ three ships landed on the island he christened San Salvador, now part of the modern-day Bahamas.
  2. Wisconsin is America’s top producer of cranberries, the state’s number one fruit. Wisconsin harvests nearly two-thirds of our annual crop, which translates to about 5 million barrels rolling out of a state more universally known for its dairy products.
  3. The U.S. Constitution is displayed under glass in helium-filled chambers to prevent oxidation. After daily visiting hours, the chambers are mechanically lowered into a secure vault, impervious to fire, water and shock.
  4. F. Scott Fitzgerald, hailed by some critics as author of the “Great American Novel” for The Great Gatsby, celebrated a September birthday.
  5. The Autumnal Equinox signifies the first day of autumn with equal day and night, followed by gradually decreasing daylight hours until the winter solstice.
  6. The Battle of the Atlantic was World War II’s longest continuous campaign, lasting from September 3, 1939 to May 8, 1945. It began with the Allies forming a naval blockade against Germany setting off a fight for control of critical Atlantic Ocean shipping routes for military supplies from the West.
  7. Star Trek launched on the NBC network in September of 1966. Although the Starship Enterprise was on a five-year mission, the series lasted just three seasons.
  8. The New York Times debuted in September 1851, proclaiming, “We publish today the first issue of the New-York Daily Times, and we intend to issue it every morning (Sundays excepted) for an indefinite number of years to come.” So far, so good.
  9. Before it became customary to give hurricanes alphabetically sequenced names, the storm that became known as The Great Galveston Hurricane killed an estimated 8,000 people on Galveston Island and thousands more on the mainland. The song, “Wasn’t That a Mighty Storm?” memorialized the tragedy.
  10. On Tuesday, September 5, 1882, the Central Labor Union organized a parade, picnic, dancing and fireworks to honor workers and celebrate union members. By 1894, more than half the U.S. states were observing the holiday, which was signed into law by President Grover Cleveland that same year.

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