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Spotlight of the Month from SIRS
Discoverer and WebFind
May 2007INFOhio provides this information from the SIRS
Spotlights of the Month message and is not responsible for the content or the reliability
of Web links. Your INFOhio username and password may be needed to open some links.
May 2007 Spotlight: European Colonization of North America
Many different ethnic and religious groups voyaged to North America in
the 17th and early 18th centuries, hoping to find a new home. Dutch,
English, French, Spanish and Swedish people set up colonies along the
eastern coast, as far north as Canada and as far south as Georgia.
The first permanent settlement, the English colony at Jamestown, Virginia,
was founded in 1607. By the mid-1700s, there were 13 colonies, all
controlled by England, but each with its own unique political, religious,
economic and ethnic characteristics. What they all shared was the common
goal of independence from their mother country, which led to the
Revolutionary War and the 1776 Declaration of Independence. This was a
pivotal period of American history, and is commemorated in this month's
SIRS Discoverer
Spotlight of the Month. Articles and Web sites include:
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Cinco de Mayo
Source: Embassy of the United States of America
"On May 5, Los Angeles, California is alive with color, laughter
and dancing. More than 500,000 Mexicans and Americans of Mexican origin
are celebrating Cinco de Mayo or the 'Fifth of May.' It is an occasion
which Mexicans and Americans share to emphasize the friendship between
their two countries." (EMBASSY OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA) Read
about the origins and celebration of this holiday. |
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Facts for Features: Mother's Day
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
"Mother's Day was first observed in 1907, at the request of Anna
Jarvis of Philadelphia, to honor her deceased mother. Two years later,
Jarvis and friends began a letter-writing campaign to create a Mother's
Day observance. Soon after, in 1914, Congress passed legislation
designating the second Sunday in May as Mother's Day." (U.S. CENSUS
BUREAU) Get some census data on mothers from this site. |
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History of Memorial Day
Source: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
"Three years after the Civil War ended, on May 5, 1868, the head of
an organization of Union veterans -- the Grand Army of the Republic
(GAR) -- established Decoration Day as a time for the nation to decorate
the graves of the war dead with flowers. Maj. Gen. John A. Logan
declared it should be May 30. It is believed the date was chosen because
flowers would be in bloom all over the country. The first large
observance was held that year at Arlington National Cemetery, across the
Potomac River from Washington, D.C." (VA) Read more about Decoration
Day, which eventually came to be known as Memorial Day. |
Spotlight of the Month topics are selected mainly from Chase's Calendar of
Events. Articles are also accessible within the main database and remain in the SIRS Spotlight
of the Month newsletter
archives for one year.
Questions? Contact INFOhio at webmaster@infohio.org. |
