On June 14, 1775, the Continental Army, forerunner of the United States Army, was created by the Second Continental Congress.

In 1777, the Second Continental Congress approved the design of the first “stars and stripes” American flag.

In 1943, the U.S. Supreme Court, in West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette, ruled 6-3 that public school students could not be forced to salute the flag of the United States or recite the Pledge of Allegiance.

In 1954, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed a bill adding the phrase “under God” to the Pledge of Allegiance.

In 1972, the Environmental Protection Agency ordered a ban on domestic use of the pesticide DDT, to take effect at year’s end.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton announced his nomination of Judge Ruth Bader Ginsburg to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court.