Discover what happened in this year with HISTORY’s summaries of major events, anniversaries, famous births and notable deaths.
Feb
12
On February 12, 1909, the 100th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's birth, a group that included African American leaders such as W.E.B. Du Bois and Ida B. Wells-Barnett announced the formation of a new organization. Called the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, it would have a profound effect on the struggle for civil rights and the course of 20th-century American history.
Apr
06
On April 6, 1909, American explorer Robert Peary accomplishes a long elusive dream, when he, assistant Matthew Henson and four Inuits reach what they determine to be the North Pole. Decades after Peary’s death, however, navigational errors in his travel log surfaced, placing the expedition in all probability a few miles short of its goal.
Jul
29
Aug
19
On August 19, 1909, the first race is held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, now the home of the world’s most famous motor racing competition, the Indianapolis 500.
The starting line-up at the first ever Indianapolis 500 motor race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana, 1911. Front row, left to right: Johnny Aitken (1885 - 1918) in a National car, number 4, Harry Endicott (1883 - 1913) in an Inter-State, car number 3, Ralph DePalma (1882 - 1956) in a Simplex, car number 2 and Lewis Strang (1887 - 1911) in a J.I. Case, car number 1. (Photo by Archive Photos/Getty Images)
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Nov
13
The Ballinger-Pinchot scandal erupts when Colliers magazine accuses Secretary of the Interior Richard Ballinger of shady dealings in Alaskan coal lands. It is, in essence, a conflict rooted in contrasting ideas about how to best use and conserve western natural resources.
Dec
14
On December 14, 1909, four months after tragedy struck at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, race car drivers test out its newly resurfaced—and presumably safer—track. Workers had just finished laying down 3.2 million 10-pound brick pavers over the 2.5-mile oval, which had previously been covered in a messy and dangerous mix of crushed limestone, gravel and tar.
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