Celebrations Today – April 30
Holidays and observances
- Christian feast day:
- Adjutor
- Aimo
- Amator, Peter and Louis
- Eutropius of Saintes
- Blessed Miles Gerard
- Marie Guyart (Anglican Church of Canada)
- Marie of the Incarnation (Ursuline)
- Maximus of Rome
- Pomponius of Naples
- Pope Saint Pius V
- Quirinus of Neuss
- Sarah Josepha Hale (Episcopal Church)
- Suitbert the Younger
- April 30 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
- Earliest day on which Ascension Day can fall, while June 3 is the latest; celebrated 40 days after Easter (Christianity), and its related observances:
- Armed Forces Day (Georgia (country))
- Birthday of the King Carl XVI Gustaf, one of the official flag days of Sweden.
- Camarón Day (French Foreign Legion)
- Children’s Day (Mexico)
- Consumer Protection Day (Thailand)
- Honesty Day (United States)
- International Jazz Day (UNESCO)
- Martyr’s Day (Pakistan)
- May Eve, the eve of the first day of summer in the Northern hemisphere (see May 1):
- Beltane begins at sunset in the Northern hemisphere, Samhain begins at sunset in the Southern hemisphere. (Neo-Druidic Wheel of the Year)
- Carodejnice (Czech Republic and Slovakia)
- Walpurgis Night (Central and Northern Europe)
- National Persian Gulf Day (Iran)
- Reunification Day (Vietnam)
- Russian State Fire Service Day (Russia)
- Teachers’ Day (Paraguay)
Celebrations Today – USA: April 30
National Military Brats Day
National PrepareAthon! Day
National Adopt a Shelter Pet Day
National Bugs Bunny Day
National Hairstylist Appreciation Day
National Honesty Day
National Kiss of Hope Day
National Oatmeal Cookie Day
National Raisin Day
National Sarcoidosis Day
National Infertility Survival Day – Sunday before Mother’s Day
May National Days
National Day of Remembrance for all Victims of Chemical Warfare
International Dance Day
National Viral Video Day
World Wish Day
Today in US History: April 30
Father of Our Country
George Washington [detail],
Gilbert Stuart, artist.
Prints & Photographs Online Catalog
On April 30, 1789, George Washington delivered his first inaugural address to a joint session of Congress, assembled in Federal Hall in the nation’s new capital, New York City. The newly-elected president delivered the speech in a deep, low voice that betrayed what one observer called “manifest embarrassment.” Washington had not sought the office of president and was humbled by the request to serve.
Aside from recommending constitutional amendments to satisfy citizens demanding a Bill of Rights, Washington confined his address to generalities. He closed by asking for a “divine blessing” on the American people and their elected representatives. In delivering his address, Washington went beyond the constitutional requirement to take an oath of office and thus established a precedent that has been followed since by every elected president.
Two weeks before his inauguration, Washington had made an emotional speech to the citizens of his hometown, Alexandria, Virginia. He expressed regret at leaving his Mount Vernon estate where he had retired, and stated: “no earthly consideration, short of a conviction of duty, could have prevailed upon me to depart from my resolution,’never more to take any share in transactions of a public nature.'” The reluctant leader served two terms in office.
To learn more about George Washington, explore the following American Memory resources:
- George Washington Papers at the Library of Congress, 1741-1799 is an online collection of more than 65,000 documents (including correspondence, letterbooks, commonplace books, diaries, journals, financial account books, military records, reports, and notes). Search the collection by keyword or browse the letterbooks and financial papers by date. The Timeline and Essays provide context for the papers and serve as a means of viewing many of the most significant documents.
- Search A Century of Lawmaking for a New Nation: U.S. Congressional Documents and Debates, 1774-1875 on the term George Washington to retrieve documents highlighting Washington’s interaction with both the Continental Congress and the United States Congress.
- Search the Today in History Archive on George Washington to read a variety of features about the life of the first president, including his birthday and his experience at Valley Forge.
- Browse the Inauguration section of the collection “I Do Solemnly Swear…”: Presidential Inaugurations to learn more about events surrounding each inauguration since April 30, 1789.
- Search on George Washington in The James Madison Papers, 1723-1836 for correspondence between the two presidents. Similarly, The Thomas Jefferson Papers at the Library of Congressyields correspondence between the two presidents, Jefferson’s notes on conversations with Washington, and much more.
- For more on presidential inaugurations, see the Today in History features for January 20 and March 4, as well as Inaugurations in American Memory, a feature presentation of the Teachers Page.
Today in History – April 30-External Links
Today’s Weather in History
Today in Earthquake History
This Day in Naval History
Today’s Document from the National Archives
Today’s Events, Births & Deaths –Wikipedia
Today in History by AP
On this Day -1950 to 2005 – Today’s Story–BBC
On This Day: The New York Times
This Day in History –History.com
Today in Canadian History – Canada Channel
History of Britain that took place On This Day
Russia in History –Russiapedia