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Writer's Almanac

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The Writer’s Almanac for Thursday, September 17, 2020

The Writer’s Almanac for Thursday, September 17, 2020

On this date in 1683, Dutch scientist Antonie van Leeuwenhoek wrote a letter to the Royal Society, sharing his discovery of “animalcules,” or bacteria.

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The Writer’s Almanac for Wednesday, September 16, 2020

The Writer’s Almanac for Wednesday, September 16, 2020

It’s the 70th birthday of Henry Louis Gates Jr. (1950), the scholar, literary critic, historian, and host of PBS’s “Finding Your Roots.”

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The Writer’s Almanac for Tuesday, September 15, 2020

The Writer’s Almanac for Tuesday, September 15, 2020

On this date in 1963, a bomb killed four girls in the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama. The FBI suppressed evidence against the suspected bomber.

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The Writer’s Almanac for Monday, September 14, 2020

The Writer’s Almanac for Monday, September 14, 2020

On this day 700 years ago, the author Dante died from malaria, just months after completing the third and final part of his “Divine Comedy.”

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The Writer’s Almanac for Sunday, September 13, 2020

The Writer’s Almanac for Sunday, September 13, 2020

It’s the birthday of the pianist and composer Clara Schumann (1819-1896), who was much more popular than her husband Robert Schumann during their lifetime.

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The Writer’s Almanac for Saturday, September 12, 2020

The Writer’s Almanac for Saturday, September 12, 2020

It’s the birthday of H. L. Mencken (1880-1956), who once called Arkansas “an apex of moronia,” and the legislature there passed a motion to pray for his soul.

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The Writer’s Almanac for Friday, September 11, 2020

The Writer’s Almanac for Friday, September 11, 2020

Featuring a poem by Jane Hirshfield called “Now A Darkness is Coming,” from her newest poetry collection, “Ledger.”

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The Writer’s Almanac for Thursday, September 10, 2020

The Writer’s Almanac for Thursday, September 10, 2020

It’s the birthday of the poet Mary Oliver (1935-2019), whose partner, Molly, used to impersonate her on the phone so that Mary wouldn’t have to talk to strangers.

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The Writer’s Almanac for Wednesday, September 9, 2020

The Writer’s Almanac for Wednesday, September 9, 2020

On this day 170 years ago, California became a U.S. state after being wrested from Mexico. It was the 31st state admitted to the Union, just before Minnesota.

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The Writer’s Almanac for Tuesday, September 8, 2020

The Writer’s Almanac for Tuesday, September 8, 2020

It was on this day 100 years ago that the first transcontinental U.S. airmail service began, from New York to San Francisco.

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