Wednesday · November 11, 2026
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American history, reported as it happened
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On this day › October 13

What happened on October 13 in American history

October 13 is the 286th day of the year (the 287th in leap years). Patriot Compass has published 6 stories from October 13 spanning 1775 to 1983. Among them: in 1775, Congress votes to buy two ships and go after British supply boats; and in 1792, In the new capital, the President's House gets its cornerstone; Washington stays in Philadelphia.

1775

Congress votes to buy two ships and go after British supply boats

A three-man Naval Committee is born in Philadelphia, over objections that the whole scheme is an infant taking a mad bull by the horns.
1792Member story · 1776 Club

In the new capital, the President's House gets its cornerstone; Washington stays in Philadelphia

A brass plate naming the president, three commissioners, and the architect goes into the ground before the walls do.
1812

Brock falls storming the Heights; his redcoats rally and the stranded Americans surrender

Militia on the New York bank refused to cross the Niagara, leaving the landing force to fight alone.
1885Member story · 1776 Club

McDaniel signs $65,000 bill to fund Georgia's first technical school

The $65,000 was appropriated before anyone knew where the school would stand; Atlanta wasn't picked until the following year.
1976

A thread-like shape appears under the electron microscope in Atlanta

CDC virologists Fred Murphy and Alyne Harrison get the first clear image of the virus killing hundreds in Sudan and Zaire.
1983Member story · 1776 Club

Chicago gets the first cell phone call anyone can buy

Bob Barnett dials Germany from a convertible at Soldier Field, and the mobile phone era opens for business.