Edited daily
American history, reported as it happened
Made for the 250thOn this day › September 18
What happened on September 18 in American history
September 18 is the 261st day of the year (the 262nd in leap years). Patriot Compass has published 6 stories from September 18 spanning 1793 to 1958. Among them: in 1793, Washington lays the Capitol's cornerstone; eight Masons stand with him on Jenkins Hill; and in 1837, a stationery shop opens on Broadway; first day's take comes to $4.98.
1793Member story · 1776 Club
Washington lays the Capitol's cornerstone; eight Masons stand with him on Jenkins Hill
A silversmith's stone, an inscribed silver plate, and a parade mark the start of Congress's future home.
1837Member story · 1776 Club
A stationery shop opens on Broadway; first day's take comes to $4.98
Tiffany & Young sells paper goods and trinkets out of a storefront financed by a cotton mill fortune.
1850
Congress orders every escaped slave returned; the North must help catch them
Habeas corpus does not apply, and commissioners are paid double to rule against the accused.
1924
American forces leave Santo Domingo; Dominican National Guard takes over policing
The handover closes an eight-year occupation, but Washington keeps its grip on the country's customs house.
1947
The law takes hold: America wakes to a Defense Department and a new spy agency
One day after Forrestal's confirmation, the government's wartime agencies formally give way to a unified national security machine.
1958Member story · 1776 Club
Fresno mailboxes fill with 65,000 working credit cards nobody asked for
Bank of America bets an entire city can be taught to spend on plastic before merchants even agree to take it.
Read the full September 18 edition →
← September 17 · Every date · September 19 →