John Hay (1838–1905) was an American statesman and official whose career in government stretched over almost half a century. After graduation from Brown University in 1858, Hay read law in his uncle's office in Springfield, Illinois, adjacent to that of Abraham Lincoln. Hay worked for Lincoln's successful presidential campaign, and became his assistant private secretary at the White House. Through the years of the American Civil War, Hay was close to Lincoln, and stood by his deathbed after the President was shot at Ford's Theatre. In 1897, President William McKinley, for whom he had been a major backer, made him Ambassador to the United Kingdom. The following year, Hay became United States Secretary of State. He served almost seven years, under McKinley, and after his assassination, under Theodore Roosevelt. Hay was responsible for the Open Door Policy in China, and negotiated the Hay–Pauncefote Treaty (1901) with the UK, as well as the Hay–Herrán Treaty (1903) with Colombia, and the Hay–Bunau-Varilla Treaty (1903) that cleared the way for the building of the Panama Canal. Hay was also an author and biographer, and wrote poetry and other literature through much of his life.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Hay

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

451:

The Council of Chalcedon, a Christian ecumenical council in Christianity that repudiated the Eutychian doctrine of monophysitism, and set forth the Chalcedonian Creed, opened. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Council_of_Chalcedon

1862:

American Civil War: The Battle of Perryville, one of the bloodiest battles of the war, was fought in the Chaplin Hills west of Perryville, Kentucky. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Perryville

1904:

The Canadian cities of Edmonton, Alberta (Downtown Edmonton pictured), and Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, were both incorporated. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_Albert,_Saskatchewan

1969:

Demonstrations organized by the Weather Underground known as the Days of Rage began in Chicago. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Days_of_Rage

1998:

Gardermoen Airport, the main domestic hub and international airport for Norway, began operating as Oslo Airport, Fornebu, closed. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oslo_Airport,_Fornebu

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

choreography: 1. The art of creating, arranging and recording the dance movements of a ballet, etc. 2. The representation of these movements by a series of symbols. 3. The notation used to construct this record. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/choreography

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

Not the wretchedest man or woman but has a deep secretive mythology with which to wrestle with the material world and to overcome it and pass beyond it. Not the wretchedest human being but has his share in the creative energy that builds the world. We are all creators. We all create a mythological world of our own out of certain shapeless materials.   --John Cowper Powys https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/John_Cowper_Powys