On July 22, 1893, the poet Katharine Lee Bates wrote the lyrics to “America the Beautiful”. Inspired by the scenery of Colorado, Bates wrote the words as a poem, originally titled “Pikes Peak“. It was first published in the Fourth of July 1895 edition of the church periodical, The Congregationalist. At that time, the poem was titled “America”. The music was earlier composed by church organist and choirmaster Samuel A. Ward at Grace Episcopal Church in Newark, New Jersey. The two never met. The combination of Ward’s melody and Bates’s poem was first entitled “America the Beautiful” in 1910. The photo above was taken by Don Graham.
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On July 22, 1918, lightning killed 504 sheep in Utah’s Wasatch National Park.
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July 22: 1926: A temperature of 108°F (42°C) was recorded in Troy, New York. This set a state record.
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Today’s feature article was written by SurvivalBlog Field Gear Editor Tom Christainason.