April 25

April 25 is the 116th day of the year, and the American record for it runs from 1862 to 2026 — a span of 164 years. The entry that anchors it: American Civil War, 1862.

By the middle of the nineteenth century the date carries heavier freight. In 1862, American Civil War — forces under U.S. Admiral David Farragut demand the surrender of the Confederate city of New Orleans, Louisiana. Two years on, in 1864, American Civil War — in the Battle of Marks' Mills, a force of 8,000 Confederate soldiers attacks 1,800 Union soldiers and a large number of wagon teamsters, killing or wounding 1,500 Union combatants.

In the postwar nineteenth century the date tracks a nation rebuilding. In 1898, Spanish–American War — the United States Congress declares that a state of war between the U.S. and Spain has existed since April 21, when an American naval blockade of the Spanish colony of Cuba began.

In the first half of the twentieth century the date turns technological. In 1901, New York becomes the first U.S. state to require automobile license plates. Then, in 1938, U.S. Supreme Court delivers its opinion in Erie Railroad Co. v. Tompkins and overturns a century of federal common law. Seven years on, in 1945, World War II — United States and Soviet reconnaissance troops meet in Torgau and Strehla along the River Elbe, cutting the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany in two. This would be later known as Elbe Day.

The postwar entries show a nation both expanding and contesting itself. In 1960, the U.S. Navy submarine Triton completed the first submerged circumnavigation of the world.

Closer to the present, the date is still accumulating. In 2026, Shots are fired outside of the White House Correspondents' Dinner in the Washington Hilton where U.S. President Donald Trump and members of his cabinet are attending. One injury is reported and a suspect is taken into custody.

The date is also a birthday. Among the Americans born on April 25: Charles Sumner Tainter (1854), American engineer and inventor; John Moisant (1868), American pilot and engineer; Howard Garis (1873), American author, creator of the Uncle Wiggily series of children's stories; William Merz (1878), American gymnast and triathlete; and Maud Hart Lovelace (1892), American author.

April 25 is also a date of endings. Among the Americans who died on it: John Knowles Paine (1906), American composer and educator; Frederick W. Seward (1915), American journalist, lawyer, and politician, 6th United States Assistant Secretary of State; Augustus D. Juilliard (1919), American businessman and philanthropist; and Emmeline B. Wells (1921), American journalist and women's rights advocate.

April 25 carries 8 entries spread across 164 years. None of the people in them knew they were sharing a date; that is a pattern only visible looking back.