One of the joys of summer on the nation’s lakes, rivers, and coastlines is the boating regatta. These events give boat owners the chance to show off their pride and joy, along with their boat handling skills. The events range from one-design sailboat races to reviews of antique speedboats and even steam-powered launches. The first regatta in the U.S. occurred on this date in 1845 — sponsored by the New York Yacht Club. Each year 75 million Americans enjoy getting out on the water in one of the nation’s nearly 17 million recreational boats. Buying and maintaining new and used boats is a more than $30 billion annual business. Profile America is produced by the U.S. Census Bureau: Measuring America–People, Places, and Our Economy.
Also from the weekend:
Saturday, July 14th. Every home has at least one. They can be made out of cloth, plastic, or metal. Seamstresses use them, as do carpenters, plumbers, and electricians. It’s the tape measure, patented on this date in 1868 by Alvin J. Fellows of New Haven, Connecticut. His version had a feature still used today — a spring click lock to hold the tape at any desired point. The most elegant tape measure ever made was 600 feet long and was gold plated. It was presented to New York Yankee slugger Mickey Mantle in 1956 to honor his longest home run. Tape measures are sure to be found at the nation’s 21,700 hardware stores, which sell $20.5 billion worth of goods each year. You can find more facts about America from the U.S. Census Bureau online at <www.census.gov>.
Sunday, July 15th. A major change in aviation history occurred on this date in 1954, when the prototype of the nation’s first production jetliner, the Boeing 707, flew for the first time. The model quickly replaced propeller-driven aircraft and served airlines for many decades, and is still serving the military as the KC-135 tanker. By the time production ended, the many passenger and cargo versions of the 707 had logged 30 million flying hours and carried more than a half-billion passengers. Now, jet airliners take off more than 32,000 times a day, carrying close to 2 million passengers to their destinations around the country. Profile America is produced by the U.S. Census Bureau: Measuring America–People, Places, and Our Economy.
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