1978: NOAA announces gender-neutral hurricane naming system
Federal News Network presents a daily update of important moments in the history of the U.S. government.
The United States Military Academy – the first military school in the country – was founded by Congress on this day in 1802. Located at West Point, New York, and simply known as West Point, the institution is located on the site of a Revolutionary-era fort built to protect the Hudson River Valley from British attack. Ten years after the establishment of the U.S. Military Academy in 1802, the growing threat of another war with Great Britain resulted in congressional action to expand the academy’s facilities and increase the West Point corps. Beginning in 1817, the U.S. Military Academy was reorganized by superintendent Sylvanus Thayer, later known as the “father of West Point,” and the school became one of the nation’s finest sources of civil engineers. In 1870, the first African-American cadet was admitted into the U.S. Military Academy, and in 1976, the first female cadets were admitted. The academy is now under the general direction and supervision of the department of the Army and has an enrollment of more than 4,000 students.
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