Albert E Pfaffenzeller (died 1938)

In 1814, mechanical engineer George Stephenson - who taught himself to read and write at age 18 - built the first practical steam locomotive. Named Blücher, the train was built to haul coal. It could haul 30 tons of coal up a hill at 4 mph.

In 1838, on May 26th, the Native American Cherokee Nation was forced to march the Trail of Tears - relocating them to west of the Mississippi. When gold was discovered in Georgia in 1828, settlers wanted the Cherokee land. 16,543 natives were forced to march - it is estimated that 2,000 to 6,000 died along the way.

In 1855, on March 3rd, Congress appropriated $30,000 to create the U.S. Camel Corps. The idea was to use camels as pack animals in the Southwest and 34 camels were bought. But the Army wasn't enthusiastic about the idea and after the Civil War the Camel Corps was entirely abandoned.

In 1923, the Teapot Dome scandal became the subject of an investigation by Senator Walsh and severely damaged the reputation of the Harding administration. Secretary of the Interior Albert Bacon Fall was convicted of accepting bribes from oil companies and became the first Cabinet member to go to prison. At the time, the Teapot Dome scandal was seen as "greatest and most sensational scandal in the history of American politics".

In 1938, in the year of Albert E Pfaffenzeller's passing, on June 25th (a Saturday) the Fair Labor Standards Act was signed into law by President Roosevelt (along with 120 other bills). The Act banned oppressive child labor, set the minimum hourly wage at 25 cents, and established the maximum workweek at 44 hours. It faced a lot of opposition and in fighting for it, Roosevelt said "Do not let any calamity-howling executive with an income of $1,000 a day, ...tell you...that a wage of $11 a week is going to have a disastrous effect on all American industry."