Mabel Harbeson (1905 - 1982)

Refresh this page to see various historical events that occurred during Mabel's lifetime.

In 1905, in the year that Mabel Harbeson was born, acclaimed dancer Isadora Duncan established the first school of modern dance in Berlin Germany. Isadora Duncan, born in San Francisco California, dedicated herself to the creation of beauty - through dance. Her focus on the movement of the human body rather than formal kinds of dance helped to give rise to the modern dance movement.

In 1913, by the time she was merely 8 years old, ratified in February the 16th Amendment, establishing a Federal income tax, became law. Previously, customs duties (tariffs) and excise taxes were the primary sources of federal revenue. With the passage of the 16th Amendment, incomes of couples exceeding $4,000, as well as those of single persons earning $3,000 or more, were subject to a 1% Federal tax (that would be about $98,000 and $74,000 now). Rates rose to 7% for incomes over half a million dollars. Less than 1% of the population was subject to income tax.

In 1950, Mabel was 45 years old when in February, Joe McCarthy gave a speech alleging that he had a list of "members of the Communist Party and members of a spy ring" who worked in the State Department. He went on to chair a committee that investigated not only the State Department but also the administration of President Harry S. Truman, the Voice of America, and the U.S. Army for communist spies - until he was condemned by the U.S. Senate in 1954.

In 1963, by the time she was 58 years old, on November 22nd, Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson became the 36th President of the United States when President John Kennedy was shot and killed in Dallas, Texas. Johnson was sworn in on the plane carrying Kennedy's body back to Washington D.C.

In 1982, in the year of Mabel Harbeson's passing, on September 14th, Princess Grace of Monaco (American actress Grace Kelly), 52, died of injuries when her car plunged off a mountain road. Her 17 year old daughter, Stephanie, was also in the car and suffered serious injuries but recovered. It's believed that the accident was caused when Princess Grace, who was driving, had a mild stroke.