Sarah (Fegley) Lacey (1838 - 1931)

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

In 1838, in the year that Sarah (Fegley) Lacey was born, on January 11th in New Jersey, Samuel Morse and two others first publicly demonstrated Morse's new invention - the telegraph. Patented by Morse in 1837, the electrical telegraph used a code developed by him and his assistant, Samuel Vail, and sent a message two miles. In 1844, Morse broadcast from Washington DC to Baltimore Maryland the message "What hath God wrought" and the telegraph took off.

In 1872, when she was 34 years old, on December 4th, the empty American ship Mary Celeste was found in the Atlantic Ocean. Still seaworthy, under partial sail, and with one lifeboat missing, what happened on her is still a mystery. Her cargo and provisions were intact and she was used as a cargo vessel for another 12 years but the people onboard were never seen again

In 1889, at the age of 51 years old, Sarah was alive when on April 20th, Adolf Hitler was born in Austria-Hungary - now Austria. In his early 30's, he began his rise to power in German politics, eventually becoming the leader of the Nazi Party and Führer of Nazi Germany. He presided over the death of millions of civilians as well as leading Germany through World War II.

In 1890, she was 52 years old when on July 3rd, Idaho became the 43rd state in the United States. On July 10th, Wyoming became the 44th state.

In 1931, in the year of Sarah (Fegley) Lacey's passing, in March, “The Star Spangled Banner” officially became the national anthem by congressional resolution. Other songs had previously been used - among them, "My Country, 'Tis of Thee", "God Bless America", and "America the Beautiful". There was fierce debate about making "The Star Spangled Banner" the national anthem - Southerners and veterans organizations supported it, pacifists and educators opposed it.