Today in US History on March 15: Maine becomes 23rd state, Washington defuses Newburgh plot, and birth of RBG

Several notable events across politics, law, and public life took place on March 15 in United States history, ranging from the admission of a new state to major developments in democracy and civil rights. On this day in 1820, Maine officially became the 23rd state of the Union under the Missouri Compromise, a landmark deal that maintained the balance between free and slaveholding states by admitting Missouri as a slave state.

Maine becomes the 23rd US state

On March 15, 1820, Maine, known as the “Pine Tree State,” officially became the 23rd state in the Union. Previously part of Massachusetts, Maine’s path to statehood was shaped by the intense national debate over slavery. At the time, the United States maintained a delicate balance between free states and slaveholding states in Congress. Pro-slavery lawmakers opposed Maine’s admission as a free state unless a slave state was admitted alongside it, as noted by the Library of Congress. The deadlock was resolved through the Missouri Compromise, which allowed Missouri to enter the Union as a slave state while Maine joined as a free state.


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Washington stops a potential military coup

In 1783, George Washington delivered an emotional address to officers of the Continental Army in Newburgh, helping to defuse the Newburgh Conspiracy. The conspiracy involved discontented army officers who were frustrated over unpaid wages and had considered challenging the authority of the Continental Congress.

Birth of Supreme Court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg (RBG)

March 15, 1933, also marks the birth of Ruth Bader Ginsburg in Brooklyn, New York. Ginsburg would go on to become one of the most influential justices on the Supreme Court of the United States, serving for 27 years.

Other notable events on March 15

Several other events also occurred on this day in American history:

• In 1913, Woodrow Wilson held the first presidential press conference, setting a precedent for regular media briefings by the White House.
  
• In 1965, Lyndon B. Johnson urged Congress to pass legislation guaranteeing voting rights for all Americans, leading to the historic Voting Rights Act of 1965.
  
• In 1812, the first Russian settlement in California was established along the Russian River.
  
• In 1855, Louisiana created the first health board in the United States to regulate quarantine measures.
  
• In 1867, Michigan became the first state to levy property taxes to support a public university.
  
• In 1887, Michigan appointed the country’s first salaried fish and game warden, William Alden Smith.
  
• In 1892, New York introduced an automatic ballot booth, an early voting machine.
  
• In 1941, a powerful blizzard in North Dakota killed 151 people.