ARLINGTON, Va. - s4story -- by  Ed Lengel for David Bruce Smith's Grateful American Book Prize

The Founding of Apple Computing, Inc., April 1976

Exactly fifty years ago, the computer revolution was begun; at the time, telecommunications were becoming ubiquitous in government business—massive and unwieldy—despite enormous requirements for equipment space, maintenance, and constant human oversight.

Then, on April 1, 1976, Steve Jobs, and Steve Wozniak, each college dropouts—along with Ronald Wayne—co-founded Apple Inc., by selling a Volkswagen bus and a high-end digital calculator for just over $1,000 to fund the initial operation.

For more information, the Grateful American Book Prize recommends David Pogue's Apple: The First 50 Years (2026).
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Closure of the League of Nations, April 1946

World War I (1914-1918) was one of the most devastating and transformative events in modern history. By the time it ended, European and American scholars; philosophers, diplomats, and politicians; were preoccupied with the dilemma about why it happened, and how to deter another future conflict. President Woodrow Wilson, a scholar, and idealist whose "Fourteen Points" had birthed the principle of national self-determination, was an avid proponent of a League of Nations that would guarantee diplomacy over war; open negotiations in lieu of secret alliances and mitigate the likelihood of future conflicts. The League of Nations Covenant was incorporated in Article I of the Treaty of Versailles.

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For more information about the history of the League of Nations, the Grateful American Book Prize recommends Ruth Henig's The Peace That Never Was: A History of the League of Nations (2019).
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History Matters is a feature courtesy of the Grateful American Book Prize. For more book recommendations, information about the annual award, or to submit a book for the 2026 Grateful American Book Prize, visit https://gratefulamericanbookprize.org/.