COUNTDOWN TO NOVEMBER 10TH

November 10th

Honoring the Marine Corps' founding in 1775 — plus a day for science, the debut of Sesame Street and a Great Lakes legend.

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Next: Tuesday, November 10, 2026.

What Makes This Day Special

November 10th
Significance

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Marine Corps Birthday (1775)

On November 10, 1775, the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia resolved that "two Battalions of Marines be raised" to serve as landing forces with the fleet. Samuel Nicholas, commissioned later that month as the first Marine officer, is traditionally said to have recruited at Tun Tavern in Philadelphia, which the Corps honors as its birthplace. The Marines adopted the motto "Semper Fidelis" — "always faithful" — in 1883. The Corps marked its 250th birthday in 2025, so November 10, 2026 is its 251st.

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Birthday Ball Traditions

In 1921, Commandant John A. Lejeune issued Marine Corps Order No. 47, directing that a summary of the Corps' history and mission be read to every command each November 10 — a tradition still observed. Formal birthday balls followed in the 1920s, and in 1952 Commandant Lemuel C. Shepherd Jr. formalized the cake-cutting ceremony. Traditionally a slice goes to the oldest Marine present, who passes it to the youngest, symbolizing experience handed to a new generation.

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World Science Day for Peace and Development

Proclaimed by UNESCO in 2001 and first celebrated in 2002, World Science Day for Peace and Development is observed every November 10. It highlights the role of science in society and the value of involving the public in debates on scientific issues. Governments, universities and research institutions around the world hold events on a theme chosen each year.

Historical Events

This Day
in History

1975

The Edmund Fitzgerald Sinks

The Great Lakes freighter SS Edmund Fitzgerald sank in a violent storm on Lake Superior, about 17 miles from Whitefish Point, Michigan, with the loss of all 29 crew members. No distress call was sent, and the exact cause of the sinking is still debated. Gordon Lightfoot's 1976 song "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" made the tragedy famous.

1969

Sesame Street Debuts

Sesame Street premiered on National Educational Television, the forerunner of PBS. Created by Joan Ganz Cooney and Lloyd Morrisett and featuring Jim Henson's Muppets, it mixed puppetry, animation and live action, using research to teach letters, numbers and social skills to preschoolers. Characters such as Big Bird and Cookie Monster became cultural icons, and versions of the show have reached children in more than 150 countries.

1951

First Direct-Dial Coast-to-Coast Phone Call

Mayor M. Leslie Denning of Englewood, New Jersey, dialed Mayor Frank Osborne of Alameda, California, in the first coast-to-coast long-distance call dialed directly by a customer, with no operator. Englewood became the first community whose customers could dial long-distance calls themselves, using new area codes and automatic switching, and direct distance dialing spread across the country over the following years.

1871

Stanley Finds Dr. Livingstone

Journalist Henry Morton Stanley, sent by the New York Herald, found the Scottish missionary and explorer David Livingstone at Ujiji, near Lake Tanganyika in present-day Tanzania, on the date traditionally given as November 10, 1871. Stanley's famous greeting, "Dr. Livingstone, I presume?", does not appear in his surviving journal from the time, and many historians think he added it later.

1483

Martin Luther Is Born

Martin Luther was born in Eisleben, Germany. His Ninety-five Theses of 1517 helped launch the Protestant Reformation, and his German translation of the Bible had a lasting influence on the modern German language.