1819: Walt Whitman, American poet, journalist, and essayist, was born in West Hills, New York. His verse collection Leaves of Grass is a landmark in the history of American literature. Whitman grew up in Brooklyn, New York, and at age 12 began to learn the printing trade. In 1855, Whitman published, anonymously and at his own expense, the first edition of Leaves of Grass. Revolutionary too was the content of his poems celebrating the human body and the common man. Whitman would spend the rest of his life revising and enlarging Leaves of Grass; the ninth edition appeared in 1892, the year of his death. (Source: Library of Congress)

1790: Authors of books were given 14 years of protection under the first copyright law in the United Stated that was signed by President George Washington.