Origin Stories Brenda Riddell Origin Stories Brenda Riddell

Origin Stories

Love it or hate it, the Internal Revenue Service has been around nearly as long as the United States itself. Its roots stretch back to the Civil War, when President Abraham Lincoln signed the Revenue Act of 1862, creating the office of Commissioner of Internal Revenue and imposing the nation’s first federal income tax. The tax was meant to fund the Union’s war effort — and it worked, bringing in millions of badly needed dollars.

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PEW Research Britney Achin PEW Research Britney Achin

Pew Research: Many of America’s Teachers Are Working Two Jobs — for Survival

In classrooms across the country, public school teachers are grading papers by day — and stocking shelves, serving tables, or freelancing by night. According to new Pew Research analysis, about 1 in 6 full-time public school teachers held a second job during the 2020–21 school year. And it wasn’t just summer work. Roughly 17% of teachers worked a non-school job during the school year, a rate nearly four times higher than the national average for all U.S. workers.

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Remember When Britney Achin Remember When Britney Achin

Remember When: The Moon Mission You’ve Never Heard Of—and the Women Who Made It Possible

On July 31, 1964, Ranger 7 became the first American spacecraft to successfully photograph the Moon up close. Just 17 minutes before crashing into the lunar surface, it transmitted over 4,300 stunning images—crystal-clear glimpses of the Moon that helped pave the way for the Apollo missions and, five years later, Neil Armstrong’s famous steps.

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