The history of industrialization, the factory system and the history of new methods of transport such as the automobile and the introduction of leaded gas. The Earth Day history timeline also highlights the ecological disasters of pollution and the reasons that inspired Gaylord Nelson and Morton Hilbert to organize a large-scale demonstration on behalf of the environment which came to be known as "Earth Day".

Facts about Earth Day History
The following fact sheet contains interesting facts and information on Earth Day.

1800's: The latter part of the 1800's saw the introduction of the factory system and the heavy, dense smoke that belched from the factories that polluted the air.  New transportation systems such as the steam locomotive and steam boats enabled people to move to the cities. The gasoline powered automobile was invented by Karl Benz in 1886.

1890 -1920: The exploitation and mis-management of natural resources during the Progressive era (1890 - 1920) gave rise to the Conservation Movement and the introduction of wildlife sanctuaries and national parks during the administration of President Theodore Roosevelt.

1890 -1920: The early environmentalists clashed with industry leaders believing that the natural world, including animals, birds, fish, plants, trees, water and air should be protected from destruction or pollution. The warnings of environmentalists were largely ignored and the natural resources of America were exploited by men who cared nothing for the environment or conservation, they were driven purely by profit.

1923: Automobile manufacturers introduced leaded gas (gasoline spiked with lead) to enhance engine performance of cars. Despite warnings that lead was a “serious menace to public health”  leaded gas was introduced to the market and car makers began to fight mandatory emissions control for their cars.

1945: Following World War Two the concept of ecology, which placed a higher value on esthetics and biology over efficiency and commerce, began to penetrate the public mind of Americans.

1949: The first known dioxin exposure incident, in a Nitro, West Virginia herbicide production plant. Dioxin was extensively used by the US during the Vietnam War. It was known as Agent Orange.

1960's: The Hippie Counterculture emerged in which young people rejected mainstream American life  that was dominated by materialism and consumerism, and turned to a freer lifestyle, living closer the nature - hence the term 'Flower Power'.

1962: There was a resurgence of public interest in Environmentalism when a book called 'Silent Spring' was published by Rachel Carson.  'Silent Spring'  addressed the widespread and indiscriminate pesticide poisoning of man and nature and man resulting in a public outcry for direct government action.

1967: The Air Quality Act of 1967 was an amendment to the Clean Air Act of 1963. The 1967 amendment put primary responsibility of addressing air quality in the hands of the state and local government, but not at national level

1969: The Cuyahoga River Fire disaster occurred in 1969 when the Cuyahoga River, in Cleveland Ohio polluted from decades of industrial waste and toxic garbage, caught fire

1969: The catastrophic Santa Barbara oil spill, together with the success of the "teach-ins" held by Vietnam War protestors on U.S. college campuses, inspired Senator Gaylord Nelson, Representative Pete McCloskey and Morton Hilbert, to organize a large-scale demonstration on behalf of the environment which came to be known as "Earth Day".

1970: The massive public response to the first Earth Day put the environment on the political agenda and an extension to the Clean Air Act was made in 1970 aimed at phasing out leaded gas by the mid-1980s.

1970: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was authorized via an executive order submitted to Congress on July 9, 1970 by President Nixon and the EPA was established on December 2, 1970.

1970: Pollution and the Death of Man, an ecological and philosophical work by the American author Francis A. Schaeffer, was published in 1970

1972: Congress passes the Clean Water Act, limiting pollutants in rivers, lakes and streams. The  Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act (also known as Ocean Dumping Act) is also passed.

1973: Congress passes the Endangered Species Act to protect animals and their ecosystems.

1982: The Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 was passed establishing a comprehensive national program for the safe, permanent disposal of highly radioactive wastes.

1990: Amendments to the Clean Air Act in 1990, during the presidency of George H Bush focused on reducing air pollutant emissions and the continuing concerns about air pollution.

1994: The first genetically modified food crop was released to the market and remains a strongly controversial environmental issue to the present day.

1997: NASA’s Earth Observing System launched a series of artificial satellite missions and scientific instruments in Earth orbit designed for long-term global observations of the land surface, atmosphere, biosphere and oceans of the Earth.

2005: The founder of Earth Day, Gaylord Nelson, died at the age of 89 on July 3, 2005.

2014: The Elk River chemical spill occurred on January 9, 2014 from a Freedom Industries facility into the Elk River, Charleston, West Virginia.

Present: Earth Day has become a worldwide holiday celebrated by over 1 billion people.