Area residents recall where they were when Neil Armstong walked on the moon

What a year! On July 20, 1969, American Astronaut Neil Armstrong became the first human to set foot on the moon. His words were heard, repeated and remembered by many who watched the event on TV or read accounts afterward: “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” While that monumental moment capped the U.S. space race with the Russians, it wasn’t the only memorable event of 1969. Here are just a few highlights. It was the year that Richard Nixon took office — Jan. 20, 1969. The last weekly issue of the “Saturday Evening Post” hit the newsstands on Feb. 8, 1969. The original movie “The Love Bug” was released on March 13, featuring the highly popular Volkswagen Beetle. April 7, 1969 is often cited as a symbolic birth date of the Internet. In May 1969, the Who released the rock opera “Tommy.” “The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour” aired its last show and “Hee Haw” aired its first in June 1969. It was the year of Woodstock, Aug. 15-17, 1969, the music festival that defined the generation. The Beatles released “Abbey Road” in September 1969. It was another year of vocal opposition, demonstrations and sit-ins urging the U.S. to get out of the war in Vietnam. A march on Washington drew 250,000 people to protest the war on Oct. 15. Wal-Mart incorporated on Oct. 31, 1969. In November 1969, four months after Armstrong and Apollo 11, astronauts Charles “Pete” Conrad and Alan Bean of Apollo 12 landed on the moon to become the second set of American astronauts to walk on the moon’s surface. Also in November 1969, “Sesame Street” first aired on PBS. On Dec. 17, 1969, the U.S. Air Force closed its Project Blue Book, concluding there was no evidence of UFO’s.