* On April 6, 1930, James Dewar needed a good way to occupy the Continental Baking Company’s shortcake-baking machinery while strawberries were out of season. Fortunately for generations of snackers to come, he tried shooting a cream filling into one of the shortcakes, and the iconic Twinkie (the name was inspired by a billboard ad for Twinkle Toe Shoes) was born. * On April 7, 1940, Tuskegee Institute founder Booker T. Washington became the first African American to be honored with a postage stamp bearing his likeness. It would be almost another 40 years before an African American woman -- human rights activist Harriet Tubman -- would receive the same recognition. * On April 8, 1993, astronaut Ellen Ochoa became the first Hispanic woman in space when the shuttle Discovery lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center. Later she also served as Director of the Johnson Space Center, the first Hispanic director and the second woman to hold that position, from 2013 to 2018.
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