April was the second month in an early Roman calendar, but became the fourth when the ancient Romans started using January as the first month. The Romans called the month Aprilis.

Monday is 1 April, the day called “April Fools' Day”. We promise - no April Fools' jokes in this edition of the WebMaster's Corner.

No one knows where the custom began, but some historians believe it started in France. They had a New Year's festival that was celebrated from March 25 to April 1, and they would then exchange gifts. But, later, King James IV changed the holiday to January 1 for New Years. The people that still celebrated it April 1 were called 'April fish' and sent mock presents.

April Fools' Day may also be related to the ancient Roman spring festival Hilaria, which celebrates the resurrection of the god Attis.

We celebrate April as our month of transition into the full-blown spring of May. This certainly jibes with the purported fact that the month of April gets its name from the Latin "aprire" (to open ). Thus, April is the month when all the buds begin their spring upening.

Of course April is also the month when the tax man calls. The deadline for Federal tax filiing is Tuesday, 15 April.

Arbor day is celebrated on the 25th of April and it is a day set aside for planting trees. It is mostly celebrated by school children. Most states celebrate the holiday as do most provinces in Canada. Southern States and Hawaii celebrate it somewhere between December and March, while most Northern states celebrate it in April or May.

The Jewish holiday of Passover, begins on the Tuesday,the 15th (Tax day, when we pass over our heard-earned funds to the tax man) and ends on Sunday, 20 April.

9 April 1865 - Lee Surrenders

General Robert E. Lee surrendered to General Ulysses S. Grant in the Civil War. With his army surrounded, his men weak and exhausted, Robert E. Lee realized there was little choice but to consider the surrender of his Army to General Grant. After a series of notes between the two leaders, they agreed to meet on April 9, 1865, at the house of Wilmer McLean in the village of Appomattox Courthouse. The meeting lasted approximately two and one-half hours and at its conclusion the bloodliest conflict in the nation's history neared its end, three days short of 4 years since the war began at Fort Sumpter, 12 Apr 1861.

18 April 1942 - Doolittle Raid

Lieutenant Colonel James Doolittle led carrier-based planes in a raid on Tokyo, in World War II, providing a much-needed boost to allied morale and putting the Japanese military on notice that their homeland was suddenly "in play".

20 April 2010 - BP Oil Spill

The BP Oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico on the BP-operated Macondo Prospect, is considered the largest accidental marine oil spill in the history of the petroleum industry. Following the explosion and sinking of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig, which claimed 11 lives, a sea-floor oil gusher flowed unabated for three months in 2010. The gushing wellhead was not capped until after 87 days, on 15 July 2010. The total discharge is estimated at 4.9 million barrels (210 million US gallons).

22 April 1898 - Spanish American War Begins

Following the explosion of the US Battleship Maine in Cuba, on 15 February, 1898, President McKinley asks Congress to declare war on Spain on 11 April. In anticipation of Congress' declaration, the Army begins mobilization. The Teller Amendment passes in the U.S. Congress, stating that the U.S. would not annex Cuba. Congress then declares Cuba (a Spanish territory!) independent and, on 22 April the US Navy commences a blockade of Cuba and takes the first Spanish ship. Spain declares war. The next day, President McKinley issues call for 125,000 volunteers. Congress has yet to declare war. On 25 April, the U.S. finally declares war, but makes the declaration retroactive to April 22.

It has been remarked that, if Curly, Larry, and Moe were to run a war, it would have been the Spanish American war. This thought is supported by the escapades of the 5th US Corps in ramping up for that war.

26 April 1986 - Chernobyl Explosion

The Chernobyl disaster is widely considered to have been the worst nuclear power plant accident in history, and is one of only two classified as a level 7 event on the International Nuclear Event Scale (the other being the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster in 2011). The battle to contain the contamination and avert a greater catastrophe ultimately involved over 500,000 workers and cost an estimated 18 billion rubles. The official Soviet casualty count of 31 deaths has been disputed, and long-term effects such as cancers and deformities are still being accounted for.

29 April 1975 - Fall of Saigon -

Saigon fell 49 years ago on the 29th in 1975. The fall of the city was preceded by the evacuation of almost all the American civilian and military personnel in Saigon, along with tens of thousands of South Vietnamese civilians associated with the southern regime. The evacuation culminated in Operation Frequent Wind, which was the largest helicopter evacuation in history.

For a Finance Officer's perspective of that time of "war fog", read Dick Darcy's article on Operation Cambodian Pull.

30 April 1803 - Louisiana Purchase

The Louisiana Territory purchased from France by the U.S. (the treaty was actually signed May 2, but dated April 30). With Louisiana now part of the United States, the stage was set for the much anticipated event 211 years later of the fabulous RAFINO/RAFINCO Reunion 2014, in Baton Rouge, La.

• Maryland (7), 28 April 1788

• Louisiana (18), 30 April 1812