From the Truman Doctrine, NATO, and Korea to Sputnik, the Cuban Missile Crisis, Vietnam, Apollo 11, and Nixon's opening to China.
Golden rules (General American pronunciation): vowels and silent or glide letters (w, h, y) carry no digit · silent letters are ignored (knife /naɪf/ → 28) · doubled letters count once (bell → 95, hammer → 34) · sound, never spelling, decides.
| Date | Event | Peg word | IPA | Digits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1947 | Truman Doctrine proclaims containment; Marshall Plan proposed; National Security Act creates CIA and Defense Department | rake /ɹeɪk/ | /ɹeɪk/ | 47 |
| 1949 | United States joins NATO; Berlin Airlift concludes; Chinese Communist Revolution and first Soviet atomic test | harp /hɑɹp/ | /hɑɹp/ | 49 |
| 1950 | Korean War begins; Senator Joseph McCarthy launches Second Red Scare investigations | lasso /ˈlæs.oʊ/ | /ˈlæs.oʊ/ | 50 |
| 1957 | Soviet Union launches Sputnik 1, sparking the Space Race and leading to the National Defense Education Act | lock /lɑk/ | /lɑk/ | 57 |
| 1961 | Bay of Pigs invasion fails; Berlin Wall erected; Eisenhower warns of the "military-industrial complex" | shoe +tie /ʃu/ + /taɪ/ | /ʃu/ + /taɪ/ | 61 |
| 1962 | Cuban Missile Crisis brings the United States and Soviet Union to the brink of nuclear conflict | chain /ˈtʃeɪn/ | /ˈtʃeɪn/ | 62 |
| 1964 | Gulf of Tonkin Resolution authorizes expanded U.S. military involvement in Vietnam | cherry /ˈtʃɛɹi/ | /ˈtʃɛɹi/ | 64 |
| 1968 | Tet Offensive turns U.S. opinion on the Vietnam War; assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy | shoe +hive /ʃu/ + /haɪv/ | /ʃu/ + /haɪv/ | 68 |
| 1969 | Apollo 11 lands the first humans on the Moon (July 20); nationwide anti-Vietnam War protests peak | sheep /ˈʃiːp/ | /ˈʃiːp/ | 69 |
| 1972 | Richard Nixon visits Beijing to reopen U.S.–China relations and signs the SALT I treaty in Moscow | cane /keɪn/ | /keɪn/ | 72 |
| 1973 | Paris Peace Accords end direct U.S. combat in Vietnam; War Powers Resolution and OPEC oil embargo | comb /koʊm/ | /koʊm/ | 73 |
1947 — As the Truman Doctrine proclaims containment and the Marshall Plan is proposed, a steel garden rake draws Western democracies together while the National Security Act creates the CIA and Defense Department. (ɹ·k → 47)
1949 — As the United States joins NATO and the Berlin Airlift concludes, a towering golden harp echoes across a tense world shaped by the Chinese Communist Revolution and the first Soviet atomic test. (ɹ·p → 49)
1950 — As the Korean War begins, a braided hemp lasso tightens around Washington while Senator Joseph McCarthy launches his Second Red Scare investigations. (l·s → 50)
1957 — When the Soviet Union launches Sputnik 1 into orbit, a gleaming brass lock snaps shut on Earthbound limits, sparking the Space Race and leading to the National Defense Education Act. (l·k → 57)
1961 — As the Bay of Pigs invasion fails and the Berlin Wall is erected, a polished brown shoe and a striped silk tie mark the year Eisenhower warns of the military-industrial complex. (ʃ → 6 · t → 1)
1962 — For thirteen tense days, a heavy iron chain stretches across Caribbean waters as the Cuban Missile Crisis brings the United States and Soviet Union to the brink of nuclear conflict. (tʃ·n → 62)
1964 — A single glossy crimson cherry drops into coastal waters as Congress passes the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, authorizing expanded U.S. military involvement in Vietnam. (tʃ·ɹ → 64)
1968 — In a turbulent year, a lone black shoe sits beside a golden straw hive as the Tet Offensive turns U.S. opinion on the Vietnam War and the assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy shake the country. (ʃ → 6 · v → 8)
1969 — On July 20, a plump white sheep bounds across pale lunar dust as Apollo 11 lands the first humans on the Moon while nationwide anti-Vietnam War protests peak at home. (ʃ·p → 69)
1972 — Walking with a polished walnut cane, Richard Nixon visits Beijing to reopen U.S.–China relations before signing the SALT I treaty in Moscow. (k·n → 72)
1973 — As the Paris Peace Accords end direct U.S. fighting in Vietnam, an amber tortoiseshell comb parts tangled diplomatic knots amid the War Powers Resolution and the OPEC oil embargo. (k·m → 73)