Posts Tagged ‘origin’

Celebrating Independence Day in style

Friday, July 3rd, 2009

By Robert Lockard

John Adams, one of the Founding Fathers who signed the Declaration of Independence and went on to become the second president of the United States, wrote on July 3, 1776:

I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever more.

Fourth of July fireworks

What he was referring to was, of course, the Fourth of July. His words are literally fulfilled every year on July 4 as we celebrate our independence as a nation and a people. Few holidays measure up to the greatness of this one, in my mind.

Here are some interesting facts I recently learned about the Fourth of July, which I would like to share with you:

  • The first Fourth of July celebration as held one year after the Declaration of Independence was signed in 1776. In Bristol, R.I. and Philadelphia, citizens fired 13 gunshots in honor of the 13 colonies.
  • Bristol is also noteworthy for having the highest number of consecutive Fourth of July celebrations, starting in 1785.
  • The term “Independence Day” was first used in 1791.
  • In 1870, nearly a hundred years after the country was founded, Congress made Independence Day a federal holiday.
  • In 1931, Independence Day became a paid federal holiday.

I must say I’m impressed by the Fourth of July celebrations I’ve encountered in Utah. As a newcomer to this land, I am excited to see what America’s Freedom Festival holds this year. It will culminate in the Stadium of Fire at Brigham Young University’s LaVell Edwards football stadium on July 4. I don’t know if I’ll be able to attend that event, but I hear it will be great.

Be sure to keep coming back to the eHarbor Blog for tips on ecommerce and Internet marketing. But in the meantime, enjoy your Independence Day!

The photo of fireworks in Salt Lake City, Utah is from Flickr, and it is the copyright of deltaMike.

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Posted in Fun | 1 Comment »

6 fun facts about Memorial Day

Friday, May 22nd, 2009

By Robert Lockard

Happy Memorial Day on Monday!

U.S. flags celebrating Memorial Day

This is a different kind of eHarbor Blog entry. To help celebrate this holiday, I’d like to share some interesting facts about Memorial Day, its origins and what it celebrates. Enjoy!

- Memorial Day was first called Decoration Day.

- The first Memorial Day celebration is believed to have occurred in Waterloo, N.Y. on May 5, 1866. Every business was closed and flags were lowered to half-mast that day to honor the Union soldiers who died in the Civil War.

- May 30 was designated the official date of Memorial Day for many years because no Civil War battle was fought that day. Organizers wanted to honor soldiers who fought in all battles.

- Many Southern states, including Tennessee, the Carolinas and Virginia, celebrate Confederate Memorial Day in addition to Memorial Day.

- Memorial Day didn’t become an official federal holiday until 1971. The celebration date was changed from May 30 to the last Monday of May.

- Memorial Day weekend is the unofficial start of the summer movie season, although that has changed in the past several years.

We’ll return to ecommerce topics soon. Have a great three-day weekend! The photo of the U.S. flags is from Flickr, and it is the copyright of Bart Fields.

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Posted in Fun | No Comments »

What Google might have been

Monday, April 20th, 2009

By Robert Lockard

This photo of a Google postcard just tickled my funny bone, so I have to share it.

Google search on a postcard

After my seven-part series on search engine optimization tactics to get to the top of Google searches, I think my readers have become fairly knowledgeable about the complexities of search engines.

This fun photo gives us a chance to stand back and smile at how Google might have started out if it had existed in the 1980s or earlier.

The photo is the copyright of dullhunk on Flickr.

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Posted in Fun, Search Engines | 1 Comment »

Where eHarbor came from: The birth of ecommerce

Monday, February 9th, 2009

By Robert Lockard

To understand where something is going, I’ve found it’s important to know where it came from. For instance, without a starting point on Google Maps, it’s impossible to obtain detailed directions to your destination. You can still find your ending point, but it takes much more effort. We’ve talked about what eHarbor is and where it’s going, so now is a good time to bring up some of its humble origins.

Cartoon character looking at her creator, a pencil

eHarbor was originally launched as Internet Promotion Services, Inc. in Provo, Utah in 1996. The company worked with small-business owners, doing search-engine submissions to InfoSeek and Inktomi, and it was one of the first companies to work with DogPile, GoTo (now Yahoo Search Marketing) and Alta Vista. Internet Promotions enjoyed great success in the burgeoning Internet marketing industry as website owners began to realize the power of search engines to generate new business.

Oliver Bigler, who is currently the CEO of eHarbor, joined the company in 2002 after working as a Strategy Business Consultant for the Monitor Group in Cambridge, Mass. Bigler launched a new version of Internet Promotions that targeted a growing segment of the online market: small to mid-size business and ecommerce. Submit Solution was the first entity created under Bigler, followed shortly thereafter by Real Estate Promoter, which offered search engine optimization and lead generation in the online real estate market. In 2003, Bigler created a new corporate entity to house the increasing number of divisions. That new entity was named eHarbor, Inc.

eHarbor has emerged as one of the fastest-growing Internet technology companies today. Currently valued at more than $6 million, eHarbor is the market leader in search-engine marketing technology and search-engine lead-capturing services for several industries. It works to bring top placement and qualified Web traffic to its clients via partnerships with the top 20 search portals, including Yahoo, Google, and MSN, and generating thousands of targeted, early-market leads for its client base.

The eHarbor office is located at 505 E Technology Ave. Building C, Suite 2100 Orem, Utah 84097.

Now you know a little more about eHarbor’s origin. I hope to talk more about some of the people who make up eHarbor and its various divisions: Submit Solution, Real Estate Promoter, Real Estate Investor, Direct Home Find, and Magellan Commerce. But that will wait. Soon we’ll talk about ecommerce and its importance in difficult economic times.

The photo of the cartoon character gazing upon her creator is from Flickr and it is the copyright of the prodigal untitled13.

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Posted in Ecommerce, eHarbor | 16 Comments »