Today in History: China opens the “Great Wall of China” to tourists

By Toby Friedman

If you haven’t heard about the Great Wall of China, listen in! This massive wall that surrounds China’s historic northern borders took hundreds of years to build and is over 2,000 years old. Made mostly of earth and stone, this wall was created by China’s emperors to protect their territory. It is kept silent that thousands of workers who died building the Great Wall were buried inside of it! This wall is the longest manmade structure stretching 13,000 miles long. On this day, fifty-one years ago, China officially opened this major tourist attraction to the public.

(Alamy Stock Photo)