An interesting historical story.
In 451 B.C., a Roman patrician named Appius Claudius fell in lust for a plebeian woman named Verginia (also spelled Virginia). She was the daughter of an esteemed centurion named Verginius and betrothed to Lucius Icilius. Gifts and bribes would not woo the girl, so Claudius turned to subterfuge. Read more
Anna Coleman Watts was born on July 15, 1878 in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. She studied sculpture in Paris and Rome. Her first important work was called “Triton’s Babies”. In was displayed at the Panama-Pacific Exposition in San Francisco in 1915. It is now part of a fountain in Boston. Read more
The most raucous inauguration in American History was that of Andrew Jackson on March 4, 1829. “Old Hickory” was the first common person to be elected President. By common, I am referring to his birth, not his personality. His election in 1828 was symbolic of the expansion of democracy Read more
On March 1, 1932, Charles and Anne Murrow Lindbergh’s nineteen-month-old baby boy Charles, Jr. was taken from his second story bedroom in Hopewell, New Jersey. The kidnapper left a note with a symbol on it. The note demanded $50,000. It had a lot of spelling and grammar mistakes. “Dear Sir! Read more
One of the most unusual wars in history occurred in Australia in 1932. And the bad guys won. If you can call birds bad guys, that is. When Australian soldiers returned from the Great War, they were rewarded with farm land. Surprise, the government screwed them. The free land Read more
Wake up at dawn in the barracks or tent you share with seven other soldiers. Put on your tunic, belt, and sandals. Breakfast of porridge or bread. Don armor and go to morning muster. Daily tasks – clean latrines, clean bathhouse, guard duty Lunch – more porridge or bread Training Read more
The first enemy attack on American soil since the British attacked Washington during the War of 1812 occurred on Feb. 23, 1942. In the period after Pearl Harbor, the Japanese sent seven subs to roam the California coastline in search of warships and merchant ships. They sank two merchant Read more
NAME – George Washington NICKNAME(S) – The Old Fox / The Sage of Mount Vernon BIRTH / DEATH – Feb. 22, 1732 Westmoreland County, Va. / Dec. 14, 1799 Mount Vernon FATHER – planter (died when he was 11) MOTHER – housewife COLLEGE – did not attend WIFE – Martha Read more
The Democratic Convention of 1968 took place in Chicago. It took place in a year when the anti-Vietnam War movement and the counterculture were peaking. The event attracted 10,000 anti-war protesters. Chaos ensued as police clashed with demonstrators. Mayor Daley was determined to crush the demonstrators. On August 25, Read more