Anecdote
THE BLACK TOM EXPLOSION
Black Tom Island is in New York harbor. In 1916, it was one of the largest munitions depots in America. On the night of July 30 a massive explosion destroyed the facility leaving a 375’ by 175’ crater. The Read more
Anecdote
THE FOUNDING FATHER WHO WAS A SPY
If it wasn’t for a prostitute, we’d have one more Founding Father to idolize. Benjamin Church should be mentioned with the likes of Samuel Adams, John Hancock, John Adams, and Joseph Warren. Instead, his name is mentioned with Benedict Read more
Anecdote
DEATH BY JOKE
King Martin I of Aragon (1356-1410) was suffering from a bad tummy ache. From his sickbed, he ordered that the court jester be summoned to cheer him up. When the jester arrived, his excuse for being late was: “I Read more
Anecdote
THE THREE HORATII
This is the supposed anniversary of the battle between the Horatii and the Curiatii in 670 B.C. It is also the anniversary of the death of Horatia. During its early years, Rome conquered cities around it. The wars were Read more
Anecdote
DEATH BY TILE
Pyrrhus of Epirus was one of the greatest generals of Ancient History. A distant relative of Alexander the Great, he became a king in Macedonia. He was invited to intervene in Italy to stop a rising power called Rome. Read more
Anecdote
HIRAM REVELS
Hiram Revels was born to free parents in North Carolina on Sept. 27, 1827. He became an ordained minister in 1845. During the Civil War, he helped organized two African-American infantry regiments and served as a chaplain. In 1870, Read more
Anecdote
THE TITANIC’S BINOCULARS
When second officer Charles Lightoller took his new position on the Titanic, he neglected to ask his predecessor for the keys to the locker where the binoculars were stored. On the fateful night, a lookout spotted the iceberg with Read more
Anecdote
LIFE ON A WWII U-BOAT
One of the worst jobs was being a crewman on a German u-boat in WWII. Your life expectancy was poor. The death rate was around 75% and yet the submariners were volunteers. They were pampered ashore, but for the Read more
Anecdote
HISTORY OF PEPSI-COLA
There were many copycats to Coke and usually Coke was successful in suing them out of business. In 1893, a North Carolina pharmacist named Caleb Bradham came up with “Brad’s Drink” which he renamed Pepsi-Cola to imply pepsin which Read more
Anecdote
Bell’s Metal Detector
Garfield was shot in a railway station on July 2, 1881 by disgruntled office-seeker Charles Guiteau. One bullet glanced off his arm and the other entered his back, hit a rib, and ended up in his abdomen. His medical care Read more