This Week in History
The Mystery Of KAL 007
It was on Sept. 1, 1983 that we learned a Soviet jet fighter had fired on a civilian airplane off the coast of Siberia, reportedly killing all 269 passengers and crew, including U.S. Representative Larry McDonald (D-Ga.). At the time, McDonald was known as one of the most active anti-Communists in the U.S. Congress. He [...]
John Birch Was First Recorded Cold War Death
The first recorded death in the Cold War occurred on Aug. 25, 1945 — one week before VJ Day — when Chinese Communists murdered a Baptist missionary and United States Army Captain named John Birch. Although the U.S.
The United Nations Moves In
It was 60 years ago this Saturday, on Aug. 21, 1950, that the advocates of one-world government and defenders of murderous tyrannies and corrupt dictators got the world headquarters they had sought for nearly a century. The United Nations moved in
Carnegie Gave Away His Fortune To Benefit Others
On Aug. 11, 1919, a remarkable philanthropist and industrialist went to his reward. Andrew Carnegie, the king of steel and architect of the second Industrial Revolution, made the equivalent of many billions of dollars… and then gave it all away.
San Francisco And Aug. 2
Yesterday was Tony Bennett’s 84th birthday. In honor of the occasion let’s toast the city where he left his heart—San Francisco, the City by the Bay. On Aug. 2, 1873, the first San Francisco cable car began operating, on Clay Street
World War I And The World Stock Exchanges
The outbreak of World War I 96 years ago this month had a devastating effect on the world’s stock markets. Early in the morning of Friday, July 31, 1914, the London Stock Exchange announced that it would suspend trading until further notice—
Ford’s Model A
A revolution in transportation began on July 23, 1903, when Henry Ford sold his first automobile. The two-cylinder Model A, which cost all of $750, was delivered to Dr. Ernst Pfenning of Chicago. Unlike later versions of his famous assembl
The Dawn Of The Atomic Age
The atomic age began on July 16, 1945, when scientists near Alamogordo, N.M., detonated the world’s first atomic bomb. One of the most massive (and most secret) programs of World War II had borne deadly fruit. President Harry S Truman was
The Showman P.T. Barnum
America’s greatest showman, Phineas T. Barnum, was born on July 5, 1810, in Bethel, Conn. This son of a shopkeeper began his career as an entertainer when, at the age of 25, he charged admission to see a blind and paralyzed former slave, Joice H
The Treaty Of Versailles
On June 28, 1919, the First World War officially came to an end when France and Germany signed the Treaty of Versailles with the Allies. The German delegation, which had been forced to sign the punitive agreement, signaled their attitude by brea
Not Worth A Continental
The Continental Congress was struggling to find funds and provisions for the Revolutionary forces when it decided to issue its own currency. On June 22, 1776, it issued $2 million in paper money. The currency featured the likeness of Revolution
The Magna Carta Established
It was nearly 800 years ago this week that King John of England, under pressure from a group of barons, agreed to put his seal on a document that, for the very first time in English history, limited the king’s powers by law. King John
“Tear Down This Wall!”
It was 23 years ago this week that President Ronald Reagan stood at the Brandenburg Gate in the divided city of Berlin and urged Mikhail Gorbachev, general secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, to "tear down this wall!"
Technology And The Census
On June 1, 1890, some 45,000 census workers set out to count every person then living in the United States. And for the first time they had modern technology to help in their efforts. Seems 30-year-old Herman Hollerith had invented a
Patrick Henry: America’s Greatest Orator
America’s greatest orator was born on May 29, 1736. I’m referring to Patrick Henry, whose “give me liberty or give me death” speech to the Virginia House of Burgess marked an important turning point in our battle for independence.
