The most famous sinking on the Great Lakes was that of the SS Edmund Fitzgerald on Nov. 10, 1975. The freighter made its maiden voyage on June 7, 1958 as the largest ship ever on the Great Lakes up until then. It was 729 feet long. It is still Read more…
When Nazi Germany invaded the Soviet Union, Stalin freed his Polish prisoners hoping some would join the Red Army. If not, they were free to leave through Iran. One group took this option and along the way met a little boy with a baby bear in a burlap sack. They Read more…
Did you know that American presidents were cursed by a Native American medicine man? After the 13 Colonies got their independence, the British handed over all their land south of Canada and east of the Mississippi. Part of that, the area north of the Ohio River, was called the Read more…
*** This anecdote is probably apocryphal, but it could be true. Both Livy and Appian included it in their histories. Two of the greatest generals met in the Battle of Zama in 202 B.C. The battle ended the Second Punic War and made Rome the dominant power in Read more…
Dogs have been used in war since ancient history. The earliest mention was in a history of King Alyattes, King of Lydia, around 600 B.C. He used the war dogs against the invading Cimmerians. In 525 B.C., at the battle of Pelusiam, Persian Emperor Cambyses put dogs, cats, and Read more…
Planet Earth saw the largest man-made explosion in history on Oct. 30, 1961. It was the middle of the Cold War and the Soviet Union was looking to intimidate America and NATO. America had taken the lead in the nuclear arms race after developing the first atomic bomb. On Read more…
Sidney Lewis was tall for his age and looked older than he was. What he was was 12-years-old. He snuck out of his home in August, 1915, and signed up for the British army. Recruiters often enlisted underage men. After all, England did not have a draft and needed Read more…
The greatest magician in history cheated death many times. He would allow himself to be sealed in a milk container filled with water. In his “Chinese Water Torture Cell”, he was submerged upside down in a water while shackled at his ankles. On Oct. 11, 1924, he fractured his Read more…
In 1951, Republic Aviation began a project to replace its F-84. The prototype flew on Oct. 22, 1955. The F-105 was delivered to the USAF in 1958. Staying with its “Thunder” names (the P-47 Thunderbolt and the F-84 Thunderjet), the plane was called the Thunderchief. It was the largest Read more…
In WWII, the Vietnamese resistance dug tunnels to hide from the Japanese. After the war, the Viet Minh continued the tradition and passed it on to the Viet Cong. By the time the American army arrived, there were 250 kilometers of tunnels in South Vietnam. Besides hiding places, the tunnels Read more…