Anecdote
FACTS ABOUT HORATIO NELSON
He was the sixth of eleven kids from a poor upper-class family. He was sent to sea under his uncle at age 12. His uncle famously said that perhaps a cannon ball would take off his head and thus solve Read more…
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KING TUT’S BABIES
On Nov. 4, 1922, the greatest archeological find in history was made by British archeologist Howard Carter. On that day, he uncovered a stairway that led to a seal indicated it was the tomb of the pharaoh Tutankhamun, the Read more…
Anecdote
THE AMISTAD CASE
In Feb., 1839, Portuguese slave hunters kidnapped hundreds of Africans and brought them to Cuba for sale. Two Spanish plantation owners bought 53 at auction. They were loaded on a ship called the Amistad (“friendship”) and sailed for the Read more…
Anecdote
FACTS ABOUT LAWRENCE OF ARABIA
He was the illegitimate son of Sir Thomas Chapman. Chapman had an affair with the governess to his children and then left his wife for her. They lived as man and wife under the name Lawrence. They moved around a Read more…
Anecdote
THE SIX WIVES OF HENRY VIII
Catherine of Aragon – Henry became king at age 17 in 1509. Six weeks later, he married his brother Arthur’s widow. She was 24. She was the daughter of Ferdinand and Isabella. She had Mary in 1516, but had several Read more…
Anecdote
FACTS ABOUT THE F.B.I.
It was created in 1908 under President Teddy Roosevelt and was originally simply called the “special agent force”. One year later, it became the Bureau of Investigations and then the Department of Investigations. It became the FBI in 1935. J. Read more…
Anecdote
THE ASSASSINATION OF FRANZ FERDINAND
*** Today is the birthday of the luckiest assassin in history. Gavrilo Princip was born on July 25, 1894. The story of his assassination of Franz Ferdinand was partly responsible for my love of history and history anecdotes in particular. Read more…
Anecdote
FACTS ABOUT AMELIA EARHART
The first time she saw a plane, at the 1908 Iowa State Fair, she was not impressed. Years later, during WWI, she volunteered as a nurse’s aide at Toronto’s Spadina Military Hospital. She hung around with the pilots at the Read more…
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TODAY IN HISTORY
Well, it’s taken more than a year, but I have finally completed my Today in History pages. Go to each month to find out who was born and what interesting historical events occurred on each day. Plus I have a Read more…
Anecdote
THE LOST COLONY
In August, 1587, 115 settlers arrived at Roanoke Island in what is today North Carolina. A couple of months later, John White sailed back to England to get more supplies. He left his daughter and his granddaughter Virginia Dare. Read more…