Category Archives: State History

Tidbits of History, November 16

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November 16 is:

National Fast Food Day
During the early 1900s, the hamburger was thought to be polluted, unsafe to eat, and food for the poor. Street carts, not restaurants, typically served them.
There are more than 300,000 fast food restaurants in the U.S. alone

From Today in Science
In 1620, the first corn (maize) found in the U.S. by British settlers was discovered in Provincetown, Mass., by sixteen desperately hungry Pilgrims led by Myles Standish, William Bradford, Stephen Hopkins, and Edward Tilley at a place they named Corn Hill. The food came from a previously harvested cache belonging to a local Indian tribe. This corn provided a much needed supply of food which saw the Pilgrims through their first winter in the New World. A commemorative plaque placed on Corn Hill quotes in part “And sure it was God’s good providence that we found this corn for else we know not how we should have done.”

Fyodor Dostoevsky1849 – A Russian court sentenced writer Fyodor Dostoevsky to death for anti-government activities linked to a radical intellectual group. At the last moment, a note from Tsar Nicholas I was delivered to the scene of the firing squad, commuting the sentence to ten years’ hard labor in Siberia. Dostoevsky’s seizures, which may have started in 1839, increased in frequency in Siberia, and he was diagnosed with epilepsy. On his release, he was forced to serve as a soldier, before being discharged on grounds of ill health. He survived until 1881. Dostoevsky was the author of Crime and Punishment, The Idiot, and The Brothers Karamazov.

Oklahoma City Oklahoma became the United States 46th state on November 16, 1907

  • Capital: Oklahoma City
  • Nickname: Sooner State
  • Bird: Scissor-tailed flycatcher
  • Flower: Mistletoe
  • Tree: Redbud

See our page Oklahoma for more interesting facts and trivia about Oklahoma.

Trivia:: Although the film, Oklahoma, was initially to have been shot on location in the title state, the producers opted to shoot elsewhere, apparently because the oil wells would be a distraction for exterior scenes. Location shooting was done mostly in Nogales, Arizona. The corn field in the opening number as well as the reprise song, “Surrey With the Fringe On Top” was shot at the historic Canoa Ranch in Green Valley, Arizona. The train station used in the “Kansas City” routine was located in Elgin, Arizona.

The Rodgers and Hammerstein musical “The Sound of Music” opened on Broadway in 1959.

Charlie B Rangel convicted of ethics violations Nov 16, 2010In 2010, U.S. Rep. Charles Rangel was convicted on 11 of 13 charges related to financial misconduct, prompting fellow lawmakers to censure the 80-year-old New York Democrat. Despite the ethics violations, Rangel was re-elected in 2012 and 2014.

Tidbits of History, November 11

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Nov 11 is:

Young Readers Day

National Sundae Day

November 11 – At 11 am on 11 November 1918 the guns of the Western Front fell silent after more than four years of continuous warfare. The Allied nations chose this day and time for the commemoration of their war dead and continue to do so by marking a 1–2 minute silence at 11 am on November 11 each year. The time of the remembrance is also known as the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month.

End of World War I related observances:

Armistice Day (New Zealand, France, Belgium and Serbia)
Independence Day, commemorates the anniversary of Poland’s assumption of independent statehood in 1918 (Poland)
Remembrance Day (United Kingdom and the Commonwealth of Nations, including Australia and Canada)
Veterans Day, called Armistice Day until 1954, when the holiday was rededicated to be in honor of American military, naval, and Air Force, veterans. (United States)

Forty-one Pilgrims aboard the Mayflower, anchored off Massachusetts, signed a compact calling for a “body politick” in 1620.

November 11, 1744, Abigail AdamsBirthday of Abigail Smith Adams (November 11, 1744), wife of John Adams, second President of the United States; first lady from 1797-1801. Mother of John Quincy Adams, the 6th President of the United States. John Adams was a prolific writer of letters. He exchanged more than 1100 letters with his wife, Abigail. Most have been preserved in archives.

Fyodor DostoyevskyBirthday of Fyodor Dostoyevsky (November 11, 1821) , Russian novelist famed for “The Brothers Karamazov” and “Crime and Punishment”

Former slave Nat Turner, who had led a violent insurrection, was executed in Jerusalem, Va. in 1831.

George Patton, born November 11, 1885Birthday of George Patton, (Nov. 11, 1885), the famous World War II American military officer.

Olympia WashingtonWashington State Day, 1889, forty-second state

  • Capital: Olympia
  • Nickname: Evergreen State
  • Bird: Willow goldfinch
  • Flower: Coast rhododendron
  • Tree:Western Hemlock
  • Unofficial Motto: “Al-ki”, meaning “by and by” in Chinook Jargon

See our page on Washington for more interesting facts and trivia about the state of Washington.

Tomb on the Unknown SoldierAnniversary of the burial of the Unknown Soldier at the Tomb of the Unknowns in 1921 at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia. The tomb is guarded by soldiers of the United States Army’s 3rd Infantry Regiment. The first 24-hour guard was posted on midnight, July 2, 1937. The Tomb of the Unknowns has been guarded continuously, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, since that time. Inclement weather, terrorist attacks, etc, do not cause the watch to cease.
Everything the guards do is a series of 21, which alludes to the 21-gun salute.
The Sentinel does not execute an about face, rather they stop on the 21st step, then turn and face the Tomb for 21 seconds. They then turn to face back down the mat, change the weapon to the outside shoulder, mentally count off 21 seconds, then step off for another 21 step walk down the mat. They face the Tomb at each end of the 21 step walk for 21 seconds. The Sentinel then repeats this over and over until the Guard Change ceremony begins.

The U.S. Army turned over its base at Long Binh to the South Vietnamese army, symbolizing the end of direct U.S. military involvement in the Vietnam War in 1972.

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Tidbits of History, November 8

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November 8 is:

Mid-term Election Day in 2022.

National Cappuccino Day

International Day of Radiology

Book Lovers Day. Put aside your Kindle or Nook…read a real book!

Dunce Day, the anniversary of the November 8, 1308 death of Duns Scotus, medieval scholar. He is generally considered to be one of the three most important philosopher-theologians of the High Middle Ages; the others being Thomas Aquinas and William of Ockham. Later philosophers in the sixteenth century were less complimentary about his work, and accused him of sophistry. This led to his name, “dunce” (which developed from the name “Dunse” given to his followers in the 1500s) to become synonymous for “somebody who is incapable of scholarship”.

Birthday of Edmund Halley (November 8, 1656), English astronomer for whom Halley’s comet is named.

Doc Holliday1887 –John Henry “Doc” Holliday, who fought on the side of the Earp brothers during the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral 6 years earlier, died of tuberculosis in Glenwood Springs, Colorado.

Montana Glacier Montana Admission Day, 1889 forty-first state

  • Capital: Helena
  • Nickname: Treasure State
  • Bird: Western meadowlark
  • Flower: Bitterroot
  • Animal: Grizzly Bear
  • Tree: Ponderosa Pine
  • Motto: Gold and silver

See our page Montana for more interesting facts and trivia about Montana.

1892Grover Cleveland Former President Grover Cleveland beat incumbent Benjamin Harrison, becoming the first president to win non-consecutive terms. The second was Donald Trump just a few days ago. Grover Cleveland was President #22 and #24. Donald Trump is #45 and #47.

While experimenting with electricity, Wilhelm Röntgen discovered the X-ray in 1895.

Birthday of Margaret Mitchell (November 8 1900), American novelist, author of “Gone With the Wind”. She died at age 49 after being stuck by a drunk driver while crossing Peachtree Street in Atlanta.

Tidbits of History, November 2

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November 2 is:

All Soul’s Day, a religious day of remembrance of all the souls of the faithful departed.

Day of the Dead, The second day of Day of the Dead or El Dia de los Muertos celebration. (Mexico)

Plan Your Epitaph Day as one way to celebrate the “Day of the Dead”, a Mexican holiday to commemorate All Soul’s Day.

National Deviled Egg Day Eggs prepared this way started with the Ancient Romans but weren’t called “deviled” until the eighteenth century.

According to Corey Williams, December 13, 2019; Yahoo Lifestyle:
Though they weren’t prepared the same way they are now, eggs that had been boiled and seasoned were a popular appetizer among the elite members of Roman society. The dish was so common that it inspired the phrase “ab ova usque ad mala, which literally means “from eggs to apples, or from the beginning of a meal to the end.
To “devi”l means to “combine a food with various hot or spicy seasonings such as red pepper, mustard, or Tabasco sauce, thereby creating a ‘deviled’ dish,” according to the Food Lover’s Companion, the definitive guide to all things food and cooking.

Jean-Baptiste-SimeonChardin, born November 2, 1699Birthday of Jean-Baptiste-Siméon Chardin, (November 2, 1699), was an 18th-century French painter. He is considered a master of still life, and is also noted for his genre paintings which depict kitchen maids, children, and domestic activities. Carefully balanced composition, soft diffusion of light, and granular impasto characterize his work. Influenced Manet and Cézanne. Examples of his work can be found at Wikiart.

Daniel Boone, born November 2, 1734Birthday of Daniel Boone (November 2, 1734), American pioneer, explorer, frontiersman. Mentalfloss.com has an interesting article “14 facts about Daniel Boone”. Worth a look.

James K. Polk, born Nov 2, 1795 ,184614Birthday of James Knox Polk (November 2, 1795), eleventh president of the United States. Polk was more interested in issues than people. He did everything himself rather than rely on others. He customarily rose at daybreak and worked until midnight. He said:

“No president who performs his duties faithfully and conscientiously can have any leisure.”

Harding, died August 2nd, born November 2Birthday of Warren Gamaliel Harding (November 2, 1865), twenty-ninth President of the United States. While president, Harding played golf, poker twice a week, followed baseball and boxing, and sneaked off to burlesque shows. His advisors were known as the “Poker Cabinet” because they all played poker together.

North DakotaNorth Dakota Admission Day in 1889 thirty-ninth state

  • Capital: Bismarck
  • Nickname: Peace Garden State/Flickertail State/Sioux State
  • Bird: Meadowlark
  • Flower: Prairie Rose
  • Tree: American Elm
  • Motto: Liberty and union, now and forever, one and inseparable

See our page for North Dakota for more interesting facts and trivia about North Dakota.

South Dakota BadlandsSouth Dakota Admission Day in 1889, fortieth state.
President Harrison directed Secretary of State to shuffle the papers and obscure from him which he was signing first. No one really knows which state was admitted first but most historians just list the Dakota’s alphabetically so North becomes the 39th state and South the 40th.

  • Capital: Pierre
  • Nickname: Mount Rushmore State/Coyote State/Sunshine State
  • Bird: Ring-necked pheasant
  • Flower: Pasqueflower
  • Tree: Black Hills spruce
  • Motto: Under God the people rule

See our page for South Dakota for more interesting facts and trivia about South Dakota.

1947 Howard Hughes piloted his huge wooden airplane, the Spruce Goose, on its only flight, which lasted about a minute over Long Beach Harbor in California.

The Cuban Adjustment Act entered force in 1966, allowing 123,000 Cubans the opportunity to apply for permanent residence in the United States.

From Toay in Science
In 1988, a computer “worm” unleashed by a Cornell University graduate student, Robert T. Morris, began replicating wildly, clogging thousands of computers around the country. Intended as an experimental, self-replicating, self-propagating program, Morris soon discovered that the program was infecting machines at a much faster rate than he had anticipated. Computers were affected at many universities, military sites, and medical research facilities. When Morris realized what was happening he sent an anonymous message, instructing programmers how to kill the worm and prevent reinfection. However, because the network route was clogged, this message did not get through until it was too late. Morris, was later tried, fined and given probation.

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Tidbits of History, October 31

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October 31 is:

Halloween November 1 is celebrated as “All Saints’ Day”. Thus, the day prior (October 31st) is All Hallow’s Eve, “hallow” referring to saints. According to Wikipedia, “The traditional focus of All Hallows’ Eve revolves around the theme of using ‘humor and ridicule to confront the power of death.'”

Carve a Pumpkin Day – no surprise here

National Caramel Apple Day

Candy Apples were first introduced in Arabian cuisine. The reason was that fruit was candied to preserve it.
Soldiers in World War I slanged them “toffee apples.” Candy Apples are popular all over the world.
Everything from a Kool-Aid flavor to a nail-polish shade has been named candy apple red.

Martin LutherOctober 31, 1517 – Protestant Reformation: Martin Luther is believed to have nailed his 95 theses to Wittenberg Castle Church in Germany on this date.

John Jay, author of Federalist Paper # Federalist Paper #2 was published on this date in 1787. John Jay authored the article which is entitled “Concerning Dangers from Foreign Force and Influence”. He continues the arguments Hamilton made in Paper #1 about the necessity of America remaining one nation. This was one of the main concerns of the authors of the Constitution – that the new nation would break apart into regional sections. Jay said:

This country and this people seem to have been made for each other, and it appears as if it was the design of Providence that an inheritance so proper and convenient for a band of brethren, united to each other by the strongest of ties, should never be split into a number of unsocial, jealous, and alien sovereignties.

To all general purposes we have uniformly been one people each individual citizen everywhere enjoying the same national rights, privileges, and protection. As a nation we have made peace and war; as a nation we have vanquished our common enemies; as a nation we have formed alliances, and made treaties, and entered into various compacts and conventions with foreign states.

John KeatsBirthday of John Keats (October 31, 1795), English Romantic poet trained as a surgeon. John Keats was an English Romantic poet. He was one of the main figures of the second generation of Romantic poets, along with Lord Byron and Percy Bysshe Shelley, despite his works having been in publication for only four years before his death from tuberculosis at the age of 25.

Lake Mead National Recreation AreaNevada Admission Day, 1864 as the thirty-sixth state

  • Capital: Carson City
  • Nickname: Silver State/Sagebrush State/Battle born state
  • Bird: Mountain bluebird
  • Flower: Sagebrush
  • Tree:Single leaf pinon
  • Motto: All for our country

See our page for interesting facts and trivia about Nevada.

Harry HoudiniNational Magic Day, honoring the skills of magicians and commemorating the death of the great Harry Houdini in 1926.

Mount Rushmore1941 After nearly 15 years of work, the Mount Rushmore National Memorial in the Black Hills of South Dakota was completed; the colossal sculpture features the heads of Presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln.

1984 – Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi, was shot dead by two Sikh security guards. Riots against the Sikh population started soon after.

From Today in Science
In 1992, the Vatican admitted erring for over 359 years in formally condemning Galileo Galilei for entertaining scientific truths such as the Earth revolves around the sun it, which the Roman Catholic Church long denounced as anti-scriptural heresy. After 13 years of inquiry, the Pope’s commission of historic, scientific and theological scholars brought the pope a “not guilty” finding for Galileo. Pope John Paul II himself met with the Pontifical Academy of Sciences to help correct the record. In 1633, at age 69, Galileo was forced by the Roman Inquisition to repent and spent the last eight years of his life under house arrest. Galileo was a 17th century Italian mathematician, astronomer and physicist remembered as one of history’s greatest scientists.

The population of the world is said to have officially reached seven billion on this date in 2011.

Tidbits of History, August 21

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August 21 is:

Senior Citizen’s Day
National Spumoni Day In the United States, most spumoni will include a cherry layer with cherry bits, a layer of pistachio ice cream and a layer of chocolate.
National Sweet Tea Day
Thomas Sullivan ‘accidentally’ invented the teabag when he sent out tea samples in small silk pouches to customers in 1904. The pouches proved much less messy than raw tea leaves. The rest is history.

On August 21 in 1770 – James Cook formally claimed eastern Australia for Great Britain, naming it New South Wales.

Nat Turner was an African-American slave who led a two-day rebellion of slaves and free blacks in Southampton County, Virginia on August 21, 1831. Whites organized militias and called out regular troops to suppress the uprising. The rebellion was quashed within forty-eight hours. The rebellion caused the death of approximately sixty white men, women and children. In the aftermath of the revolt, forty-eight black men and women were tried on charges of conspiracy, insurrection, and treason. In total, the state executed 56 people, banished many more, and acquitted a few. …In the hysterical climate that followed the rebellion, close to 200 black people were killed by white militias and mobs. On November 5, 1831, Nat Turner was tried for “conspiring to rebel and making insurrection”, convicted, and sentenced to death. He was hanged on November 11 in Jerusalem, Virginia. Turner’s corpse was flayed, beheaded and quartered.

From Today in Science
On August 21, 1841, the first U.S. patent for a Venetian blind was issued to John Hampson of New Orleans, Louisiana on a “manner of retaining in any desired position the slats of Venetian Blinds” (No. 2223). It is said the first U.S. installation of Venetian blinds was in 1761 in St. Peter’s Church, Third and Pine streets, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. By definition, a Venetian blind has horizontal slats, one above another.

1814 Benjamin Thompson, Count von Rumford died. American physician who invented the percolator, a pressure cooker and a kitchen stove. He is frequently credited with creating baked Alaska. When the American Revolutionary War began, Thompson was opposed to the uprising. He became a Loyalist and fled his New England home for Great Britain where he became an advisor to British military.

The first successful adding machine in the United States was patented by William Seward Burroughs on Aug 21, 1888.

Oldsmobile, a brand of American automobiles was founded in 1897.

Hawaii headerHawaii Statehood Day in 1959 Hawaii became the fiftieth state

  • Capital: Honolulu
  • Nickname: Aloha State/Paradise of the Pacific
  • Bird: Nene (Hawaiin goose)
  • Flower: Red Hibiscus
  • Tree: Kukui (Candlenut tree)
  • Motto: The life of the land is perpetuated in righteousness

See our page Hawaii for more interesting facts and trivia about Hawaii.

1961 – Motown releases what would be its first #1 hit, “Please Mr. Postman” by The Marvelettes.

Tidbits of History, August 10

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August 10th is:

Lazy Day
National S’mores Day
National Banana Split Day

August 10, 1792: Storming of the Tuileries Palace during the French Revolution. It was a royal and imperial palace in Paris which stood on the right bank of the River Seine. It was the usual Parisian residence of most French monarchs, from Henry IV to Napoleon III. It was burned by the Paris Commune in 1871.

Missouri headerMissouri Admission Day in 1821, becoming the twenty-fourth state:

  • Capital: Jefferson
  • Nickname: Show Me State
  • Bird: Bluebird
  • Flower: Hawthorn
  • Tree: Flowering Dogwood
  • Motto: The welfare of the people shall be the supreme law

See our page Missouri for more interesting facts and trivia about the state of Missouri.

From Today in Science
In 1846, an Act of Congress signed by President James K. Polk established the Smithsonian Institution as a trust to administer the generous bequest of James Smithson, an amount over $500,000. In 1826, James Smithson, a British scientist, drew up his last will and testament, naming his nephew as beneficiary. Smithson stipulated that, should the nephew die without heirs (as he would in 1835), the estate should go “to the United States of America, to found at Washington, under the name of the Smithsonian Institution, an establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men.” The motives behind Smithson’s bequest remain mysterious; he had never traveled to the U.S. and seems to have had no correspondence with anyone there.

August 10 birthdayBirthday of Herbert Hoover (August 10, 1874), 29th President of the United States. Hoover Trivia:

  • Hoover wrote many books including his own three-volume memoirs.
  • The Hoover Dam was also named in his honor
  • Hoover refused to accept a salary as president
  • The Star Spangled Banner was adopted as our national anthem during his presidency.
  • One line in the All in the Family theme songء “Mister, we could use a man like Herbert Hoover again.”

From Today in Science
In 1897, Dr. Felix Hoffmann successfully created a chemically pure and stable form of acetylsalicylic acid. His handwritten laboratory notes—aspirin’s “birth certificate”—suggested: “Through its physical characteristics such as a sour taste without any corrosive effect, acetylsalicylic acid has an advantage over salicylic acid and will therefore be tested for its usability in this context.” His success was trademarked as Aspirin. It was a better pain reliever for his father’s rheumatoid arthritis than the salicylic acid previously used which had an unpleasant taste and side effects, such as stomach bleeding. Hoffmann had improved on the earlier work of French chemist Charles Frederic Gerhardt who derived acetylsalicylic acid from plants, though only in an impure, unstable form.

Scotland Yard disrupted major terrorist plot to destroy aircraft traveling from the United Kingdom to the United States in 2006. All toiletries are banned from commercial airplanes.

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Tidbits of History, August 1

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National Girlfriends Day
National Raspberry Cream Pie Day
National Day of Switzerland Traditional founding date of Switzerland in 1291; The Old Swiss Confederacy was formed with the signing of the Federal Charter.

August 1, 1620 – The Speedwell left Delfshaven, Netherlands and reached Southampton, Hampshire in southeast England. At Southampton it met up with the Mayflower and set out for America on August 5, 1620. Shortly after the Speedwell started taking on water so the ships landed at Dartmouth, Devon. The leaks were sealed and the ships sailed again. They got as far as Plymouth, Devon when the Speedwell was again leaking. It was decided to sell the Speedwell and transfer the passengers and crew to the Mayflower. Of the combined 121 passengers, 102 were chosen to make the trip. The reduced party finally sailed on Sept 6th.

1790 – The first U.S. census was completed with a total population of 3,929,214 recorded. The areas included were the original thirteen colonies (now states) and Kentucky, Maine, and Tennessee. The population had grown from 350 at Jamestown, Virginia in 1610.

1801 – First Barbary War: The American schooner USS Enterprise captured the Tripolitan corsair Tripoli after a fierce but one-sided battle off the coast of modern-day Libya. Unscathed, Enterprise sent the battered pirate into port since the schooner’s orders prohibited taking prizes. Remembered in Marine hymn “From the halls of Montezuma… to the shores of Tripoli…”

1834 – Slavery was abolished in the British Empire as the Slavery Abolition Act of 1833 went into force.

Colorado headerColorado Day, a legal holiday in Colorado in honor of the admission to the Union in 1876 as the thirty-eighth state

  • Capital: Denver
  • Nickname: Centennial State
  • Bird: Lark bunting
  • Flower: Rocky Mountain Columbine
  • Tree:Blue Spruce
  • Motto: Nothing Without Providence

See our page Colorado for more interesting facts and trivia about Colorado.

The first Jeep was produced on August 1, 1941.

1943 – In the Solomon Islands, the U.S. Navy patrol torpedo boat PT-109 sank after being hit by the Japanese destroyer, Amagiri. The boat was under the command of Lt. John F. Kennedy. Eleven of the thirteen crew survived.

August 1, 1944: Anne Frank made the last entry in her diary. Three days later she was arrested. She was deported to Auschwitz on Sept 3, 1944 and died in early March, 1945.

The United States and Canada formed the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) in 1957.

1961 – U.S. Defense Secretary Robert McNamara ordered the creation of the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), the nation’s first centralized military espionage organization. It operates under the jurisdiction of the Dept of Defense.

From Today in Science
In 1831, New London Bridge opened to traffic. In 1821, a committee was formed by Parliament to consider the poor condition of the existing centuries-old bridge. The arches had been badly damaged by the Great Freeze, so it was decided to build a new bridge. Building commenced under John Rennie in 1825, and completed in 1831, at the expense of the city. The bridge is composed of five arches, and built of Dartmoor granite. It was opened with great splendour by King William IV, accompanied by Queen Adelaide, and many of the members of the royal family, August 1st, 1831. In the 1960’s it was auctioned and sold for $2,460,000 to Robert McCulloch who moved it to Havasu City, Arizona. The rebuilt London Bridge was completed and dedicated on 10 Oct 1971.

Also from Today in Science
In 1873, English inventor Andrew Smith Hallidie, in the U.S. since 1852, revolutionized transportation methods in San Francisco when he successfully tested a cable car he had designed to solve the problem of providing mass transit up San Francisco’s steep hills. He not only invented, but also manufactured, and patented the first cable car and its system of wire ropes, pulleys, tracks, and grips that made it possible. Hallidie, an engineer and one-time miner, realized the need on one foggy day in 1869 when he watched in horror as horses pulling a carriage up one of the City’s steep grades slipped on the wet cobblestoned street, the heavy carriage rolled backward downhill and the five horses dragged behind it suffered fatal injuries. Hallidie, using wire rope, had already had much success in the use of cable drawn ore cars for use in mines.

Birthdays

Birthday of William Clark (August 1, 1770), American solider and explorer who, together with Meriwether Lewis, led an expedition from St. Louis to the Pacific following the Louisiana Purchase. Their journey lasted from May 1804 to September 1806.

Birthday of Francis Scott Key (August 1, 1779), American lawyer and author of “The Star-Spangled Banner”.

Birthday of Herman Melville (August 1, 1819), American author of “Moby Dick”

Tidbits of History, July 10

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July 10 is:

Teddy Bear Picnic Day
Pick Blueberries Day
National Piña Colada Day

Birthday of John Calvin (July 10, 1509), Protestant theologian and reformer.

Alexander Mackenzie reached the Mackenzie River delta in 1789.

The first US frigate, the “United States,” was launched in Philadelphia on July 10, 1797.

The United States took possession of its newly bought territory of Florida from Spain in 1821.

The Pont Royal and the Pavillion de Flore - Camille Pissarro Birthday of Camille Pissarro (July 10, 1830), Danish-French Impressionist. See Wikiart for samples of his works.

Birthday of Nikola Tesla (July 10, 1856), Croatian scientist who designed and built the first alternating current induction motor in 1883.

Wyoming headerWyoming Statehood Day 1890 forty-fourth state

  • Bird: Meadowlark
  • Flower: Indian paintbrush
  • Tree: Cottonwood
  • Capital: Cheyenne
  • Nickname: Equality State/Cowboy State
  • Motto: Equal rights

See our page on Wyoming for more interesting facts and trivia.

On July 10, 1913, Death Valley, California hit 134 °F (~56.7 °C), which is the highest temperature recorded in the United States.

Scopes Trial: In Dayton, Tennessee, the so-called “Monkey Trial” begins on July 10, 1925 with John T. Scopes, a young high school science teacher accused of teaching evolution in violation of the Butler Act.

From Today in Science
Edward H Lowe Born 10 Jul 1920; died 4 Oct 1995 at age 75.
American inventor of Kitty Litter. After Navy duty (1941-45), Lowe joined his father’s company in Cassopolis, Mich., selling industrial absorbents, including sawdust and an absorbent clay called Fuller’s Earth. In 1947, Lowe suggested the use of the clay instead of ashes for his neighbor’s cat’s box to avoid sooty paw prints. It worked well and Lowe thought other cat owners would use this new cat-box filler. He filled ten brown bags with clay, wrote the name “Kitty Litter” on them and began selling it through the local pet store. By 1990, his marketing effort had grown into a clay mining and consumer product business, the largest U.S. producer of cat-box filler, now improved, 99% dust free, and sanitized against odor-causing bacteria. He held 67 US and foreign patents.

Tidbits of History, July 3

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July 3 is:
Compliment Your Mirror Day
Disobedience Day
Stay out of the Sun Day
National Chocolate Wafer Day
Eat Beans Day

July 3, 1608, Québec City was founded by Samuel de Champlain.

1775 – American Revolutionary War: George Washington took command of the Continental Army at Cambridge, Massachusetts.

In 1806, Michael Keens, a market gardener of Isleworth near London, exhibited the first cultivated strawberry that combined size, flavor, and color at the Royal Horticultural Society. The 600 strawberry varieties found today stem from five or six original wild species, and are a member of the rose family. The wild, small, fragrant forest strawberry of Europe was available to the Romans in the Middle Ages. Europeans discovered wild strawberries in Virginia when their ships landed there in 1588, grown by local American Indians. When Virginia sent a better flavored strawberry to England in 1642, and a large white strawberry from Chile was introduced in 1806, the big fruit we know today, emerged. Strawberries are unique, because they are the only fruit with seeds on the outside.

Great Auk extinct, July 3, 1844July 3 – 1844: The Great Auk becomes extinct, after the last group was killed in Iceland.

Idaho header Idaho Admission Day in 1890 as the forty-third state

  • Capital: Boise
  • Nickname: Gem state
  • Bird: Mountain bluebird
  • Flower: Syringa (mock orange)
  • Tree: Western white pine
  • Motto: It is forever

See our page Idaho for more interesting facts and trivia about Idaho.

In 1929, foam rubber was developed at the Dunlop Latex Development Laboratories in Birmingham. British scientist E.A. Murphy whipped up the first batch in 1929, using an ordinary kitchen mixer to froth natural latex rubber. His colleagues were unimpressed – until they sat on it. Within five years it was everywhere, on motorcycle seats, on London bus seats, Shakespeare Memorial Theatre seats, and eventually in mattresses.

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