Tidbits of History

October 15 is:

White Cane Safety Day, a national observance in the United States, celebrated on October 15 of each year since 1964. The date is set aside to celebrate the achievements of people who are blind or visually impaired and the important symbol of blindness and tool of independence, the white cane.

Red Wine Day One bottle of wine contains the juice of about 3 pounds of grapes
Per Foodimentary.com
The top three imported wines sold in the U.S. are Yellowtail (Australia), Cavit (Italy), and Concha y Toro (Chile).
The term bouquet refers to the total scent of the wine. Aroma is the scent of the grapes. When wine tasters want to describe the bouquet and the aroma together, they use the term nose.
In 2008, the top five wine-producing states in the U.S. were California (3.4 million tons of grapes crushed for wine), Washington (145,000 tons), New York (45,000 tons), Oregon (40,000 tons), and Pennsylvania (13,200 tons).
According to the U.S. Dietary Guidelines, there are 100 calories in a 5-ounce glass of wine (compared to 150 calories in a 12-ounce beer).
The ancient Greeks had a wine glass to ensure the drinker’s moderation. If wine was poured above a certain level, the cup spilled its entire contents out of the bottom.

Birthday of Virgil; (October 15, 70 BC), Roman poet, author of “The Aeneid”, the national epic of Rome.

From Today in Science.com:
In 1783, Frenchman Jean Pilâtre de Rozier (1754-1785) made a tethered balloon ascent, in the gardens of La Muette. The Montgolfier-made balloon, Aerostat Reveillon, carrying Pilâtre, first man to leave the earth, rose to the end of its 250- ft tether. It stayed aloft for 15 minutes, then landed safely nearby.

1793 – Queen Marie-Antoinette of France was tried and convicted in a swift, pre-determined trial in the Palais de Justice, Paris, and condemned to death the following day.

Napoleon I of France began his exile on Saint Helena in the Atlantic Ocean in 1815.

Birthday of Friedrich Nietzsche (October 15, 1844), German philosopher, quoted as having said “God is dead.”
Other quotes include:

“The doctrine of equality! There exists no more poisonous poison: for it seems to be preached by justice itself, while it is the end of justice.”; and

“Everything in woman hath a solution. It is called pregnancy.”

Birthday of John Lawrence Sullivan (October 15, 1858 – February 2, 1918), known simply as John L. among his admirers, and dubbed the “Boston Strong Boy” by the press, was an American boxer recognized as the first heavyweight champion of gloved boxing, de facto reigning from February 7, 1882, to September 7, 1892. He is also generally recognized as the last heavyweight champion of bare-knuckle boxing under the London Prize Ring Rules, being a cultural icon of the late 19th century America, arguably the first boxing superstar and one of the world’s highest-paid athletes of his era. Newspapers’ coverage of his career, with the latest accounts of his championship fights often appearing in the headlines, and as cover stories, gave birth to sports journalism in the United States and set the pattern internationally for covering boxing events in media, and photodocumenting the prizefights.

Birthday of Edith Bolling Galt Wilson (October 15, 1872), second wife of Woodrow Wilson; first lady 1915-1921. Following Wilson’s stroke in 1919, Edith Wilson took over many routine duties and details of the Executive branch of the government.

October 15, 1917 – Dutch exotic dancer Mata Hari was executed for espionage in France.

In 1951, the first episode of I Love Lucy, an American television sitcom starring Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance, and William Frawley, aired on the Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS). The series ran until 1957.

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October 14 is:

Be Bald and Free Day
national lowercase day

Columbus Day: Celebrated on October 14 in 2024.

On October 12, 1492 – Christopher Columbus reached the Caribbean. It has been reported that from the monarch’s investment of $6000 in Columbus’ first voyage, Spain had a return of $1,750,000 in gold after only one century.

…from Asimov, Isaac. Isaac Asimov’s Book of Facts. New York, Bell Publishing, 1981

Thanksgiving Day in Canada. Thanksgiving has its roots in the European Harvest Festivals where people celebrated an abundant harvest and shared their food within their community.

National Dessert Day
The five most popular desserts in the U.S. are:

• Fudge
• Chocolate cake
• Chocolate chip cookies
• Brownies
• Ice cream

October 14, 1066 – The Battle of Hastings resulted in William the Conqueror taking over England.

Birthday of William Penn (October 14, 1644), Founder of Pennsylvania and famed leader of the Society of Friends (Quakers). William Penn and his wife, Hannah, are two of only eight people who have been made honorary citizens of the U.S.

Massachusetts Bay Colony enacted the first punitive legislation against the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) in 1656. The marriage of church-and-state in Puritanism makes them regard the Quakers as spiritually apostate and politically subversive. In all, from 1656 to 1661, at least forty Quakers came to New England to protest Puritan religious domination and persecution. During those five years, the Puritan persecution of Quakers continued, with beatings, fines, whippings, imprisonment, and mutilation.

American Revolutionary War: The United Kingdom’s East India Company tea ships’ cargo were burned at Annapolis, Maryland on this date in 1773.

Birthday of David Dwight Eisenhower (October 14, 1890), thirty-fourth president of the United States. Since his father was named David, the future president had always been called “Dwight”. He changed his name officially – some sources say in high school, some say at West Point.

The loblolly pine tree on the left side of the fairway at the 17th hole at Augusta National Golf Club is known as the Eisenhower Tree. He put his ball in the tree so many times he campaigned to have it removed. It stands to this day. The membership built a cabin for Eisenhower, one of 12 on the course. The cabin, built to Secret Service specifications, still stands on the course and is adorned with an eagle on the front porch.

1912 – While campaigning in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the former President of the United States, Theodore Roosevelt, was shot and mildly wounded by John Schrank, a mentally-disturbed saloon keeper. With the fresh wound in his chest, and the bullet still within it, Mr. Roosevelt still carried out his scheduled public speech.

The children’s book Winnie-the-Pooh, by A. A. Milne, was first published in 1926.

1947: American test pilot Chuck Yeager became the first person to break the sound barrier.

The Cuban Missile Crisis began in 1962: A U.S. Air Force U-2 reconnaissance plane and its pilot flew over the island of Cuba and took photographs of Soviet missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads being installed and erected in Cuba.

1964: Baptist minister and social activist Martin Luther King, Jr., was named the winner of the Nobel Prize for Peace, cited for his work involving civil rights and social justice.

October 13 is:

International Skeptics Day
National M&M Day
National Peanut Festival

• Nuts are healthier in their raw form. The reason is that over 15% of the healthy oils are lost in the roasting process.
• Studies show that people who eat nuts regularly live 2-3 years longer than those who don’t.
• The nut allergy is among the most common food allergies.
• Roasted nutshells were used as a coffee substitute during the civil war.
• Half of the world’s nuts are inedible or poisonous to humans.

The many peanut classes grown around the United States are Spanish, Runner, Virginia, and Valencia. Peanut production is divided into three major areas: the southeastern United States region which includes Alabama, Georgia, and Florida; the southwestern United States region which includes New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas; and the third region in the general eastern United States which includes Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina.

Jimmy Carter, the 39th U. S. President (from 1977 to 1981), had a family peanut-growing business in his home state of Georgia.

54 – Roman Emperor Claudius was poisoned to death under mysterious circumstances. His 17-year-old stepson Nero succeeded him to the Roman throne.

1775 – The United States Continental Congress ordered the establishment of the Continental Navy (later renamed the United States Navy).

1792 – In Washington, D.C., the cornerstone of the United States Executive Mansion (known as the White House since 1818) was laid.

From Today in Science
Greenwich prime meridian
In 1884, Greenwich was adopted as the universal meridian. At the behest of the U.S. President Chester Arthur, 41 delegates from 25 nations met in Washington, DC, for the International Meridian Conference. At the Conference several important principles were established: a single world meridian passing through the principal Transit Instrument at the Observatory at Greenwich; that all longitude would be calculated both east and west from this meridian up to 180°; a universal day; and studies of the decimal system to the division of time and space. Resolution 2, fixing the Meridian at Greenwich was passed 22-1 (San Domingo voted against, France & Brazil abstained). Greenwich lies on the River Thames, a few miles from central London.

1925 Birthday of Margaret Thatcher, Prime Minister of Great Britain 1979-1990.

Paddington Bear, a classic character from English children’s literature, made his debut October 13, 1958.

October 11 is:

It’s My Party Day

National Sausage Pizza Day
About 93% of Americans eat at least one pizza every month.
About 350 slices of pizza are consumed every second in the United States.
The most pizzas are delivered (and eaten) on New Year’s Day, New Year’s Eve, Halloween, Thanksgiving Eve, and Super Bowl Sunday.
The three dots in the Domino’s Pizza logo represent the first three Domino’s Pizza stores.
Pepperoni is the most popular pizza topping in the United States.

Don’t eat blackberries after October 11:
According to The Telegraph
The heat, the rain and a luminous Indian summer have brought forth a rich harvest of blackberry enthusiasm, only slightly tempered by this week’s news that we should not pick them after next Sunday. (Legend has it that Lucifer fell from heaven and landed in a blackberry bush on October 11. Infuriated, he contaminated the bush by either spitting or urinating on it. Thus, blackberries are not safe to eat after that date.)

In 1809 – Along the Natchez Trace in Tennessee, explorer Meriwether Lewis died under mysterious circumstances at an inn called Grinder’s Stand, about 70 miles southwest of Nashville, Tennessee. Referred to as “undoubtedly the greatest pathfinder this country has ever known”, Thomas Jefferson appointed Lewis as Governor of the Louisiana Territory. Lewis assumed the post in 1808. During his brief time in this office, however, Lewis proved himself a poor administrator. He quarreled with the territorial secretary and local leaders, and failed to keep his superiors in Washington informed of his policies and plans. In September 1809 Lewis set out for the nation’s capital to answer complaints about his actions as governor. While on this trip he died a violent but mysterious death. He suffered multiple gunshot wounds to the head and chest. Whether he committed suicide, as Jefferson believed, or was murdered, as his family maintained, remains uncertain even today.

Birthday of Anna Eleanor Roosevelt (1884), wife of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, First Lady from 1933 to 1945. She served as official United States delegate to the United Nations

In 1910, former President Theodore Roosevelt became the first U.S. president to fly in an airplane. He flew for four minutes with Arch Hoxsey in a plane built by the Wright Brothers at Kinloch Field (Lambert-St. Louis International Airport), St. Louis, Missouri.

1975 Bill Clinton wed Hillary Rodham in Arkansas. Per brides.com, According to the Clinton House Museum, Bill wanted an extravagant wedding bash, whereas Hillary didn’t even want an engagement ring (well, she did get a house out of the deal, so not a bad trade)! The compromise? An engagement party where Hillary met all of Bill’s friends—and then a small, intimate wedding and a big reception party to follow. As far as a wedding dress, it is noted by the historical society that Hillary didn’t even have a gown ready to go the night before, so her (horrified!) mother ran her over to Dillard’s in the Fayetteville Mall—Hillary purchased a $53 Jessica McClintock Victorian lace gown, one of the first that she saw. In contrast, their daughter Chelsea’s wedding is estimated to have cost between $2 million and $5 million.

2002: The U.S. Congress passed a bill (the War Powers Resolution), by a wide margin, granting U.S. President George W. Bush broad authority to use force against Iraq.

October 8 is:

National Fluffernutter Day

A Fluffernutter is a sandwich made with peanut butter and marshmallow creme, usually served on white bread.
Variations of the sandwich include the substitution of wheat bread and the addition of various sweet, salty and savory ingredients.
The term fluffernutter can also be used to describe other food items, primarily desserts, that incorporate peanut butter and marshmallow creme.
The sandwich was first created in the early 20th century after Marshmallow Creme, a sweet marshmallow-like spread, was invented in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. Archibald Query of Somerville, Massachusetts, invented a product he called Marshmallow Creme in 1917, and Emma and Amory Curtis of Melrose, Massachusetts, invented Snowflake Marshmallow Creme in 1913.
During World War I, Emma Curtis published a recipe for a peanut butter and marshmallow creme sandwich, which is the earliest known example of a Fluffernutter.

The Erie Canal
In 1823, the Erie Canal was inaugurated at Albany, NY, upon the occasion of the first passage of a boat into the canal, although the entire canal was not yet completed. Cannon were placed on the hill near the mansion of General Ten Broeck and fifty-four rounds were fired in honor of each county in the state. The steamboats and other crafts in the river were trimmed with bunting and decorated gaily. The first boat entered the lock with state and local officials, followed by other boats, one of which was filled with ladies. The masonic fraternity ceremoniously laid the cap stone of the lock. A bottle of sea water, brought by the New York committee, was emptied, and mingled with the waters of the lakes and the river. About 40,000 people were present.

The Erie Canal is a 363-mile waterway that connects the Great Lakes with the Atlantic Ocean via the Hudson River in upstate New York. The channel, which traverses New York state from Albany to Buffalo on Lake Erie, was considered an engineering marvel when it first opened.

Death of Franklin Pierce (October 8, 1869), fourteenth President of the United States. He died at Concord, New Hampshire at age 64 from cirrhosis of the liver.

Fire Prevention Day According to legend, on October 8, 1871 Mrs. O’Leary was in her barn, milking her cow. The cow kicked over a lamp, which started the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. The fire burned for over 27 hours. When it was over, more than 300 people were killed, 100,000 people were left homeless, and over 17,000 structures were destroyed.
In 1997 the Chicago City Council looked into the evidence, both new and old, and passed a resolution exonerating Mrs. O’Leary and her cow. Many still believe the cow was guilty.

The Great Chicago fire sparked major efforts in fire prevention. Forty years later, the Fire Marshall’s Association of North America(FMANA) held the first Fire Prevention Day. In 1920 , President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed Fire Prevention Week.

Capt. E.V. “Eddie” Rickenbacker wearing the Congressional Medal of Honor. (U.S. Air Force photo)

From Today in Science
Permanent wave
In 1906, a German, Karl Ludwig Nessler, demonstrated the first “permanent wave” for hair, in his beauty salon in Oxford Street, London, to an invited audience of hair stylists. The hair was soaked with an alkaline solution and rolled on metal rods which were then heated strongly. However, this method had the disadvantages of being very lengthy (about 5 hours) and expensive for each application. Also the machine was large and cumbersome, and the client was obliged to wear a dozen brass curlers, each weighing 1-3/4 lb. With the outbreak of WW I, he moved to the United States and opened salons in New York, Chicago, Detroit, Palm Beach and Philadelphia with a peak of 500 employees. Nessler also invented artificial eyebrows.

1982: The Polish legislature dissolved the trade union Solidarity, which subsequently became an underground organization and played a key role in ending communist rule in Poland, with its various leaders, notably Lech Wałęsa, later holding important government posts.

2004: American domestic lifestyle innovator Martha Stewart reported to a federal prison in West Virginia to begin her five-month sentence for insider trading.

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