Since it’s the end of 2008, we should probably highlight something that had its conclusion today. Let’s talk phones, since all the kids are digging them so much. More specifically, let’s talk phone companies, since most of the kids digging the phones probably don’t remember the good old days. When Alexander Graham Bell got his [...]
Archive for December, 2008
The Bell is Broken
Posted in Later twentieth century (1961-2000), United States, tagged 1983, Alexander Graham Bell, Antitrust, AT&T, Monopoly, Telephone on December 31 | Leave a Comment »
Defend Savannah? But Howe?
Posted in The Revolution (1775-1783), United States, tagged 1778, General Robert Howe, Georgia, Hessians, Lt. Colonel Archibald Campbell, Savannah on December 29 | Leave a Comment »
On December 29, 1778, the city of Savannah, Georgia fell to the British. Under the command of Lt. Colonel Archibald Campbell, roughly 3,000 men (British regulars, Hessian conscripts, and some colonial Loyalists) had set sail from New York in late November, landing near Savannah just before Christmas. The move south marked a change in strategy [...]
In the Middle of Everything
Posted in Early nineteenth century (1810-1850), United States, tagged 1846, Iowa, John Wayne, President Herbert Hoover, Shawn Johnson on December 28 | Leave a Comment »
On December 28, 1846, Iowa was admitted to the Union as its 29th state. And having lived here all my life, I think I can speak with some degree of knowledge about it. Iowa is decidedly average, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. With roughly 3 million people, it ranks 30th in population. It’s 26th [...]
Baseball’s Biggest Deal
Posted in Twentieth century (1901-1960), United States, tagged 1919, Babe Ruth, Baseball, Boston Red Sox, Curse of the Bambino, George Herman Ruth, New York Yankees on December 26 | Leave a Comment »
Dad is a life-long fan of the Boston Red Sox. So in the last few years, he’s had a lot of reason to celebrate. After all, Boston has been one of most successful teams this decade. And truthfully, they’ve always a pretty good team, even when they weren’t winning it all. The names in lineups from days [...]
General Washington’s Aquatic Christmas
Posted in The Revolution (1775-1783), United States, tagged 1776, Delaware River, General George Washington, Hessians, Trenton on December 25 | Leave a Comment »
I hope you’ve all had a wonderful Christmas. Ours has been very good. My wife gave me one of those shiatsu back massage pad thingys, and it’s great. I’m thinking I’ll probably take it to the office…or I may never leave the house again. Since we’re all (or at least some of us are) filled [...]
Twas the Night Before Christmas…
Posted in Pacific, World War II (1939-1945), tagged 1942, Gifu, Guadalcanal, Mount Austen, Solomon Islands on December 24 | Leave a Comment »
…and on Guadalcanal Japanese were still shooting At us and our pals The Gifu we’d found Last stronghold of size All hidden in foliage Causing greatest surprise Fifteen times three Those pillboxes numbered And in there no soldier On Christmas Eve slumbered And that’s about the gist of it. By mid-December, the fight for control [...]
“…and 20 Blackbirds, Baked in the Sky”
Posted in Later twentieth century (1961-2000), United States, tagged 1964, Aircraft, Kelly Johnson, Lockheed Skunk Works, Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, North American XB-70 Valkyrie on December 22 | Leave a Comment »
It’s an airplane that spent most of its life shrouded in secrecy. The missions it flew were even more top secret. It leaked fuel like a sieve when it sat on the ground, but it could tear through the air!! It flew faster than the rotational velocity of the earth, giving it the appearance of [...]
Valley Forge: On the Anvil
Posted in The Revolution (1775-1783), United States, tagged 1777, General George Washington, General Horatio Gates, General William Howe, Pennslyvania, Valley Forge on December 19 | Leave a Comment »
Valley Forge. The name is instantly recognizable. The images we conjure are probably pretty similar, because we all know at least part of the story surrounding this most famous of places. They are images of suffering, intense hunger, disease, cold, and death. We see soldiers, feet wrapped in rags and their bodies shrouded in tattered uniforms or torn blankets, huddled [...]
Admiral Graf Spee: Good Will Hunting
Posted in South America, World War II (1939-1945), tagged 1939, Admiral Graf Spee, Captain Hans Langsdorff, Montevideo, Uruguay on December 17 | 2 Comments »
The life (and death) of the Admiral Graf Spee is probably unknown to many. But since her last day afloat was December 17, 1939, it seems like a pretty good subject for Today’s History Lesson. So let’s head to beautiful South America…specifically, Montevideo, the capital city of Uruguay. The Admiral Graf Spee was a pocket [...]
Colonists Spell “Resistance” With a Capital Tea
Posted in Colonial history (1607-1775), United States, tagged 1773, Boston Harbor, Boston Tea Party, British East India Company, Sons of Liberty on December 16 | 2 Comments »
The Boston Tea Party is one of those events in American history that really needs no introduction and no explanation. Frankly, very little needs to be said about it at all…it’s that well-known. The Sons of Liberty dressed themselves up like local tribes of Natives, boarded the tea ships in the harbor, and proceeded to dump 90,000 pounds of [...]
“…And Our Rights We Will Maintain”
Posted in Constitutional period (1789-1809), United States, tagged 1791, Bill of Rights, First U.S. Congress, James Madison, U.S. Constitution on December 15 | Leave a Comment »
In May of 1787, the city of Philadelphia played host to 55 men who spent a lot of time debating, arguing, and trying to convince each other of their (and their state’s) beliefs. It had been four years since the American Revolution had officially ended with the stroke of the pen in Paris, and the Articles [...]
The Polar Express
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged 1911, Norway, Roald Amundsen, Robert Scott, South Pole on December 14 | Leave a Comment »
Oh, the weather outside is frightful, but not nearly as frightful as other places around the country…yikes!! Winter has struck hard and fast. So this morning I was standing outside the Home Depot, which has a big U.S. flag above it. It was facing north, almost completely straight, held there by 25mph winds straight from [...]
The Battle of Nanking Ends…the Brutality Begins
Posted in Period between World Wars (1919-1939), tagged 1937, Asaka Yasuhiko, Battle of Nanking, General Isamu Cho, John Rabe, Rape of Nanking on December 13 | Leave a Comment »
Last week, I finished reading Iris Chang’s The Rape of Nanking, and it was easily the most disturbing book I’ve read. We’ve discussed “man’s inhumanity to man” on several occasions, and never was it more glaringly apparent than in the Chinese capital. The Japanese military leaders were somewhat embarrassed by the 3 months it took to conquer [...]
Falcon 4.0: The Flight-Sim Standard Bearer
Posted in Later twentieth century (1961-2000), United States, tagged 1998, Falcon 4.0, General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon, Leon Rosenshein, Microprose, Spectrum HoloByte on December 12 | 4 Comments »
If I were to ask you what you were doing 10 years ago today, I bet only one or two would have even the vaguest of ideas. If you were to ask me that same question, I could tell you that I was celebrating the release of Falcon 4.0, which was, at that time, the most highly-anticipated flight simulator ever. [...]
British Learn “There’s a First Time for Everything”
Posted in China/Burma/India, World War II (1939-1945), tagged 1941, Admiral Tom Phillips, HMS Prince of Wales, HMS Repulse, Pearl Harbor, Singapore on December 10 | 1 Comment »
With the Japanese attacks at Pearl Harbor on the December 7th, World War II ceased being mostly about Europe and Russia and became truly a global conflict, as the vastness of the Pacific Ocean now became a battleground. As war with Japan approached, the British felt a growing concern for their territories in Southeast Asia. In [...]
The Battle of Nanking Begins
Posted in Period between World Wars (1919-1939), tagged 1937, Asaka Yasuhiko, Battle of Nanking, Chiang Kai-shek, China, General Tang Shengzhi on December 9 | Leave a Comment »
In 1937, the people living in the Chinese capital of Nanking had been been nervously training their eyes eastward for a month. The fall of the port city of Shanghai in November was a very bad omen, and the Chinese troops that had entered (and passed through) the city with news of the Japanese approach [...]
“Japs Open War on U.S. With Bombing of Hawaii”
Posted in Pacific, World War II (1939-1945), tagged 1941, Admiral Chuichi Nagumo, Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, Pearl Harbor on December 7 | Leave a Comment »
So read the LA Times on the December 8, 1941. We tend to remember sneak attacks very well. And no “sucker punch” is as well-known (well, one other one is pretty familiar to us) as the one on December 7, 1941. It’s the day the Japanese Navy achieved complete surprise in their attack of Pearl Harbor, our [...]
High Stakes on the High Seas
Posted in Pacific, World War II (1939-1945), tagged 1941, Admiral Chuichi Nagumo, Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, Joseph Stalin, Pearl Harbor, Uritsky on December 5 | Leave a Comment »
On November 26th, the Japanese fleet left its home waters in the Kurile Islands. Destination: Pearl Harbor. As we have mentioned numerous times around here, Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto (the creator of the Pearl Harbor attack plan) knew a prolonged war with America was a perilous venture. His aim was to stealthily move his designated fleet [...]
