Secretary of State William Seward was a genius. I don’t know if that’s strictly true, but in retrospect, his push for the purchase of Alaska from Russia was a masterstroke for the United States. People scoffed at the idea of yet another huge land purchase, despite its ridiculously cheap price of $.02 per acre. “Seward’s [...]
Archive for March, 2009
Seward’s Folly: “A Dark Deed Done in the Night”
Posted in Late nineteenth century (1865-1900), United States, tagged 1867, Alaska Purchase, Gold, Oil, Prudhoe Bay, Russia, William Seward on March 30 | 1 Comment »
Radar: The Star of the Show at Cape Matapan
Posted in Mediterranean, World War II (1939-1945), tagged 1941, Battle of Cape Matapan, Crete, Radar, Radar Secret Service on March 29 | 1 Comment »
In 1950, Sam Newfield directed the movie Radar Secret Service. In it, radar plays a front-and-center role in breaking up a crime ring. Of course, radar was still a relatively new invention, to the point that the technology depicted in the movie bore no real resemblence to actual radar. But even in its infancy, it somehow [...]
Tokashiki: Island of Self-Destruction
Posted in Pacific, World War II (1939-1945), tagged 1945, Kerama Islands, Okinawa, Ryukyu Islands, Suicide, Tokashiki on March 27 | 1 Comment »
Tokashiki is another of the (mostly) unknown Kerama islands that lie in very close proximity to Okinawa. And like Kerama Retto, which we discussed yesterday, there’s a story that I think is worth relating. Kerama Retto was all about its fleet of suicide boats. The U.S. Army discovered them and, having destroyed them, took away a [...]
Kerama Retto: Boats and Bombs
Posted in Pacific, World War II (1939-1945), tagged 1945, Kerama Islands, Kerama Retto, Okinawa, Ryukyus, Suicide on March 26 | 5 Comments »
In the spring of 1945, the U.S. Navy was preparing for what it thought would be the second-to-last (and second-worst) battle of the Pacific War. Over the last 30 months, the pushing back of the Imperial Japanese Navy and its armies had been successful, but it had been accomplished at tremendous cost. Places like Tarawa, [...]
The Great Escape, MacGyver-Style
Posted in Europe, World War II (1939-1945), tagged 1944, Escape, MacGyver, Stalag Luft III, Tunnel Harry on March 24 | Leave a Comment »
Sometimes we find ourselves up against a home-repair challenge. Well, maybe I use the word “we” too loosely. I should just speak for myself. For me, if the challenge involves much more than shutting off the lights, closing the garage door, or emptying the dishwasher, I’m in trouble. I’m not a handy-man in the slightest. If you’re [...]
Reichstag Acts as Enabler to Adolf Hitler
Posted in Period between World Wars (1919-1939), tagged 1933, Adolf Hitler, Enabling Act, Hermann Goering, Reichstag on March 23 | Leave a Comment »
The early months of 1933, while culminating in a long national nightmare for Germany, probably seemed like a fairy-tale ride to destiny for Adolf Hitler. As January ended, a tired and ailing President Paul von Hindenburg had named Hitler Chancellor of Germany. And then the wheels began to turn. First, the new Chancellor dissolved the Reichstag [...]
Supergun no Bull to Somebody
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged 1990, Gerald Bull, Iraq, Project Babylon, Saddam Hussein, Supergun on March 22 | Leave a Comment »
On the evening of March 22, 1990, Dr. Gerald Bull got out of a car in Brussels, Belgium and headed back to his apartment. Born in Ontario, Canada, Bull had, as a child, endured a series of unfortunate events that saw his parents’ fortune wiped out by the Great Depression, the death of his mother and his [...]
Fred Rogers: The Best Neighbor Ever
Posted in Twentieth century (1901-1960), United States, tagged 1928, Fred Rogers, Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood, PBS, Presbyterian on March 20 | 1 Comment »
Hello Neighbor. He was a man that never raised his voiced. He was never hurried, never harried, and never so busy that he couldn’t drop by the neighborhood for a half hour on PBS. Fred Rogers was the single most gentle TV personality that has ever graced (or will grace) the screen. Mr. Rogers. And [...]
USS Franklin Experiences “Fireside Chat” up Close
Posted in Pacific, World War II (1939-1945), tagged 1945, Fireside Chat, Honshu, Kobe Harbor, USS Franklin on March 19 | Leave a Comment »
In the early morning hours of March 19, 1945, the USS Franklin was launching planes. That was something she had done times uncounted before during her 18 months of service, but this time was a bit different. The Essex-class aircraft carrier was launching planes to attack Japan, specifically Honshu and Kobe Harbor. This meant that [...]
Last Bridge Standing: Epilogue
Posted in Europe, World War II (1939-1945), tagged 1945, Ludendorff Bridge, Remagen, V-2 rocket on March 17 | 1 Comment »
We switched Internet providers at the house last Friday, and it’s taken me a while to get all the computers to see the magic that is the Internet again. It turns out the DSL modem and the hub talk on the same channel, so I had to switch the hub to another channel. A bunch [...]
Sowing Sacrificial Oates Yields no Harvest
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged 1912, Lawrence Oates, Roald Amundsen, Robert Scott, South Pole on March 16 | Leave a Comment »
March 16, 1912 marks the passing of Lawrence Oates. This relatively unknown explorer was a member of the ill-fated Scott Expedition to the South Pole, which we briefly mentioned back in December when discussing Roald Amundsen. Amundsen’s discovery of the bottom of the Earth was accompanied by a successful return and an incredible story to tell, [...]
The Grand Slam – Not Available at Denny’s
Posted in Europe, World War II (1939-1945), tagged 1945, Avro Lancaster, Dambusters, MOAB, No. 617 Squadron on March 14 | Leave a Comment »
Ok, I’ve been gone for a couple days. As I mentioned the other day, my grandmother celebrated her birthday, the 95th of her life. It was pretty special to be able to travel up to see her, and to see my other grandmother as well. So needless to say, I’m a little behind, as it’s now [...]
Dale Murphy: Superstar and Super Man
Posted in Twentieth century (1901-1960), United States, tagged 1956, Atlanta Braves, Baseball, Brett Butler, Dale Murphy on March 12 | 1 Comment »
The 1980s were pretty bleak for Braves fans. There was the miracle year of 1982, when the Braves started the season with thirteen straight wins and never really looked back. Though they lost to St. Louis in the playoffs, the incredible run after so much badness gave fans hope for the future. But it was [...]
MacArthur, Ordered to Leave, Vows to Return
Posted in Pacific, World War II (1939-1945), tagged 1942, Corregidor, General Douglas MacArthur, General Jonathan Wainwright, President Franklin Roosevelt, PT Boat on March 11 | Leave a Comment »
Late in the evening of March 11, 1942, a small boat slipped away from the shores of Corregidor. This small, tadpole-shaped island was strategically placed right in the middle of the entrance to Manila Bay in the Philippine Islands, so watercraft were not unusual. But this was an unusual watercraft. It was a PT boat. The [...]
Go West, Young Man!!
Posted in Constitutional period (1789-1809), United States, tagged 1804, Louisiana Purchase, Louisiana Territory, Napoleon Bonaparte, President James Monroe, President Thomas Jefferson, St. Louis on March 10 | Leave a Comment »
On the last day of April in 1803, the United States pretty much doubled in size as Robert Livingston and future-President James Monroe put pen to paper in Paris and completed the purchase of the Louisiana Territory. The acquisition, the largest single territorial expansion in the history of the country, was the culmination of several years of work [...]
Paul’s “Sound” Doctrine
Posted in Twentieth century (1901-1960), United States, tagged 1904, Klipsch and Associates, Klipschorn, Paul Klipsch, The Apostle Paul on March 9 | Leave a Comment »
The title of Today’s History Lesson may give you the impression that we’re headed to the Bible for a discussion of Christianity’s greatest missionary. His writings are known world-wide, his travels were extensive, and the effects of his life are still being felt. All of these serve to make Paul worthy of print, but unfortunately, there [...]
Hitler: “Because You’re Mine, I Walk the Rhine”
Posted in Period between World Wars (1919-1939), tagged 1936, Adolf Hitler, Rhineland, Versailles Treaty on March 7 | 2 Comments »
Almost a year ago, we talked about how Adolf Hitler took one of his first baby-steps towards bringing back Germany’s military greatness. In direct violation of the Versailles Treaty, he created an army, a navy, and an air force. He then waited for a response from Britain and France…a response that never came. With the [...]
Operation Capri: Tanks for Nothing
Posted in Africa, World War II (1939-1945), tagged 1943, Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, Medenine, North Africa, Operation Capri, Tunisia on March 6 | Leave a Comment »
In all of our discussions of World War II, we’ve spent precious little time in North Africa. And unfortunately, that’s been somewhat intentional, because I’m not well-versed in that theater. But I’ve been doing more reading on the subject, hoping to find some gray matter than can absorb the information. Let’s see how I’m doing. [...]
Hank Gathers: The Sadness of March Madness
Posted in Later twentieth century (1961-2000), United States, tagged 1990, Basketball, Bo Kimble, Hank Gathers, Jeff Fryer, Loyola Marymount University, Paul Westhead on March 4 | 1 Comment »
Let’s take to the basketball courts again today, though the occasion is a sad one. In the late 1980s, the basketball world was blessed with one of the most entertaining teams to ever play the game: Loyola Marymount University. Coached by Paul Westhead, the team’s philosophy (at least from my side of the television) was [...]
March Madness in the Bismarck Sea
Posted in Pacific, World War II (1939-1945), tagged 1943, Battle of the Bismarck Sea, Lae, New Britain, New Guinea, Port Moresby, Rabaul on March 3 | Leave a Comment »
The decision to leave Guadalcanal was, for the Japanese, a difficult one to make. As we have seen, the Japanese military realized it couldn’t hold the island because it couldn’t re-supply the island. Still, the warrior mentality of “no retreat” was tough to overcome. Fortunately, their “out” came in the cause of reinforcing New Guinea. [...]
