Mark's Almanac: Recent Episodes
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Mark's Almanac is a 90-second trip back in time that highlights the world's history from the very serious to the sometimes sublime.
It was on this date in 1911 that the Triangle Shirtwaist Company sweatshop fire occurred. The fire led to better legislation being passed that would improve working conditions.
It was on this date in 1892 that the first long-distance phone call took place. It was between the mayors of Chicago and New York City. It was also on this date in 1932 that the first radio broadcast from something moving took place on a train.
It was on this date in 1839 that the term 'okay' was first used. Within a year, the term became so popular that presidential candidates began using it. And it was on this date in 1921 that Germany announced it couldn't pay reparations to the Allies as stipulated in the Treaty of Versailles.
It was on this date in 1933 that U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Cullen–Harrison Act. The act legalized the sale of beer and wine only containing up to 3.2% of alcohol. The 21st Amendment fully legalizing alcohol would be ratified later that year. And it was on this date in 1941 that Jimmy Stewart became the first major Hollywood actor to serve in WWII.
It was on this date in 1844 that Baptist preacher William Miller predicted the return of Christ and the end of the world. When it didn't come true, it became known as the Great Disappointment. And it was on this date in 1944 that the sale of an alarm clock nearly caused a riot in Chicago.
It was on this date in 1877 that President Rutherford B. Hayes appointed Frederick Douglass the U.S. Marshal of the District of Columbia. And it was on this date in 1966 that the Scott Paper Company introduced a wearable disposable paper dress.
It was on this date in 461 that Saint Patrick is said to have died. Today we celebrate the day as St. Patrick's Day.
It was on this date in 1867 that Joseph Lister published his first article outlying the discovery of antiseptic surgery. And it was on this date in 1935 that Adolf Hitler openly ordered German rearmament, in direct violation of the Treaty of Versaille.
It was on this date in 44 BC that Julius Caesar was stabbed to death by Brutus, Cassius, and several other Roman Senators. And it was on this date in 1892 that Jesse Wilford Reno patented what would become the modern escalator.
It was on this date in 1794 that Eli Whitney patented the cotton gin. And it was on this date in 1971 that the Rolling Stones decided to leave England and move to France to avoid paying taxes.
It was on this date in 1888 that one of the worst blizzards ever hit the United States. Hurricane strength winds coupled with heavy snow resulted in 400 people dead between Washington D.C. and Maine.
It was on this date in 1849 that Abraham Lincoln became the only future president to apply for a patent.
It was on this date in 1862 that the Battle of Hampton Roads took place in the American Civil War. It was a naval battle noted for being the first battle between two ironclad ships - the U.S.S. Monitor and the C.S.S. Virginia. And it was on this date in 1954 that respected journalist Edward R. Murrow used his TV show to take on Sen. Joseph McCarthy and his hunt for communists.
It was on this date in 1930 that Babe Ruth made headlines by signing what was then, a hefty contract worth $160,000. That would be $2,693,633.53 in today's money. And on this date in 1962, the Beatles made their television debut on the BBC.
It was on this date in 1876 that Alexander Graham Bell received the patent for the telephone. And it was on this date in 1996 that the Hubble telescope took snapshots of Pluto for the first time.
It was on this date in 1849 that some argue that David Rice Atchison was acting President of the United States.
It was on this date in 1815 that the U.S. declared war on Algiers in the Second Barbary War. And it was on this date in 1855 that the U.S. Congress approved funding to see if camels could be used for military use.
It was on this date in 1877 that the 1876 election was finally decided for U.S. President Rutherford B. Hayes. And it was on this date in 1882 that the last of many attempts on Queen Victoria's life was made.
It was on this date in 1803 that Ohio became a state. And it was on this date in 1917 that the public was shown the secret Zimmermann Cable in which Germany proposed a military alliance between Germany and Mexico.
It was on this date in 1883 that the first Vaudeville theatre opened in Boston. And it was on this date in 1972 that George Harrison and his wife Pattie got into a severe car accident. Their Mercedes was a total wreck.
It was on this date in 1964 that Muhammad Ali (then known as Cassius Clay) shocked the boxing world by beating Sonny Liston to become Heavyweight Champion of the World. And it was on this date in 1982 that the last Lawrence Welk Show aired.
It was on this date in 1868 that the U.S. House of Representatives voted on 11 Articles of Impeachment against President Andrew Johnson. And it was on this date in 1909 that the Hudson Motor Car Company was formed.
It was on this date in 1945 that the American flag was raised by the U.S. Marines on the island of Iwo Jima. And it was on this date in 1954 that the first Polio vaccines were given to schoolchildren in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
It was on this date in 1889 that President Grover Cleveland signed the Omnibus Enabling Act which provided access for four new states to join the Union - Montana, Washington, North Dakota, and South Dakota. And it was on this date in 1988 in Lake Placid, NY that the United States upset the Soviet Union during the "Miracle on Ice."
It was on this date in 1931 that Alka Seltzer was introduced. And it was on this date in 1965 that Malcolm X was assassinated while giving an address in New York City.
It was on this date in 1804 that the Ohio General Assembly passed an act establishing Ohio University. And it was on this date in 1856 that The No-Nothing Party met to nominate former President Millard Fillmore as their candidate for president.
It was on this date in 1904 that Giacomo Puccini's Madame Butterfly premiered in Milan. It was originally a flop. And it was on this date in 1913 that a huge exhibition premiered in New York that first featured cubism, futurism, and other "isms". It showed Americans something outside realistic art.
It was on this date in 600 that Pope Gregory the Great put out an edict saying that all people should say "God bless you" whenever anyone sneezes. And it was on this date in 1943 that Winston Churchill became very ill and nearly passed away.
It was on this date in 1854 that a name was suggested for a new political party based on abolishing slavery in the western territories - the Republican Party. And it was on this date in 1859 that one of the oldest bibles was unearthed. The Codex Sinaiticus was discovered in the Sinai Peninsula of Egypt.
It was on this date in 1876 that Albert G. Spaulding invested $800 in a sporting company that eventually manufactured the first official baseball. And it was on this date in 1930 that former President William Howard Taft resigned from the U.S. Supreme Court and passed away a little over a month later.
It was on this date in 1349 that it is said that the Black Death was at its peak in London. Plague deaths averaged about 200 deaths a day in the city.
It was on this date in 1862 that Ralph Waldo Emerson met President Abraham Lincoln at the White House. And it was on this date in 1964 that Governor Matthew Welsh of Indiana banned the song "Louie, Louie" by the Kingsmen.
It was on this date in 1949 that the first American television soap opera aired on NBC. It was called These Are My Children and centered on an Irish widow and her struggles to run a boarding house as well as help her three children and new daughter-in-law. And it was on this date in 1950 that President Harry S. Truman announced to the world that America would develop the hydrogen bomb.
It was on this date in 1813 that Jane Austin's Pride and Prejudice was published. And it was on this date in 1934 that the first ski rope tow in the U.S. opened at Clinton Gilberts Farm in Vermont.
It was on this date in 1967 that the Apollo 1 tragedy occurred. A fire engulfed the interior of the spacecraft during a test run, leading to the deaths of astronauts Gus Grissom, Edward White II, and Roger Chaffee. And it was on this date in 1976 that Laverne and Shirley debuted on television.
It was on this date in 1875 that George Green patented the first electric dental drill. And it was on this date in 1924 that the first gold medal of the Winter Olympics was awarded.
It was on this date in 1858 that Felix Mendelssohn's "Wedding March" was first played at the royal marriage of Princess Victoria Adelaide Mary Louisa, the daughter of Queen Victoria. This wedding started the practice of a full choral procession from the church entrance. And it was on this date in 1949 that the first Emmy Awards were held at the Hollywood Athletic Club.
It was on this date in 1848 when James W. Marshall discovered gold on the property of James A. Sutter while building a sawmill near present-day Paloma, CA. This discovery kicked off the California Gold Rush. And it was on this date in 1935 that The Gottfried Krueger Brewing Company delivered the first cans of beer to drinkers in Richmond, VA.
It was on this day in 1789 that William Hill Brown published The Power of Sympathy, the first American novel. And it was on this date in 1789 that King Louis XVI of France assembled the Estates-General for the first time since 1614. It represented the three "estates" of the French people - the nobles, the clergy, and the commons. The commons would later declare itself the National Assembly thus leading to the French Revolution.
It was on this date in 1949 that Harry S. Truman became the first U.S. President to be inaugurated on television. And it was on this date in 2009 that the first African-American was sworn in as U.S. President. He was Barack Obama.
It was on this date in 1943 when Soviet forces pushed the Nazis back, thus ending the siege of Leningrad. And it was on this date in 1980 that Pink Floyd's rock opera album, The Wall, hit number one on the Billboard charts.
It was on this date in 1920 that Prohibition began due to the passing of the 18th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution the year before.
It was on this date in 1954 that the Hudson Motor Car Company and the Nash-Kelvinator Corporation formed the American Motors Corporation (AMC). And it was on this date in 1964 that Jacqueline Kennedy made her first public appearance since the death of President Kennedy.
It was on this date in 1920 that The New York Times published on the editorial page that Robert H. Goddard had The Smithsonian Institution hoodwinked in thinking that rockets could fly. Goddard would later successfully prove his design correct with a successful launch in 1926. And it was on this date in 1928 that RCA and GE installed the first TVs in three Schenectady, NY homes.
It was on this date in 1965 that NBC's new musical variety show, Hullabaloo premiered. And it was on this date in 1966 that Batman premiered on ABC. And it was on this date in 1971 that All In The Family premiered.
It was on this date in 1961 that a riot at the University of Georgia occurred. The riot was caused by white students protesting the desegregation of the university. And it was on this date in 1980 that The Pretenders first album debuted.
It was on this date in 1776 that Thomas Paine's Common Sense pamphlet was published. And it was on this date in 1949 that the 45 rpm EP record was introduced.