Category: This day in History

In 1959, the US Navy assisted the US Post Office Department—predecessor of today’s US Postal Service—in its search for a faster form of mail transportation. The USPS tried its first and only delivery of “missile mail” when a Navy submarine fired a guided cruise missile containing 3,000 pieces of mail off the Florida coast. Twenty-two minutes later, the missile landed at a naval station in Mayport, Florida. What bold claims did the postmaster general make about missile mail at the time? Discuss

The Treaty of Tordesillas divided newly discovered lands outside Europe between Spain and Portugal along an agreed-upon meridian approximately halfway between the Cape Verde Islands belonging to Portugal and Cuba and Hispaniola, claimed for Spain by Columbus. The Europeans had actually seen very little of the lands within the territory they were dividing, and the result was that Spain gained most of the Americas while Portugal gained Brazil. What nation invoked the treaty in the 20th century? Discuss

After a flowering of literature and philosophy in the early 19th century, plans for a liberal, centralized constitution led Danish King Frederick VII to become involved in a war with Prussia over the status of the duchy of Schleswig-Holstein. Denmark was defeated and a new constitution was adopted, ending the absolute monarchy, securing civil rights for citizens, and establishing a bicameral parliament and wide suffrage. How many times has the constitution been rewritten since 1849? Discuss

In a disastrous effort to increase ticket sales, the Cleveland Indians decided to hold a “Ten-Cent Beer Night,” allowing attendees to purchase unlimited cups of beer for just 10 cents each, during a home game against the Texas Rangers. The promotion did boost attendance, however, it also created a stadium full of drunken spectators who disrupted early innings of the game with streaking and flashing. Eventually, a violent mob flooded the field and clashed with players. How did the game end? Discuss

In the mid-1960s, American pop-art icon Andy Warhol began to devote much of his time and energy to filmmaking, producing marathon films on boredom and voyeurism that featured deliberately coarse amalgams of sexuality and banality. In 1968, he was shot and wounded by Valerie Solanas, a feminist writer who had appeared in one of his films. Warhol never fully recovered from the shooting and died from complications following surgery in 1987. What sparked Solanas’ ire towards Warhol? Discuss

In 1763, immediately after the French and Indian Wars, several Native American tribes allied against the British in an uprising that became known as Pontiac’s Rebellion, after the Ottawa leader Pontiac. They captured and destroyed many British outposts. On the day of the surprise attack on Fort Michilimackinac, the Ojibwas, or Chippewas, approached the fort without arousing suspicion among the watching British soldiers by staging a game of baaga’adowe—the precursor of what modern sport? Discuss

During the Farhud, the pogrom carried out against the Jewish population of Baghdad after the fall of the short-lived pro-Nazi government of Rashid Ali, rioters killed about 200 Jews and injured hundreds more. It took place during the Jewish holiday of Shavuot, and, according to some, marked a turning point for Iraq’s 150,000 Jews, who were thereafter targeted for persecution. Jews had lived in Iraq since about 600 BCE, but by 1951, 80% had left. How many Jews are thought to live in Baghdad now? Discuss

In 1910, the British colonies of Cape Colony, Transvaal, Natal, and Orange River were unified into the new Union of South Africa. Under the Union’s constitution, power was centralized. Elections were held, and Louis Botha became the first prime minister. The Dutch language was given equal status with English, and each province retained its existing franchise qualifications. The Union became independent and withdrew from the Commonwealth exactly how many years after its founding? Discuss

Hart was an American outlaw whose notoriety stemmed primarily from the fact that she was female. Her early life was fairly ordinary. She grew up wealthy and eloped at 16. In 1893, after seeing Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show, she left her abusive husband and went west, where she acquired a taste for cigars, liquor, and morphine. In 1899, she helped rob a stagecoach, making away with over $400. She was apprehended, escaped, was recaptured, and then tried for her crimes. Why was she later pardoned? Discuss

By the 1970s, Leonardo da Vinci’s 15th-century mural masterpiece, The Last Supper, was badly deteriorated. Italian officials then undertook a major restoration project to permanently stabilize the painting and reverse the damage. The painting’s original form was determined using original sketches and scientific tests, including infrared reflectoscopy and microscopic core-samples. The restoration took 21 years, and the painting was put back on display in 1999. Where is it located? Discuss