A few years ago I became interested in the Second-Anglo-Afghan War. For some time I searched for information on the 66th (Berkshire) Regiment, but it was difficult here in the States. Finally I found a book specifically about the 66th and their last stand during the Battle of Maiwand.
On 27 July 1880, one-hundred [...]
Saturday, November 7, 2009
William Walker (1824-1860)
This American filibuster made numerous attempts to establish his own nations that he hoped would eventually become part of the United States. One such attempt was made in Baja California and Sonora in Mexico. The Mexican government drove Walker out.
Later Walker conquered Nicaragua but ticked off Cornelius Vanderbilt in the process. [...]
Thursday, September 17, 2009
1630 = The city of Boston, Massachusetts is founded.
1787 = Writing of the United States Constitution is completed.
1809 = The Treaty of Fredrikshamn ends the Finnish war between Sweden and Russia.
1814 = Francis Scott Key finishes the Star-Spangled Banner.
1859 = Joshua Norton proclaims himself Emperor Norton. His ‘reign’ lasts until January 1880.
1862 = Bloodiest [...]
Saturday, August 22, 2009
Over the last year I’ve been writing a novel set during the end of the Victorian Age and up through World War I. At times research can be a pain in the butt, however the internet has made my task much easier. One site I discovered is The Victorian Peeper and it has a variety [...]
Thursday, August 20, 2009
On the 20th of August 1861 a vote was held on the official name for the new state that had been carved out of Virginia. There were some discussions on what the name of the new state should be, a transcript can be found HERE, and it was finally decided that a vote would [...]
Out of the many inventions mankind has created over the millennia writing is one of the most important, and one of the more difficult ones to invent. There are between two and four places where writing was invented without any outside influence; most other forms of writing were copied from these or used as [...]
George Westinghouse is one of the most important figures in American history related to invention and technological development. One of his first inventions was a railway air brake in 1872.
Prior to the air brake accidents on the railways were very common. Trains were growing more powerful becoming faster and longer which made stopping [...]
Back in 1877 the Russo-Turkish War was in full swing. Russia was hoping to recover from some of the losses for the Crimean War and hoped to capture Constantinople. The other great powers grew concerned and intervened. Russia decided that they needed to distract the British by making a diversionary invasion of [...]
In 1886 gold was discovered in Boer lands in South Africa. The number of people immigrating to that area during the gold rush destabilized the region. The immigrants, uitlanders, soon outnumbered the native Boers. Over the years friction began to grow between the Boers and the British Empire; and given the gold [...]
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Sure, we might have our first black President today, but over a hundred and thirty years ago we had our first black Senator. Hiram Rhodes Revels became Senator of Mississippi in 1870. He served as a chaplain for the Union Army during the American Civil War.
After serving in the Senate he became the [...]
