The Assassination Attempt on FDR

The 1932 Presidential elections may have been the most consequential in recent American history. But the results were almost overturned by a man with a gun.

Giuseppe Zangara photo from Wiki Commons

Greek Fire

Greek fire was the most terrifying weapon of its day. It was a flammable liquid that could be sprayed on its target from a distance, could not be put out easily, and burned even on water. To this day, we do not know how it was made.

Greek fire                                             photo from WikiCommons

The Battle of Fort Oswego

Fort Ontario in Oswego NY was the target of a French attack in 1756 during the French and Indian War.

Cannon bastion at Fort Ontario. Fort Oswego was on the other side of the river, just beyond the white silos.

Icons of Aviation History: Spitfire

Perhaps the most famous fighter plane of the Second World War, the Spitfire was produced in numerous versions throughout the entire conflict and saw service in every theater.

Spitfire Mark I, on display at the Museum of Science and Industry, Chicago

An Early History of Pants and Trousers

An early history of “trousers”.

So, a few days ago I was poking around on YouTube watching some old TV commercials, when I happened to come across this gem that I had remembered seeing years ago:

The Palomares “Broken Arrow” Nuclear Bomb Accident

In 1966, the US Strategic Air Command lost four nuclear weapons over Spain when a B-52 bomber collided with a tanker plane.

The two recovered nuclear bomb casings from the Palomares incident, on display at the Museum of Nuclear Science and History in Albuquerque.

Quest for Fire

The first evidence we have for the use of fire by early hominids comes from several sites, dated roughly 1 million years ago, which were likely occupied by Homo erectus. But the earliest evidence for hominids actually making fire is much younger.

Wildfire

Milwaukee’s Domes Conservatory

The Mitchell Park Botanical Conservatory, more popularly known as “The Domes”, is a county-run botanical garden in Milwaukee. The collection is housed inside three large domes, each one containing plants from a particular climatic and geographical zone (domestic gardens, tropical forests, and deserts).

The Domes

The Maya Game of Buluc

Buluc, also known as Puluc, is an ancient board game played by the Maya in Central America.

Buluc gameboard

The Theramin

One of the more interesting displays in Arizona’s Musical Instrument Museum centers around an extremely odd instrument called the “theramin”.

Theramin on display at the Musical Instrument Museum

The Sling

The sling is best-known from the Biblical legend of David and Goliath. But it is one of the most ancient of weapons, likely dating back over 10,000 years.

“David and Goliath”, by Gebhard Fugel                                          photo from Wiki Commons

A History of Museums

A short history of “museums”.

America’s oldest public museum, in Charleston SC

The “Hello Girls” of WW1

During the First World War, the US Army depended for most of its tactical communications upon a small group of female volunteers called “the Hello Girls”.

Grace Banker, Chief Operator for the Hello Girls                                          photo from Wikicommons

The Iceberg That Sank the “Titanic”

The iceberg that sank the Titanic in April 1912 had a history that stretched back over several thousand years.

Willow Run B-24 Plant

At the time it was built, the Willow Run B-24 factory in Michigan was the largest and most ambitious aviation project ever undertaken.

Cockpit of a B-24 bomber made at the Willow Run plant, on exhibit at the Yankee Air Force Museum in Michigan