In 1948, a World War II-era bomber crashed into Lake Mead, the massive reservoir formed by Hoover Dam that straddles the Arizona-Nevada border. After several failed attempts to locate the plane, it was finally discovered in the early 2000s—still remarkably intact. In the early 1940’s, the military recognized that the U.S. might be drawn into […]
“When an opponent declares ‘I will not come over to your side,’ I calmly say, ‘Your child belongs to us already…. What are you? You will pass on. Your descendants, however, now stand in the new camp. In a short time they will know nothing else but this new community.’” (Adolph Hitler, November 6, 1933.) […]
During one of the darkest periods of World War II, Winston Churchill asked aloud, “Will Britain surrender too?” Never. At the time, in the summer and fall of 1940, the great leader of the U.K. declared, “I expect that the Battle of Britain is about to begin. Upon this battle depends the survival of Christian civilization.” […]
Steinway & Sons was founded by a German immigrant named Heinrich Engelhard Steinweg (later changed to Steinway) in 1853. Heinrich began building pianos in 1835, and by 1839 his reputation as a piano builder grew throughout the Braunschweig area. In 1850 Heinrich immigrated to the United States with his family, taking jobs with several different piano manufacturers. In 1853 […]
My children know that I love trivia, especially historical trivia. Not long ago, I received an e-mail from my eldest daughter asking “Did you know this, Mom?” Her e-mail read as follows: “The atom bomb was one of the defining inventions of the 20th Century. So how did science fiction writer HG Wells predict its […]
From its earliest days, America has been a nation of immigrants, starting with its original inhabitants, who crossed the land bridge connecting Asia and North America thousands of years ago. By the 1500s, the first Europeans, led by the Spanish and French, had begun establishing settlements in what would become the United States. The Pilgrims […]
The following is from an Army Aviator who takes us on a trip down memory lane: “It was just before Thanksgiving ’67 and we were ferrying dead and wounded from a large GRF west of Pleiku. We had run out of body bags by noon, so the Hook (CH-47 CHINOOK) was pretty rough in the […]
What if we could have an experiment to compare the two systems? Wait – we already did. Experimentation is a major tool in the scientist’s arsenal. We can put the same strain of bacteria into two Petri dishes, for example, and compare the relative effects of two different antibiotics. What if we could do the […]
Operation Cowboy May 7, 1945, was an important day by any measure. For Gen. George S. Patton, it started early, with a call just after 4 a.m. from Gen. Omar Bradley, who said, “Ike just called me, George. The Germans have surrendered.” This was mixed news to Patton, who was convinced the war was ending […]