This Day In History: May 13, 1981 On May 13, 1981, Pope John Paul II was shot while passing through St. Peter’s Square in Rome. The pontiff was on the way to hold his weekly public audience. After the shooting, the gunman’s weapon was knocked out of his hands by onlookers who restrained him until police could arrive. John Paul […]

This Day In History: May 12, 1215 “No free man shall be arrested or imprisoned save by the lawful judgment of their equals or by the law of the land. To no one will we sell, to no one will we deny or delay right or justice.” The Magna Carta is one of the most famous and revered documents in […]

This Day In History: May 11, 1981 “Some people feel the rain. Others just get wet.” ― Bob Marley Bob Marley was the first “third-world” global superstar and the artist responsible for bringing reggae to mainstream audiences. Marley’s unforgettable music alone would have earned him a place in music history, but his status as a moral and religious compass to […]

This Day In History: May 8, 1902 “I know nothing about Mount Pelée, but if Vesuvius were looking the way your volcano looks this morning, I’d get out of Naples.” – Marino Leboffe, Captain of the Italian freighter “Orsolina” 5/2/02 On May 8, 1902 Mt. Pelée on the Caribbean island of Martinique unleashed an eruption that killed approximately 30,000 people, […]

This Day In History: May 7, 1896 Dr. Henry Howard Holmes came into this world as Herman Webster Mudgett May 16, 1861 in Galmanton, New Hampshire. His family was affluent, and the intelligent young Herman had the means to attend medical school at the University of Michigan. It was there that he began his lucrative career as a con artist, […]

This Day In History: May 6, 1895 Rudolph Valentino, the first great lover on the movie screen, was born as … *deep breath* … Rodolfo Alfonzo Raffaelo Pierre Filibert Guglielmi di Valentina d’Antonguolla on May 6, 1898 in Castellaneta, Italy. (If you think that’s long, you should know Pablo Picasso’s real name was Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan […]

This Day In History: May 5, 1945 On May 5, 1945, Reverend Archie Mitchell and his pregnant wife Elsie had driven up to Gearhart Mountain with five of their Sunday school pupils (aged 11-14) to enjoy a picnic lunch. They encountered a road closure due to construction in Bly, Oregon. Elsie and the kids got out of the vehicle to […]

This Day In History: May 4, 1970 Tin soldiers and Nixon coming, We’re finally on our own. This summer I hear the drumming, Four dead in Ohio – Neil Young “Ohio” By May of 1970, protests against the Vietnam War were popping up with increasing frequency all over the United States, and especially on college campuses. The recent revelation that […]

This Day In History: April 30, 1904 For much of history, eating was a very formal affair and the concept of food you could grab and eat on the go was not terribly common. This all began to change in the 19th century, with the advent of things like hot dogs in a bun and, of course, ice cream in […]

Today in History: April 29, 534 Believed to have been born on April 29, 534, C.E.,Taliesin was a renowned bard who served at the courts of three British Celtic kings. It is purported that his work in a Middle Welsh manuscript is preserved today as the Book of Taliesin. At least 11 of the poems have been confirmed to date […]

This Day In History: April 28, 1945 Mussolini rose to power after the March on Rome in 1922. Just six years later he had established himself as absolute dictator and took the title of “Duce.” He conquered Ethiopia in 1935 and annexed Albania in 1939 – the same year he joined a Tripartite Pact with Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan. […]

This Day In History: April 27, 1865 The greatest commercial maritime disaster (just edging out the Titanic by death-toll) occurred on April 27, 1865 when the steamboat Sultana exploded and sank on the Mississippi River near Memphis Tennessee. Approximately 1,700 passengers, most of them recently discharged Union soldiers on their way home, lost their lives. The Sultana was considered a […]

This Day In History: April 24, 1800 On April 24, 1800, President John Adams established the Library of Congress by approving legislation to appropriate $5,000 (about $68,000 today) “for the purchase of such books as may be necessary for the use of Congress … and for fitting up a suitable apartment for containing them.” The legislation was enacted along with […]

This Day In History: April 23, 1348 The Most Noble Order of the Garter is the oldest and most exclusive British civil and military honor. At any given time, the Order consists only of the Monarch, the Prince of Wales, and 25 hand-picked knights who have served the country in an exemplary manner, held public office, or have served the […]

This Day In History: April 22, 1923 Bettie Page, legendary pin-up girl and pop culture icon, was born in Nashville, Tennessee on April 22, 1923. Gracing millions of garage walls and locker rooms, blued-eyed, raven-haired beauty Bettie Page was the most famous pin-up model of the 1950s. Although she disappeared from the public eye in 1957, she continues to influence […]

This Day In History: April 21, 1930 On April 21, 1930, a fire at the Ohio State Penitentiary killed 320 inmates, many who died trapped in their cells, unable to escape the flames. Those that didn’t burn to death perished from smoke inhalation and breathing poisonous fumes. It was the most lethal prison fire in American history. The prison itself […]

This Day In History: April 20, 1999 On April 20, 1999, two teenagers clad in trenchcoats began a shooting rampage outside Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado. The pair continued the carnage inside the building, killing 12 students,1 teacher and wounding at least 20 others. The two young gunmen then committed suicide. In the aftermath of the shootings, everyone searched […]

This Day In History: April 17, 1397 April 17, 1397 marked a turning point in the history of English literature and culture when Geoffrey Chaucer read from his book “The Canterbury Tales” at the court of King Richard II. He read it in English, the language of the common man, instead of the Norman French usually spoken at court. Since […]