Edward L. Logan was born in Boston on 20 January 1875. Except while on active duty, he was a life-long resident of South Boston. He graduated from Boston Latin School in 1893, where he received his first military training in the cadet corps, and from Harvard in 1897.

He mustered out in November 1898 and entered Harvard Law School while remaining sergeant major of the 9th Infantry. He graduated in June 1901 and was also appointed as 2d Lieutenant in Company A, 9th Infantry, Massachusetts Volunteer Militia (later Massachusetts National Guard). Logan was promoted to 1st Lieutenant in 1903 and in October 1908 he took command of Company A as a captain.

During and after service in the National Guard he was active in civic, veterans, and political posts. He was the first state commander of the American Legion, President of the National Guard Association, Boston city councilor, representative and senator in the Massachusetts General Court, as well as president of a number of charitable institutions. He was one of Boston’s leading citizens as was nationally known for his role in veterans and military affairs.

I like the history behind names and places because then it is not just another place or thing, it has a past. It has a story that can be told as a tidbit during a conversation. History can sometimes be really interesting.

The last ambassador was removed by George Bush because he openly called the “killings” a genocide. Bush is an idiot.

I was going to write more, but I am not feeling well, sorry it’s short, but enjoy the quick history fact

I’m not saying this is a conspiracy, but it is really interesting.

*1 Note: It is an urban myth that Lincoln had a secretary named Kennedy. There is no record of that.

**2 Note: There is no record whether or not Kennedy’s secretary warned him.

Edelweiss is a white flower found high in the Alpine hills and the lyrics reflect its change and the effect on people. I don’t really know if that makes sense, but it’s ok.

Edelweiss Lyrics
Edelweiss, Edelweiss
Every morning you greet me
Small and white, clean and bright
You look happy to meet me

Blossom of snow may you bloom and grow
Bloom and grow forever

Edelweiss, Edelweiss
Bless my homeland forever

He had the Heisman trophy won since before his famous game since voting took place prior to November 23rd even though some people think that the final game locked it up. Flutie left school as the NCAA’s all-time passing yardage leader with 10,579 yards and was a consensus All-America as a senior. He earned Player of the Year awards from UPI, Kodak, The Sporting News and the Maxwell Football Club.

November 23, 1984 was voted the greatest college sports game in history. Flutie’s BC Eagles beat Miami Hurricanes 47-45 in a back and forth game which ended in a last second hail mary pass to Gerard Phelan.

At the time, I was almost 3 months old and my father was holding me in his hands. When they caught the ball, my father jumped up and I almost hit my head on the ceiling. Luckily for me I didn’t, but it is still a good story.

On this day in Armenian History 1991, the Republic of Armenia declared it’s freedom from the (former) Soviet Union to be apart of the New Independent States which later became the CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States). Along with Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan, they freed themselves from the control of the Soviet Union and communism.

In Armenia’s first years as a sovereign state, they had to deal with many problems that prevented them from thriving as a country. An earthquake that killed ten’s of thousands of people and the new President banning the Armenian Revolutionary Federation. Once Robert Kocharian became President in 1998, the country started to turn around and is doing very well for a *moderately developed country*.

Happy Independence Day Armenia!!!

armenia, freedom, soviet union, NIS, CIS, independence

Mount Ararat (Armenian: Արարատ) is the highest mountain in Turkey. Ararat was a part of Armenia until the Armenian Genocide in 1915 when Turkey took over that section of Armenia. Mount Ararat is an important landmark to Armenian’s because it shows the beauty of the sister mountains that were taken away from Armenia. It is a symbol in most paintings, songs, movies and mostly anything else to do with Armenia. It is also the background to my header image on my blog. In 2001, I stood at Khor Virab, which is the closest you can get to Ararat while still in Armenia, and watched the mountain for so long. I sat there thinking about the history and watched the amazing view of the twin peaks. The above image is not rendered in any way, it actually looks like that.

At some point in my life, one of my goals is to climb Ararat, but the Turkish government has issues with that. The climb is long, but there is a fairly easy route from the south in late summer for climbers who are familiar with the use of axe and crampons. Snow covers the last 400 m (¼ mile) year-round. There are two possible campsites on the mountain, and the glacier begins around 4,800 m (15,750 ft). The Turkish government requires a climbing permit and use of a certified Turkish guide. I found a company out of Turkey who will do everything for you and it only costs $1,500. I know that might be a lot to spend, but I will if it means completing a lifelong goal. If I do end up going, I will be documenting the entire trip.

Most people say they have never heard of Mount Ararat, but when you mention Noah’s Ark, they know that. One thing that they never realized though was the mountain that the Ark landed on after the 150 days was Mount Ararat. In the Bible, the book of Genesis, Chapter 8 1-5 reads:
“But God remembered Noah and all the beasts and all the livestock that were with him in the ark. And God made a wind blow over the earth, and the waters subsided. The fountains of the deep and the windows of the heavens were closed, the rain from the heavens was restrained, and the waters receded from the earth continually. At the end of 150 days the waters had abated, and in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, the ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat. And the waters continued to abate until the tenth month; in the tenth month, on the first day of the month, the tops of the mountains were seen”

Facts:

• In November 2004, Mt. Ararat and its surrounding area was considered a National Park
• Ararat (film) is a 2002 film by Atom Egoyan about the Armenian Genocide. I saw it on it’s release date in Harvard Square and it was really a great movie.
• The Armenian-American Metal Band System of a Down wrote the song “Holy Mountains” about Mt. Ararat and its significance to Armenians with regard to the Armenian Genocide.
• Mount Ararat is referenced in the plot of Kurt Vonnegut’s novel Bluebeard.

Ararat, Armenia, Armenian border, genocide, mountain, mt. Ararat, turkey

Here is a website that shows you an interactive battle of Gettysburg

1863, gettysburg, civil war, abraham lincoln, battle, final day, july 3

ZIP codes are numbered with the first digit representing a certain group of U.S. states, the second and third digits together representing a region in that group (or perhaps a large city) and the fourth and fifth digits representing more specific areas, such as small towns or regions of that city. The main town in a region (if applicable) often gets the first ZIP codes for that region; afterward, the numerical order often follows the alphabetical order.

Facts:

The White House has its own secret ZIP + 4 code, separate from the publicly known 20500, for the President of the United States and the First Family to receive private mail.

ZIP code 10048 was assigned to the World Trade Center complex in New York, New York (until its destruction on September 11, 2001).

The code 77230 was assigned in 2005 for mail delivery to victims of Hurricane Katrina being housed at the Houston Astrodome[7], and is still in service today as a P.O.-box-only code.

history, zip, us, mail, us mail, zip codes, postal codes, postal service

New Hampshire was one of the original Thirteen Colonies and became the ninth state to ratify the United States Constitution in 1788. New Hampshire was the first U.S. state to have its own state constitution, and is the only state with neither a general sales tax nor an income tax. Its license plates carry the state motto: “Live Free or Die.” The state nickname is “The Granite State”, in reference both to its geology and to its tradition of self-sufficiency. Several other official nicknames exist but are rarely used.

NH is my neighbor to the north and it was also my home while I was in college at Plymouth State University. It is also home to Mount Washington which holds the record for the highest recorded surface wind gust in the world at 231 mph.

The Old Man of the Mountain, also known as the great stone face, was a series of five granite cliff ledges on Cannon Mountain in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, that, when viewed from the correct angle, appeared to be the jagged profile of a face. The first recorded discovery of the Old Man was in 1805. The outcrop was 1,200 feet above Profile Lake, and measured 40 feet tall and 25 feet wide. It collapsed on May 3, 2003 after centuries of wind, snow, and rain, as well as freezing and thawing cycles, finally caught up with it.

new hampshire, nh, us state, states, state, history, ratified, constitution

Here is the Memorial of the Armenian Genocide in Yerevan, Armenia

When I traveled to Armenia, this is one of the places we visited and it was very emotional because many of my ancestors were killing in the Genocide by the Young Turks.

Armenian genocide, Armenia, Armenian, genocide, killings, turks, turkey, 1915, April 24, 91 years, 92 years

President Abraham Lincoln was on his way to see “Our American Cousin” at Ford’s Theatre on April 14th, 1865 (the day before) when it was interrupted by the gun shot of John Wilkes Booth. He then proceeded to jump off the balcony screaming “Sic Semper Tyrannis” (Thus always to tyrants). Booth’s leg got caught on the American Flag (which is ironic since he was a confederate sympathizer) and when he fell, he broke his leg.

The unconscious Lincoln was carried across the street to the Petersen House and into the room of a War Department clerk. The bullet had entered behind the left ear and ripped a path through the left side of his brain, mortally wounding him. He died on April 15, 1865.

Here is a copy of the autopsy that was completed on Lincoln:

After President Abraham Lincoln passed away on the morning of April 15, 1865, his body was returned by hearse to the White House shortly after 9:00 A.M. Accompanied by an escort of cavalry, the solemn procession slowly moved up 10th Street to G Street and thence to the White House. Mr. Lincoln’s temporary coffin was wrapped in an American flag. His remains were transported to the Guest Room which was on the second floor at the front right-hand corner of the building (northwest corner). Nine men were present for the autopsy. These included Surgeon General Dr. Joseph K. Barnes, Lincoln family physician, Dr. Robert King Stone, Dr. Charles Sabin Taft, Assistant Surgeon General Dr. Charles H. Crane, Army Assistant Surgeon William Morrow Notson, General Rucker of the Army’s Quartermaster Department (whose men had escorted the hearse back to the White House), Lincoln’s friend, Orville H. Browning, Army Assistant Surgeon Joseph Janvier Woodward (who also assisted with and wrote the details of John Wilkes Booth’s autopsy), and Army Assistant Surgeon Edward Curtis. During the necropsy Mary Todd Lincoln sent a messenger to request a lock of hair, and a tuft was clipped from the head for her. The actual work of the autopsy was done by Dr. Curtis and Dr. Woodward. Dr. Curtis’ informal description of the autopsy (in a letter to his mother) is as follows (Dr. Woodward’s formal report follows Dr. Curtis’ description):
The room…contained but little furniture: a large, heavily curtained bed, a sofa or two, bureau, wardrobe, and chairs comprised all there was. Seated around the room were several general officers and some civilians, silent or conversing in whispers, and to one side, stretched upon a rough framework of boards and covered only with sheets and towels, lay – cold and immovable – what but a few hours before was the soul of a great nation. The Surgeon General was walking up and down the room when I arrived and detailed me the history of the case. He said that the President showed most wonderful tenacity of life, and, had not his wound been necessarily mortal, might have survived an injury to which most men would succumb…Dr. Woodward and I proceeded to open the head and remove the brain down to the track of the ball. The latter had entered a little to the left of the median line at the back of the head, had passed almost directly forwards through the center of the brain and lodged. Not finding it readily, we proceeded to remove the entire brain, when, as I was lifting the latter from the cavity of the skull, suddenly the bullet dropped out through my fingers and fell, breaking the solemn silence of the room with its clatter, into an empty basin that was standing beneath. There it lay upon the white china, a little black mass no bigger than the end of my finger – dull, motionless and harmless, yet the cause of such mighty changes in the world’s history as we may perhaps never realize….silently, in one corner of the room, I prepared the brain for weighing. As I looked at the mass of soft gray and white substance that I was carefully washing, it was impossible to realize that it was that mere clay upon whose workings, but the day before, rested the hopes of the nation. I felt more profoundly impressed than ever with the mystery of that unknown something which may be named ‘vital spark’ as well as anything else, whose absence or presence makes all the immeasurable difference between an inert mass of matter owning obedience to no laws but those covering the physical and chemical forces of the universe, and on the other hand, a living brain by whose silent, subtle machinery a world may be ruled.
The weighing of the brain…gave approximate results only, since there had been some loss of brain substance, in consequence of the wound, during the hours of life after the shooting. But the figures, as they were, seemed to show that the brain weight was not above the ordinary for a man of Lincoln’s size.
Dr. Woodward’s formal report of the autopsy, written to the Surgeon General, is as follows:

Surgeon General’s Office
Washington City D.C.
April 15, 1865
Brigadier General J.K. Barnes
Surgeon General U.S.A.

---

General:

I have the honor to report that in obedience to your orders and aided by Assistant Surgeon E. Curtis, U.S.A., I made in your presence at 12 o’clock this morning an autopsy on the body of President Abraham Lincoln, with the following results: The eyelids and surrounding parts of the face were greatly ecchymosed and the eyes somewhat protuberant from effusion of blood into the orbits.
There was a gunshot wound of the head around which the scalp was greatly thickened by hemorrhage into its tissue. The ball entered through the occipital bone about one inch to the left of the median line and just above the left lateral sinus, which it opened. It then penetrated the dura matter, passed through the left posterior lobe of the cerebrum, entered the left lateral ventricle and lodged in the white matter of the cerebrum just above the anterior portion of the left corpus striatum, where it was found.
The wound in the occipital bone was quite smooth, circular in shape, with bevelled edges. The opening through the internal table being larger than that through the external table. The track of the ball was full of clotted blood and contained several little fragments of bone with small pieces of the ball near its external orifice. The brain around the track was pultaceous and livid from capillary hemorrhage into its substance. The ventricles of the brain were full of clotted blood. A thick clot beneath the dura matter coated the right cerebral lobe.
There was a smaller clot under the dura matter of the left side. But little blood was found at the base of the brain. Both the orbital plates of the frontal bone were fractured and the fragments pushed upwards toward the brain. The dura matter over these fractures was uninjured. The orbits were gorged with blood. I have the honor of being very respectfully your obedient servant.

J.J. Woodward
Assistant Surgeon
U.S.A.

- Source

John Wilkes Booth was an actor and Confederate who had also planned the attack on Secretary of State William H. Seward. Booth hoped to overthrow the Federal government by assassinating Lincoln, Seward, and Vice President Andrew Johnson. Though Booth succeeded in killing Lincoln, the larger plot failed. Seward would recover from his wounds, and Johnson was never attacked because he was not where he was scheduled to be.

Booth had a different plan which was to just kidnap the President and take him south, then to exchange Lincoln for the release of Confederate prisoners of war. That plan changed on April 11, 1865, Booth attended a speech outside the White House in which Lincoln gave support for the idea of voting rights for blacks.

Booth was on the run for days until he was found in Richard Garrett’s barn where the soldiers were ordered to set it on fire. Sergeant Boston Corbett fired at Booth against orders, fatally wounding him in the neck. Booth was dragged from the fire to a porch of the nearby farmhouse. The bullet had severed his spinal cord, paralyzing him. John Wilkes Booth’s last words were reportedly, “Useless, useless.”

abraham lincoln, dies, ford’s theatre, john wilkes booth, lincoln, president, shot, ford’s theatre

March 17, popularly known as St. Patrick’s Day, is believed to be his death date and is the date celebrated as his feast day. The day became a feast day in the universal church due to the influence of the Waterford-born Franciscan scholar Luke Wadding, as a member of the commission for the reform of the Breviary in the early part of the 17th century.

For most of Christianity’s first thousand years, canonisations were done on the diocesan or regional level. Relatively soon after the death of people considered to be very holy people, the local Church affirmed that they could be liturgically celebrated as saints. As a result, St. Patrick has never been formally canonised by a Pope, but he is still widely venerated in Ireland and elsewhere today.

St. Patrick is also venerated in the Orthodox Church, especially among English-speaking Orthodox Christians living in the United Kingdom and Ireland and in North America. There are even Orthodox icons dedicated to him.

St Patrick’s Day is celebrated by many people even those who are not Irish. It is primarily a time when college students go on Spring Break and drink. Even though Boston has the longest running celebration, the parade in New York City is the biggest celebration. The River is dyed green with Fluorescein for the celebration in Chicago.

The longest-running Saint Patrick’s Day celebrations in the U.S. are:

* Boston, Massachusetts, since 1737
* New York City, since 1756
* Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, since 1771
* Morristown, New Jersey, since 1780
* Buffalo, New York, since 1811
* Savannah, Georgia, since 1813
* Carbondale, Pennsylvania, since 1833
* Chicago, Illinois, since 1843
* New Haven, Connecticut, since 1845
* San Francisco, California, since 1852
* Scranton, Pennsylvania, since 1862
* Cleveland, Ohio, since 1867
* Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, since 1869
* Kansas City, Missouri, since 1873
* Butte, Montana, since 1882

On a side note, Irish Boston based band “Drop Kick Murphys” will be the headlining act for the Plymouth State University Spring Fling celebration on May 5, 2007

history, Patrick, saint, saint Patrick, saint Patrick’s day, today, saint Patrick’s day

I wanted to know the meaning of my first name so when I looked it up, I realized that it means “God’s Honor”. That seems very appropriate for who I am

charles dickens, dickens, god’s honor, timothy, tiny tim, god’s honor, meaning, baby, names

This day in history 27 years ago, the US Olympic Team beat the Soviets in one of the biggest upsets in sports history. The movie Miracle, starring Kurt Russell as Herb Brooks, was released in 2004. This victory was voted the greatest sports moment of the twentieth century by Sports Illustrated

U.S. vs. USSR (Game review)

United States Team Roster

* Starters

1980, hockey, lake placid, miracle, miracle on ice, Olympics, soviet, united states, us, us hockey

Capone headed a list of “public enemies” corrupting the city compiled in 1930. The list was published by newspapers nationwide and Capone became known as “Public Enemy No. 1”.

Pursuing Capone were Treasury agent Eliot Ness and his hand-picked team of incorruptible U.S. Prohibition agents, “The Untouchables”, and internal revenue agent Frank Wilson of the Treasury Department’s Bureau of Internal Revenue. During a routine warehouse raid they discovered in a desk drawer what was clearly a crudely coded set of accounts. Ness then concentrated on pursuing Capone for his failure to pay tax on this substantial illegal income. This story has become a legend and the subject of books and films.

The massacre was a result of a plan devised by Capone’s gang member Jack ‘Machine Gun’ McGurn to eliminate Moran, Capone’s chief criminal enemy. The massacre was planned by McGurn partly in retaliation for an unsuccessful attempt by Frank and his brother Peter Gusenberg to murder him a month earlier while at a telephone booth. Territorial tensions between “Bugs” Moran and Al Capone about who would own the Chicago bootlegging business and make the most money from it also led Capone to accept Jack’s plan for the killings.

McGurn assembled a team of six men led by Fred Burke with the intent of having Moran lured into an ambush. Bugs and his men would be tricked into visiting a warehouse on North Clark Street on the pretext of buying some bargain hijacked bootleg whiskey; Burke’s team would then enter the building disguised as police officers and kill them. The chief architects of the plan, McGurn and Capone, would be well away from the scene.

Before any shooting had begun, Capone had placed lookouts in the apartments across the street from the warehouse. Capone, wishing to keep the lookouts inconspicuous, chose two men from another state to keep watch. Five members of the McGurn gang drove to the warehouse in a stolen police car at around 10:30 a.m., two dressed in police uniforms and three in ordinary street clothes. Moran, supposedly watching the warehouse, spotted the police car and fled. However, one of McGurn’s lookouts confused one of Moran’s men for Moran himself, and gave the signal to McGurn’s men and they approached the warehouse.

al capone, elliot ness, massacre, public enemy no 1, st valentines day, valentines day

The American version of the Boy Scouts has it origins in an event that occurred in London in 1909. Chicago publisher William Boyce was lost in the fog when a Boy Scout came to his aid. After guiding Boyce to his destination, the boy refused a tip, explaining that as a Boy Scout he would not accept payment for doing a good deed. This anonymous gesture inspired Boyce to organize several regional U.S. youth organizations, specifically the Woodcraft Indians and the Sons of Daniel Boone, into the Boy Scouts of America. Incorporated on February 8, 1910, the movement soon spread throughout the country.

Scouting is an organization that challenges boys to get in touch with nature and to bring them back to a time when there was nothing but nature. To think back to how humans survived without TVs, internet and video games. I for one love each of those and wouldn’t want it any other way, however, what is wrong with forgetting about “technology” for a while and spend time away from everything. Camping, cooking over a wood fire, survival skills, enjoying the outdoors.

On the TV show Survivor, people try and be the only person who could “survive” in an environment where you have no modern luxuries. However, it would be much different if you had to actually survive by yourself in a forest or on a deserted island. Yes, you need to know how to start a fire with kindling and twigs but could you survive by yourself. If you or someone you were with was seriously injured, would you know how to deal with the situation and keep that person or yourself healthy enough to survive. If someone on Survivor had a heat stroke, would there be a trained medical professional there to help them. Yes. When you are in the wilderness with someone who had heat stroke, could you help them and keep them alive?

Boy Scouts has given me that knowledge. Some of the things you need to know how to do is: Show that you know first aid for injuries or illnesses likely to occur in back country outings, including hypothermia, heat stroke, heat exhaustion, frostbite, dehydration, sunburn, stings, tick bites, snakebite, and blisters. Some of them may be simple, but others can be life or death. These are just some of the concepts one can learn through Boy Scouts and though it may not seem important right now, some day it could save my life or the life of someone else.

Boy Scouts and becoming an Eagle Scout has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life and will always remain a big part of who I am. I will try to “Do a Good Turn Daily” and “Be Prepared” for anything that comes my way. On this day, I thank Robert Baden-Powell for giving me and over 28 million registered Boy Scouts all over the world an opportunity of lifetime. (United States: 10,100,000 registered Boy Scouts).

1908, Baden-Powell, Boy Scouts, Eagle Scout, history, Robert baden-Powell, scouting

Up to 1982, many former Presidents have made statements saying that the Armenian Genocide happened, but then the US government was afraid that the Turkish Government would get upset over the use of the word “Genocide”. The US Government is worried about citizens of another country getting upset, but what about the almost 400,000 Armenian-Americans indicated in the 2000 US Census. What about their families and what they went through. It seems that the US needs to focus more on our own citizens than upsetting the Turks who are in “Absolut Denial” about what happened.

armenia, armenian genocide, genocide, massacre, recognize, turks

The land purchased contained parts or all of present-day Arkansas, Missouri, Iowa, Minnesota west of the Mississippi River, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, New Mexico, northern Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, the portions of Montana, Wyoming, and Colorado east of the Rocky Mountains, the portions of southern Manitoba, southern Saskatchewan and southern Alberta that drain into the Missouri River, and Louisiana on both sides of the Mississippi River, including the city of New Orleans. The land included in the purchase comprises around 23% of the territory of the modern United States.

The Louisiana Purchase was signed on April of 1803 by Robert Livingston, James Monroe, and Barbé Marbois in Paris.

The United States Senate ratified the treaty with a vote of twenty-four to seven on October 20; on the following day, it authorized President Jefferson to take possession of the territory and establish a temporary military government. In legislation enacted on October 31, Congress made temporary provisions for local civil government to continue as it had under French and Spanish rule and authorized the President to use military forces to maintain order. Plans were also set forth for a mission to explore and chart the territory, which would become known as the Lewis and Clark Expedition.

France then turned New Orleans over on December 20, 1803. On March 10, 1804, a formal ceremony was conducted in St. Louis to transfer ownership of the territory from France to the United States.
Jefferson, louisiana purchase, United States, france, 1803, president, US, territory

1. Zeus is the highest ranking and most powerful god, the ruler of Mount Olympus, god of the sky.
2. Poseidon, together with Hades is one of the two next most senior gods, god of the sea, rivers and springs, floods and earthquakes.
3. Hera is the wife of Zeus, the goddess Queen of the heavens and stars, of marriage and fidelity.
4. Demeter is the goddess of the fertile earth and agriculture. Her bounty sustains mankind.
5. Artemis is the goddess of the hunt, animals, wilderness and the protector of young girls.
6. Apollo is the god of prophesy, light, music, healing, disease and medicine and archery.
7. Athena is the goddess of wisdom, the crafts (especially weaving, pottery and carpentry), inner beauty, education and defensive war.
8. Hephaestus is the god of fire, workmanship, artisans and weaponry and the craftsman of the gods.
9. Ares is the god of offensive war and slaughter.
10. Aphrodite is the goddess of love, sexuality, outer beauty and attraction.
11. Hermes is the god of guidance, travelers, commerce, inventions, oratory, shepherds, consolation and reunions, athletics, patron of thieves, and messenger of the Gods.
12. Hestia is the goddess of the home, family and the hearth.
13. Dionysus is the youngest of the Olympians, and the god of wine, vegetation, fertility and the theater. He alternates with Hestia in ancient lists of the twelve Olympians. Some scholars do not count Dionysus among the Olympian gods because though he is the son of Zeus, his mother was a mortal.

The Olympics were first held in honor of Zeus near Mount Olympus, but they were originally called The Olympian Games

The Olympics were of fundamental religious importance, contests alternating with sacrifices and ceremonies honouring both Zeus (whose colossal statue stood at Olympia), and Pelops, divine hero and mythical king of Olympia famous for his legendary chariot race, in whose honour the games were held.

gods, greek, greek mythology, mythology, top gods

The pilgrims were heading for the Hudson River and actually didn’t mean to land in Plymouth Massachusetts, but sometimes things happen that you don’t expect. Everyone thinks that the Pilgrims met the Indians when they landed and standing on the rock, but in fact that myth wasn’t established until 1750. Being near the end of December in New England, the passengers were looking for shelter. They were trying to find a good place to land and Plymouth happened to work for them.

The location of Plymouth Rock, a boulder of granite (more specifically, Dedham granodiorite, a glacial erratic), at the foot of Cole’s Hill is said to have been passed from generation to generation. In 1741, when plans were afoot to build a wharf at the site, a nonagenarian, Thomas Faunce, Elder of the church, pointed out the precise rock his father had told him was the first solid land on which the Pilgrims set foot upon their arrival in the Plymouth. (The Pilgrims had landed at the site of Provincetown on the tip of Cape Cod in November 1620 before reaching Plymouth). Elder Faunce had been the town record keeper for most of his adult life and was 95 years old when he made the identification of Plymouth Rock. The rock is located about 650 feet from where it is generally accepted that the initial settlement was built.

During the Rock’s many journeys throughout the town of Plymouth numerous pieces of the Rock were taken, bought and sold. Today approximately 1/3 of the top portion remains. It is estimated that the original Rock weighed 20,000 lb. Although some documents indicate that tourists or souvenir hunters chipped it down, no pieces have been noticeably removed since 1880. Today there are pieces in Pilgrim Hall Museum as well as in the Patent Building in the Smithsonian.

1620, pilgrims, plymouth, plymouth colony, plymouth rock

Orville and Wilbur Wright created the first self propelled aircraft and took flight with it. On December 17, 1903 in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, the Wright Brothers. Wilbur watched a bird fly and took extensive notes and used those to design their wings. The brothers took turns piloting the gasoline powered plane which stayed in the air for 12 seconds totaling 120 feet.

They made four flights in total..

After weeks of delays at Kitty Hawk caused by broken propeller shafts, the Wrights finally took to the air on December 17, 1903, making two flights each in a freezing wind gusting to 27 miles an hour. The first flight, by Orville, of 39 meters (120 feet) in 12 seconds, was recorded in a famous photograph. The next two flights were approximately 175 and 200 feet, by Wilbur and Orville respectively. In the fourth flight of the day, the one most skillfully controlled (and carefully measured), Wilbur flew 279 meters (852 ft) in 59 seconds. Their altitude on the four flights was about ten feet above the ground

The original plane was shipped home and it now resides in the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C.
flying, kitty hawk, orville, plane, wilbur, wright, wright brothers

Samuel Adams decided that he wasn’t going to take it anymore and gathered a group of 150 protesters to make a stand and destroy the tea sold by the East India Company. On December 16, 1773, the protesters left the Old South Meeting House and headed to the wharf dressed as Mohawk Natives to try and disguise their identities. Groups of 50 people took over three ships called Dartmouth, the Eleanor and the Beaver which were carrying hundreds of crates of tea. They opened about 350 crates of tea and dumped it into Boston Harbor.

The Boston Tea Party is known around the world and has been inspirational to other rebels. For example, Erik H. Erikson records in his book “Gandhi’s Truths” that when Mahatma Gandhi met with the British viceroy in 1930 after the Indian salt protest campaign, Gandhi took some duty-free salt from his shawl and said, with a smile, that the salt was “to remind us of the famous Boston Tea Party.”

Benjamin Franklin stated that the destroyed tea must be repaid, and he offered to repay with his own money. The British government responded by closing the port of Boston and put in place other laws that were known as the Intolerable Acts. The Boston Tea Party eventually proved to be one of the many causes that led to the American Revolution.

13 colonies, boston, boston harbor, boston tea party, colonies, history, king george III, Samuel adams, tea, united states