Friday, December 7, 1900. Surrender, bids and disappearances. Mars calls, but doesn't.

Gen. Emilio Verderflor of the Philippine Army was killed in battle.

The U.S. Navy put out an invitation for bids for ships in a number that would double its then existing size.

Donald MacArthur, Thomas Marshall, and James Ducat started their tour of duty on a lighthouse on the Flannan Isles.  On December 21 when the ship came to relieve them of their tour, the lighthouse was locked and the men missing.  They were never discovered although its assume they were a victim of weather.

The islands were not inhabited at the time, and with lighthouse automation, became completely uninhabited.

The islands have a very small ruined chapel on them, and were inhabited in the early Medieval period until about 990, this being a story that's fairly common to remote British isles.

Nikola Tesla claimed to have received intelligent communications from Mars.

Contrary to the later movie suggestion, it was not "Mars needs women".  Indeed, there were no communications from Mars at all.  Radio transmissions from space are not at all uncommon, but even now some reach out to suggest that they must be the Greatest Hits of Alpha Centauri, or whatever.

Best evidence is that Earth is completely unique, and we're it.

Last edition:

Monday, December 3, 1900. McKinley's Fourth Annual Message to Congress.

Labels: 1900, 1900s, 56th Congress, Boxer Rebellion, Court, law, Philippine Insurrection, Racism, Railroads, Stupid Traditions, Stupidity, Traditions, United States Military Academy, William McKinley

Saturday, March 8, 1924. The Castle Gate Disaster.

Three explosions at the Castle Gate coal mine in Utah killed all 171 miners working at the mine.  It is one of the worst mining disasters in American history.

Nikola Tesla spoke publically for the firs time in many years to declare he had perfected a system of transmitting power without wires.

The Kingdom of Greece established diplomatic relations with the Soviet Union while, on the same day, the Prime Minister was forced to resign after refusing the Army's call to abolish the monarchy.

Henry Breault, a submariner, received the Medal of Honor.  He is the only enlisted submariner to have ever received the medal.

The MoH was not yet strictly a wartime award at the time and Breault won it for peace time service, with his citation stating:

For heroism and devotion to duty while serving on board the U.S. submarine O-5 at the time of the sinking of that vessel. On the morning of 28 October 1923, the O-5 collided with the steamship Abangarez and sank in less than a minute. When the collision occurred, Breault was in the torpedo room. Upon reaching the hatch, he saw that the boat was rapidly sinking. Instead of jumping overboard to save his own life, he returned to the torpedo room to the rescue of a shipmate whom he knew was trapped in the boat, closing the torpedo room hatch on himself. Breault and Brown remained trapped in this compartment until rescued by the salvage party 31 hours later.

Breault was from Connecticut, but had served in the Royal Navy in World War One, joining at age 16.  He served the rest of his life in the Navy, dying of a heart condition at age 41 in 1941.

Last prior:

Friday, March 7, 1924. End of a Revolution and a Mutiny.