Friday, November 13, 2009

Saturday, November 13, 1909. Cherry Mine Disaster.

The Cherry Mine Disaster saw 247 coal miners and 12 rescuers killed in the accident at Cherry Illinois.  It's the third deadliest mine disaster in U.S. history.

University of Virginia freshman halfback Archer Christian was fatally injured during a game against Georgetown.

Last edition:

Thursday, November 11, 1909. Barbarity.

Labels: 

Thursday, November 12, 2009

The Telephone


Concerning changes between then and now, something that occurs to me is that those practicing a century ago were much less impacted, if impacted at all, by the telephone.

That may sound obvious, but the impact would be huge.

There are days that I hardly get off the phone. And as I try to take my phone calls, even if really busy, it means that the phone impacts the flow of my work a great deal. This would not have been the case at one time.

It's really difficult to imagine, actually. A day without phone calls and without email. Communications would come solely by mail or by direct contact. I suppose if people had a question, they dropped by to ask it or to make an appointment, and most contacts would have been very much local.

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

Thursday, November 11, 1909. Barbarity.

The unspeakably brutal lynching of  African American Will "Froggy" James took place in Cairo, Illinois before a crowd of 10,000 people.

Three hours later Caucasian Henry Salzner, accused of murdering his wife, was likewise lynched.

Last edition

Wednesday, November 10, 1909. Narcissism as a personality disorder.

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Wednesday, November 10, 1909. Narcissism as a personality disorder.

Dr. Isidor Sadger first described narcissism as a personality disorder as part of his presentation "A Case of Multiform Perversion".

On Wisconsin was preformed by the first time by the University of Wisconsin Glee Club.

Last edition:

Monday, November 8, 1909. A Roosevelt tragedy.

Sunday, November 8, 2009

Monday, November 8, 1909. A Roosevelt tragedy.

Franklin and Elanor Roosevelt's third child, named Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Jr., died at the age of seven months.   They'd use the name again for their fifth child.

Victor Hémery became the first person to drive an automobile faster than 125 miles per hour, driving a 200 PS Benz at 126 mph at the Brooklands track in England.

Deer Creek Falls, Grand Canyon National Park, November 8, 1909.

Last edition:

Sunday, November 1, 2009

Monday, November 1, 1909. Salinas Pueblo Missions National Monument.

President Taft proclaimed the Gran Quivira National Monument, New Mexico, containing ruins Pueblo settlements dating back to the 9th Century and Spanish missions dating back to the 17th.

Exact dates for the Puebloan settlements would be impossible to determine, but construction of the missions started in 1622 and were completed in 1635.  An additional church was built in 1651.  The entire population migrated north in 1677, and everything was abandoned.

The expanded site today is the Salinas Pueblo Missions National Monument.

Thirteen year old working in glass factory, November 1, 1909.

Last edition:

Friday, October 29, 1909. First Boy Scout Troop in U.S.

Thursday, October 29, 2009

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

Wednesday, October 27, 1909. First American woman to fly in an airplane.


The First Woman to Fly in an Aeroplane in the United States, October 27, 1909

Sir Oliver Lodge published an article in the Journal of the British Astronomical Association theorizing that if there had been intelligent life on Mars, it had been destroyed by a catastrophe two months earlier when, he theorized, the Martian polar ice caps had fractured.

Born on this day. He passed away in 2006.

Last edition:

Tuesday, October 26, 1909. Korean assassins, US pilot, Hookworms, and the passing of O. O. Howard.


Monday, October 26, 2009

Tuesday, October 26, 1909. Korean assassins, US pilot, Hookworms, and the passing of O. O. Howard.

Former Japanese Prime Minister Itō Hirobumi was assassinated by Korean An Chung-gun, a Korean nationalist, who walked past the Russian guards while dressed in Western clothing.

U.S. Army Lieutenant Frederick E. Humphreys became the first military pilot to fly an airplane solo.

He'd go on to fly in World War One.

The Rockefeller Sanitary Commission for the Eradication of Hookworm Disease was created.

Gen. Oliver Otis Howard died at age 78.


The Civil War era general had stayed in the Army after the war and had a founding role in Howard University.  He retired in 1894 as a Major General.

His post war career may be best remembered by his halting pursuit of the Nez Perce in 1877.

Last edition:

Thursday, October 21, 1909. Jireh College.

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Thurday, October 21, 1909. Jireh College.

Today In Wyoming's History: October 211909  The cornerstone for Jireh College, in Jireh was laid. Jireh College was a Protestant College that no longer exists.  The town likewise no longer exists.  It's history was relatively short, but it featured a combined effort to create a Christian school with a farming community.  Attribution:  Wyoming State Historical Society.

Friday, October 16, 2009

Saturday, October 16, 1909. Two heavyweight leaders meet.


William H. Taft met Porfirio Diaz at the El Paso Chamber of Commerce.  That evening, Taft crossed over the Rio Grande to Ciudad Juárez for a banquet hosted by Diaz, becoming the first U.S. President to visit a foreign country while in office, although it was temporarily declared neutral territory to honor a tradition that was soon to become obsolete.

Taft was in his first year of what would turn out to be a one year presidency.  Diaz was one year away from a revolution that would end over thirty years in power.


The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Detroit Lions to win the World Series.

The world's fist passenger airline, DELAG (DEutsche Luftschiffahrt AktienGesellschaft), was founded in Frankfurt, Germany.

It flew Zeppelins.

Today In Wyoming's History: October 161909  Following on his success of the prior month, August Malchow fought again at the Methany Hall in Thermopolis, defeating challenger Johnny Gilsey in a draw.

Stanley Ketchel fought  Jack Johnson in a match at Colma, California, knocking the former champion down with his first punch in the 12th round. Johnson in turn struck back with a right uppercut that broke Ketchel's front teeth and knocked out Ketchel.

The board of directors of General Motors approved a plant to buy Ford Motor Company for $8,000,000. . . which fell through when they failed to obtain financing.


Last edition:


Monday, October 12, 2009

Sunday, October 11, 2009

Monday, October 11, 1909. Convention Internationale Relative à la Circulation des Automobiles and The Key West Hurricane of 1909.

The Convention Internationale Relative à la Circulation des Automobiles was signed in Paris by seventeen European nations.  The treaty established common roald rules and letter symbols for a car's country of origin, those being: A-Austria, B-Belgium, CH-Switzerland, D-Germany, E-Spain, F-France, GB-Great Britain, GR-Greece, H-Hungary, I-Italy, MC-Monaco, MN-Montenegro, NL-Netherlands, P-Portugal, R-Russia, RM-Romania, S-Sweden, SB-Serbia.

Floridians were digging out after the Key West Hurricane of 1909.


The Pirates beat the Tigers in game three of the World Series.


Last edition:

Sunday, October 10, 1909. Nicaraguan revolution.

Labels: 

Saturday, October 10, 2009

Sunday, October 10, 1909. Nicaraguan revolution.

General Juan José Estrada, backed by American businessmen, began a revolution in Nicaragua to overthrow President José Santos Zelaya in what would later be called "the first real American coup".


The claim aside, the US would have an outsized role in the country during Estrada's ultimate administration.

Last edition:

Saturday, October 9, 1909. William James Sidis

Friday, October 9, 2009

Saturday, October 9, 1909. William James Sidis

William James Sidis of Brookline, Massachusetts, the son of two Russian physicians, was admitted to Harvard at age 11, the youngest person to obtain that status.

1914 graduation photograph.

He lived an eclectic and not particularly happy life, not seemingly making the transfer to adult life very well, and having been arrested for being present at a Socialist demonstration in 1919.  He died in 1944 of a cerebral hemorrhage at age 46.

Last edition:

Monday, October 4, 1909. Cook exposed on Mt. McKinley.