Tag: American History
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Wild West Wednesdays – Outlaw Milt Yarberry
Image: Milt Yarberry shortly before his hanging, while shackled to his chair at the prison in Santa Fe, New Mexico Territory. (Public Domain) People change their names for many reasons. In the old West, it was just as likely that a person was attempting to run away from something because of something to hide or…
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President Grover Cleveland Consecrated the Statue of Liberty, a Gift of Solidarity From the Citizens of France to the Citizens of the United States, in New York Harbor. October 28, 1886.
Image: A painting by Edward Moran depicting the unveiling of the Statue of Liberty on October 28, 1886. (Public Domain). On this day in history, President Grover Cleveland consecrated the Statue of Liberty, a gift of solidarity from the citizens of France to the citizens of the United States, in New York Harbor. Originally referred…
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During the Battle of Leyte Gulf, the Japanese Utilize Kamikaze (“divine wind”) Airplanes Against American Warships for the First Time. It will Prove Disastrous – to Both Sides. October 25, 1944.
Image: St. Lo exploding after a kamikaze strike. (Public Domain) On this day in history, October 25, 1944, during the Battle of Leyte Gulf, the Japanese utilize Kamikaze (“divine wind”) airplanes against American warships for the first time. It will prove disastrous – to both sides. This decision to engage suicide bombers against the American…
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22 Confederate Soldiers Entered St. Albans, Vermont, from Canada, Intent on Robbing Three Banks to Secure Funds for the Depleted Treasury of the Confederacy. October 19, 1864
Image The Confederate raiders stick up the bank in St. Albans. (Public Domain) On this day in history, October 19, 1864, twenty-two Confederate soldiers entered St. Albans, Vermont, from Canada, intent on robbing three banks to secure funds for the depleted treasury of the Confederacy. The raid was designed to create havoc for this New…
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Wild West Wednesday: Outlaw Ben Thompson and the Vaudeville Theater Ambush. March 11, 1884.
Image: Ben Thompson, 1879. (Public Domain) “I always make it a rule to let the other fellow fire first. If a man wants to fight, I argue the question with him and try to show him how foolish it would be. If he can’t be dissuaded, why then the fun begins, but I always let…
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Abolitionist John Brown Guides a Small Group on an Assault Against a Federal Armory in Harpers Ferry, Virginia (now West Virginia), in an Endeavor to Begin an Armed Insurrection of Enslaved Black People and Overthrow the Practice of Slavery. October 16, 1859.
Title: The Harper’s Ferry insurrection–The U.S. Marines storming the engine house–Insurgents firing through holes in the doors / from a sketch made on the spot by our special artist. (Public Domain) On this day in history, October 16, 1859, abolitionist John Brown guides a small group on an assault against a federal armory in Harpers Ferry,…
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The Great Chicago Fire Begins. October 8, 1871.
Image: The Currier & Ives lithograph shows people fleeing across the Randolph Street Bridge. Thousands of people literally ran for their lives before the flames, unleashing remarkable scenes of terror and dislocation. “The whole earth, or all we saw of it, was a lurid yellowish red,” wrote one survivor. “Everywhere dust, smoke, flames, heat, thunder…
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Brothers John and Simeon Reno and Frank Sparkes Hold the First Train Robbery in United States History, Stealing $16,000 From an Ohio and Mississippi Railroad Train in Jackson County, Indiana. October 6, 1866.
Image: The Reno Gang 1860s. (Public Domain) On this day in history, October 6, 1866, brothers John and Simeon Reno and Frank Sparkes hold the first train robbery in United States history, stealing $16,000 from an Ohio and Mississippi railroad train in Jackson County, Indiana. The Reno brothers’ influence on criminal history was to halt…
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The Dalton Gang Attempted to Hold Up Two Banks at the Same Time When Five Members of the Gang Rode Into the Town of Coffeyville, Kansas. It Ended Badly. October 5, 1892.
Image: Memento Mori of the Dalton Gang following the 1892 Coffeyville, Kansas raid. Left to right: Bill Powers; Bob Dalton; Grat Dalton, Dick Broadwell. (Public Domain) On this day in history, the Dalton Gang attempted to hold up two banks at the same time when five members of the Dalton Gang (Grat Dalton, Emmett Dalton, Bob Dalton,…
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Wild West Wednesday: Outlaw Belle Starr
(Image: A studio portrait of Belle Starr probably taken in Fort Smith in the early 1880s. Public Domain.) Belle Starr was born Myra Maybelle Shirley near Carthage, Missouri, on February 5, 1848. She was called May by her family. Her father, John Shirley, thrived raising wheat, horses, corn, and hogs, though he was viewed as…
History Daily With Francis Chappell Black 