Author: James Wesley Rawles

On October 18, 1009, the 500-year-old Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem was destroyed by the Fatimid caliph Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah, who ordered the church’s foundations to be hacked down to the bedrock. According to the InfoGalactic Wiki: “Al-Hakim’s son allowed Emperor Constantine IX Monomachos to reconstruct the church, which was completed in 1048. After it was captured by the Crusaders in 1099, it continued to undergo modifications, resulting in a significant departure from the original structure.” — October 18th, 1662 was the birthday of Matthew Henry. (He died 22 June 1714.) He was a Presbyterian minister who lived …

On October 17, 1777, British General John Burgoyne surrendered at Saratoga. — On this day in 1835, Texans approved a resolution to create the Texas Rangers– a corps of armed and mounted lawmen designed to “range and guard the frontier between the Brazos and Trinity Rivers”. After winning their revolutionary war with Mexico the following year, Texans decided to keep the Rangers, both to defend against Indian and Mexican raiders and to serve as the principal law enforcement authority along the sparsely populated Texas frontier. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 115 of the SurvivalBlog …

On October 16, 1950, the first edition of C.S. Lewis‘ “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” was released in London. — October 16, 1962: The Cuban Missile Crisis began as President Kennedy was shown photos confirming the presence of Soviet missiles in Cuba. — We are running a 2-week-long sale at Elk Creek Company.  Until October 28th, 2024, all of our pre-1899 shotguns have their prices deeply discounted. Most of these can fire modern 12 gauge 2-1/2″ or 2-3/4″ shotgun shells. Take a look! — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 115 of the SurvivalBlog …

October 15, 1522: King of Spain Charles V named Hernán Cortés governor of Mexico. — On October 15, 1529, the Ottoman armies under Suleiman ended their siege of Vienna and turned back to Belgrade. — On October 15, 1764, Edward Gibbon observed a group of friars singing in the ruined Temple of Jupiter in Rome, which inspired him to begin work on writing The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. — Herbert W. McBride, the author of A Rifleman Went To War, was born in Waterloo, Indiana October 15, 1873. He died in Indianapolis of a …

On October 14,1899, Morning Post reporter Winston Churchill departed to South Africa, toting a Model 1896 Broomhandle Mauser pistol.  His goal was to report on the Second Boer War. He was later taken prisoner of war, but escaped. He recounted his exploits in an autobiography titled My Early Life. — On this day in 1066: The Battle of Hastings: William, Duke of Normandy and his Norman army defeated the English forces of Harold II, who was killed in the battle. — We are beginning a 2-week-long sale at Elk Creek Company.  Until October 28th, 2024, all of our pre-1899 shotguns …