Author: James Wesley Rawles

On February 10th, 1676, in King Philip’s War: A force of 1,500 Wampanoag, Nipmuc, and Narragansett Indians killed more than 30 men and destroyed buildings in Lancaster, Massachusetts. King Philip’s War, sometimes called the First Indian War, Metacom’s War, Pometacomet’s Rebellion, or Metacom’s Rebellion, was fought from 1675 to 1678. Even the leftist/apologist Wikipedia concedes: “King Philip’s War was the last-ditch effort by Native tribes to expel the colonists from New England. Instead, it turned out to be the beginning of the development of an independent American identity. The New England colonists faced their enemies without support from any European …

On February 9th, 1540: The first recorded horse race meeting in England was held at Roodee Fields in Chester. Horse races are still regularly held there. — February 9th, 1555:  My 17th great-grandfather, Dr. Rowland Taylor (born 6 October 1510) was burned alive at the stake during the Marian Persecutions, for professing that Bible scripture is inerrant. He died singing hymns. His martyrdom is described in Foxe’s Book of Martyrs. – JWR — February 9th is the birthday of gun writer Major George Charles Nonte Jr. (Born 1926, died June 30, 1978.) — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another …

On February 8, 1807, the Battle of Eylau ended inconclusively between Napoleon Bonaparte‘s forces and the Russian Empire. This was the first battle where Napoleon wasn’t victorious. — February 8, 1627: Gunpowder was used for the first time in a mining operation, in present-day Slovakia. — And on February 8,1743: Comet C/1743 C1 approached within 0.0390 Astronomical Units of Earth. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 123 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: A Gunsite Academy Three-Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their …

On February 7, 1812, a magnitude 8.2 earthquake shook New Madrid, Missouri. The public domain photo above was taken in 2006. JWR’s Comment: I’d suggest woodframe rather than brick construction, for earthquake-prone locales… — And on February 7, 1904, The Baltimore Fire.  An estimated 1,500 buildings were destroyed. Fires raged through 80 blocks. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 123 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: A Gunsite Academy Three-Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course (a $1,095 …

On February 6, 1891:  The first great train robbery by the Dalton Gang: Southern Pacific #17, near Alila (now Earlimart), California. Pictured are deceased Dalton gang members, following the failed 1892 Coffeyville, Kansas raid. Left to right: Bill Powers; Bob Dalton; Grat Dalton, and Dick Broadwell. — On this day in 1935, the board game Monopoly went on sale for the first time. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 123 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: A Gunsite Academy Three-Day Course Certificate. This can be used for …