Category: Note

On February 28, 1638, Scottish Presbyterians signed the National Covenant at Greyfriars, Edinburgh. — February 28, 1810: The first US fire insurance joint-stock company was organized, in Philadelphia. — And on  February 28, 1844 a 12-inch gun aboard USS Princeton exploded, killing US Secretary of State Abel P. Upshur, Secretary of the Navy Thomas Gilmer, and other high-ranking federal officials. — Today, we present a guest piece by fellow blogger Mrs. Alaska. She is a long-time SurvivalBlog reader who lives off-grid and off-road in the interior of Alaska. — We still need entries for Round 123 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction …

On February 27, 1919, the first public performance of Gustav Holst’s “The Planets.” It became the inspiration for dozens of movie soundtracks, a famous English hymn, and even modern music flash mobs. — And on February 27, 1933, Nazi Germany’s parliament building, the Reichstag, was destroyed by fire, possibly set as a false flag attack by the Nazis. The fire occurred 28 days after Hitler was sworn in. They blamed and executed Dutch communist Marinus van der Lubbe. Since then, the term “Reichstag Fire” has become synonymous with False Flag Attack. — Today, we present a guest piece by our …

On February 26, 1929, US President Calvin Coolidge established Grand Teton National Park. — And on February 26,1935 RADAR (Radio Detection and Ranging) was first demonstrated by Robert Watson-Watt and Arnold Wilkins in Daventry, England. — Today’s feature article is a guest piece by a SurvivaBlog reader who is also a podcaster. — We need entries for Round 123 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. More than $981,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest.  Round 123 ends on March 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a …

On February 25, 1791, the First Bank of the United States was chartered by the United States Congress for a term of 20 years. JWR’s Comment: Many economists point to this as the first in a chain of events that would lead the United States into perpetual debt and positioning bankers as the nation’s ruling elite, pulling strings  from the shadows. — February 25, 1855: Bowery Boys gang leader William “Bill the Butcher” Poole was shot in the back by the gang of archrival John Morrissey in New York City. (He died on March 8th of the same year.) — …

On February 24, 1786, General Charles Cornwallis was appointed governor-general of India. — February 24, 1807 at least 17 people died and 15 were injured in a crowd crush, witnessing the triple hanging execution of Holloway, Heggerty, and Godfrey, at Newgate Prison, England.  The crowd, in narrow streets, was reportedly destabilized after being disturbed by a collapsing wooden cart. This triggered a chain of events leading to the fatal crowd crush. Many fatalities and severe injuries resulted, with newspapers reporting that at least 27 perished in the accident and one observer counting at least 34 dead. — And on February …

On February 23, 1903, the United States and Cuba signed an agreement by which Cuba released Guantanamo and Bahia Hondo to the US for naval stations. Pictured is a US Coast Guard patrol boat, at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba in 2003. — February 23,1958: San Francisco’s last municipal arc light at the corner of Mission and 25th Street was removed. It had been installed in 1913. — Today’s feature article is by SurvivalBlog staffer Tom Christianson. — We need more entries for Round 123 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. More than $981,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we …

On February 22, 1889 US President Grover Cleveland (pictured) signed the bill to admit Dakotas, Montana, and Washington as states of the union. — February 22, 1857 was the birthday of  Heinrich Hertz, a German physicist who was the first to broadcast and receive radio waves and helped to invent radar technology.  He died in 1894. — On this day in 1943,  Sophie Scholl was executed by beheading for organizing the White Rose group–a student resistance to the Hitler regime.  She had been convicted of high treason, after having been found distributing anti-war leaflets at the University of Munich (LMU) …

On February 21, 1568, the treacherous Treaty of Adrianople: Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian II (pictured) and Ottoman Sultan Selim II signed a peace agreement between the Habsburg monarchy and the Ottoman Empire; the Ottomans received cash and the territories of Transylvania, Moldavia, and Wallachia. — And on February 21, 1808, Russia invaded Finland (then part of the Swedish Kingdom), with 24,000 troops. — 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 …

On February 20, 1472, the Orkney and Shetland Islands were ceded by Norway to Scotland as part of a dowry payment. (Pictured are some of the Shetland Islands.) — February 20, 1824: The first description of a dinosaur: ‘Megalosaurus or Great Fossil Lizard of Stonesfield’ was pesented to the Geological Society of London by William Buckland, beginning dinosaur mania — 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, …

On February 19, 2008, Fidel Castro finally stepped down as Cuba’s president. He was then 81 years old and had been in power for 49 years. His successor was his younger brother Raul, who was also a stiff-necked communist.  He held power until 2021. The nation is still mired in communist bureaucracy and central planning. — And on February 19, 1910, Typhoid Mary (Mary Mallon) was  freed from her first periods of forced isolation and went on to cause several further outbreaks of typhoid in the New York area. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round …

February 18, 1678: John Bunyan‘s Christian novel “The Pilgrim’s Progress” was published in London by Nathaniel Ponder.  Pictured is John Bunyan’s Tomb, at Bunhill Field, London. — Today is also the birthday of astronaut Theodore Cordy “Ted” Freeman (February 18, 1930 – October 31, 1964.) Ted Freeman and his wife Faith were friends of my mother and father.  Both my father and Ted Freeman were stationed at Bryan Air Force base in the early 1950s, and they rented houses three blocks apart, in College Station, Texas. (My father was a T-33 instructor pilot.) About ten years later, while training as …

On February 17, 1940, the Altmark Incident: The crew of the British destroyer Cossack (pictured) boarded the German tanker Altmark in Jøssingfjord, Norway, releasing 299 British prisoners after hand-to-hand fighting with bayonets and the last recorded Royal Naval action with cutlasses. — I just heard that actor Robert Duvall passed away at age 95.  May he rest in peace. – JWR — Using a 13-inch (33-cm) telescope at the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona, Clyde W. Tombaugh, a 24-year-old American with no formal training in astronomy, discovered the dwarf planet Pluto this day in 1930. — We are nearly done …

On February 16, 1960, the newly-commissioned 447-foot US nuclear submarine USS Triton (SSRN/SSN-586) set off on a 60-day underwater round-world trip — the first submarine to do so.  The sub’s skipper, Captain Edward L. “Ned” Beach Jr., was also famous as the author of Run Silent, Run Deep. — February 16,1968: The first US 911 phone system went into service in Haleyville, Alabama. — 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 …

90 years ago, today: The coldest day in North Dakota history. Minus 60 degrees on the Fahrenheit scale was recorded on February 15th, 1936, by a coal miner and volunteer National Weather Service weather observer in Parshall, North Dakota. This remains the lowest temperature ever recorded in the state. Pictured is the Broste Museum in Parshall, North Dakota. February 15th 1809: Birthday of Cyrus Hall McCormick, inventor of a mechanical reaper. Gun developer Richard “Dick” Casull was born on February 15, 1931. Casull passed away on May 6, 2018 after a long battle with cancer. Dick Casull is most famous …

On February 14, 1803, writing the majority opinion text of the landmark Marbury v. Madison case, Supreme Court Chief Justice John Marshall declared that any act of U.S. Congress that conflicts with the Constitution is null and void. — February 14, 1804: Karadjordje led the First Serbian Uprising against the Ottoman Empire. — And February 14, 1942 was the birthday of the late Prepper/Economist Dr. Gary North. — 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 …