Category: Note

On August 19, 1561, Mary Queen of Scots arrived in Leith, Scotland to assume the throne after spending 13 years in France. — August 19th is the birthday of Philo Taylor Farnsworth (1906-1971). Farnsworth was an American inventor who is best known for his image pickup device that formed the basis for the fully functional and complete all-electronic television system. Among his many other inventions was the Farnsworth-Hirsch fusor, a small nuclear fusion device that remains a viable source of neutrons. At his death, he held over 300 patents, mostly in radio and television. — Today’s feature article is by …

On August 18, 1564, Spanish King Philip II joined the Council of Trent. — August 18, 1769: A lightning strike on the Bastion of San Nazaro in Brescia, Italy, ignited 90 tons of gunpowder. The resulting explosion killed 3,000 people. — August 18th is also the birthday of Meriwether Lewis, an American explorer, soldier, politician, and public administrator who is best known for his role as the leader of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. — Today’s feature piece was written by SurvivalBlog Field Gear Editor Tom Christianson. — We are seeking entries for Round 120 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. …

On this day in 1870, Hazard Stevens and P. B. Van Trump made the first ascent of Mount Rainier, Washington. — August 14, 1952: The word “fallout,” referring to radioactive particles carried into the atmosphere after a nuclear explosion, was first used in The New York Times. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 120 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 value), A Peak Refuel “Wasatch …

On August 16, 1777, militiamen of Vermont’s Green Mountain Boys, the New Hampshire Militia, and volunteers from Massachusetts defeated British forces at the Battle of Bennington, during the American Revolutionary War.  From the InfoGalactic Wiki: “The Bennington flag is a version of the U.S. flag associated with the American Revolution Battle of Bennington, from which it derives its name. Its distinguishing feature is the inclusion of a large ’76’ in the canton, a reference to the year 1776 when the Declaration of Independence was signed.” — On August 16th, 1841, President John Tyler vetoed a second attempt by Congress to …

80 years ago today, August 15th, 1945 was Victory In Japan (“V-J”) Day. — On August 15, 1620 the Mayflower set sail from Southampton, England, with 102 Pilgrims aboard. — August 15, 1914:  The Panama Canal opened to traffic with the SS Ancon making the first official steamship passage through the canal.  The canal was completed under budget, and ahead of schedule. The canal was extended in 1916. — Today is the birthday of British folk-rock singer Maddy Prior, the lead singer of Steeleye Span. She was born August 14th, 1947. — The last day to order! As part of …

90 years ago today, on August 14, 1935, in the depths of the Great Depression, the poorly-conceived and undeniably socialistic Social Security Act was signed by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR). The first Social Security numbers were issued in 1936, and the first Social Security taxes were collected in January, 1937. The first benefits were doled out in 1940. The following is from the SSA website: “On January 31, 1940, the first monthly retirement check was issued to Ida May Fuller of Ludlow, Vermont, in the amount of $22.54. Miss Fuller, a Legal Secretary, had retired in November 1939. She …

On August 13, 1642, Dutch astronomer Christiaan Huygens discovered that Mars had a southern polar cap. — This is the birthday of screenwriter, director, and producer, Alfred Hitchcock (1899–1980). His many films spanned five decades. — Today is also the birthday of sharpshooter, entertainer, and folk heroine Annie Oakley (1860–1926.) — Please pray for everyone at risk of the floods in Wisconsin. — As part of the 20th Anniversary celebration for SurvivalBlog, we are running our biggest sale ever on all of our percussion gun inventory at Elk Creek Company.  (Elk Creek Company is a spin-off venture that helps pay …

On August 12, 1865, British surgeon Joseph Lister (pictured) performed the first antiseptic surgery using a carbolic acid (aka phenolic acid) solution spray on his instruments and bandages. — On August 12, 1867, US President Andrew Johnson defied Congress when he suspended Secretary of War Edwin Stanton. — And on August 12, 1908, Henry Ford’s company built the first Model T car. — Today’s feature article is an essay by our friend Brandon Smith, the Editor of the highly-recommended free site Alt-Market.us. He is also the Editor of the by-subscription e-newsletter, The Wild Bunch Dispatch. — We need more entries …

August 11, 1904: The Russian fleet in the harbor of Port Arthur, Manchuria, was exposed to artillery on the hill above the harbor; Russian ships attempted escape, but most were forced back into the harbor by Japanese ships.  Russia’s ignominious defeat in 1905 at the hands of the better-equipped and more competently led Japanese Navy has never been forgotten. The Russians had sought a “small victorious war”, but they got themselves trounced. — On August 11, 1857, N. H. Wolfe and Company, the oldest flour and grain company in New York City, failed. This failure shook investor confidence and began …

On August 10th, 1897, German chemist Felix Hoffmann (pictured) synthesized acetylsalicylic acid. This would later be patented by his company Bayer under the name “Aspirin”. — August 10th, 1984: Red Dawn, the first PG-13 rated movie, starring Patrick Swayze was released. — A noteworthy obituary: Apollo 13 astronaut Jim Lovell dead at 97. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 120 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 …

On August 9, 1666, Rear Admiral Robert Holmes led a raid on the Dutch island of Terschelling, destroying 150 merchant ships in the Vlie estuary, and pillaged the town of West-Terschelling. This raid was later known as “Holmes’s Bonfire”. The event is shown in the painting ‘Holmes’s Bonfire’ by Willem van de Velde the Elder. — August 9th, 1831 was the birthday of James Paris Lee (August 9, 1831 – February 24, 1904). He was a Scottish-Canadian and later American inventor and arms designer, best known for inventing the bolt action that led to the Lee-Metford and Lee-Enfield series of …

On August 8, 1786, Jacques Balmat and Michel Paccard became the first men to climb to the top of Mont Blanc, the highest mountain in Western Europe. — On August 8, 1911, Public Law 62-5 set the number of representatives in the United States House of Representatives at 435. The law came into effect in 1913. — August 8th is the birthday of Terry Nation (August 8th, 1930 – March 9th, 1997), who was a Welsh television writer and novelist. Nation wrote two television series, Survivors and Blake’s 7, in the 1970s. Survivors was re-made in 2008 and 2010. — SurvivalBlog …

August 7, 1588: English sailors set alight eight fireships, with pitch, brimstone, gunpowder, and tar, and cast them downwind towards the closely anchored vessels of the Spanish Armada, scattering the armada. Pictured: English and Spanish fleets clash in the 1558 Battle of Gravelines in a painting by Philip James de Loutherbourg. — August 7th, 1933 was the birthday of the late Jerry Pournelle. He, along with Larry Niven, authored the survivalist classic Lucifer’s Hammer. — As part of the 20th Anniversary celebration for SurvivalBlog, we’ve launched our biggest sale ever on all of our percussion gun inventory at Elk Creek …

August 5, 1716: Battle of Petrovaradin [aka Peterwardein]: The Habsburgs under Eugene of Savoy defeated the Ottomans in a decisive victory. — On this day in 1763: Battle of Bushy Run, Pontiac’s War. Forces led by Swiss mercenary Henry Bouquet defeated Chief Pontiac’s Indians at Bushy Run. — August 5, 1917: The entire US National Guard is taken into national service, subject to presidential rather than state control. — August 5th is also the sad anniversary of the Mann Gulch Fire in Montana that took the lives of 13 firefighters (including 12 smokejumpers and one former smokejumper), in 1949. The …