Category: Note

On January 9th, 1580, Francis Drake‘s ship the Golden Hind struck a reef off the Celebes islands. It fortuitously slipped off the reef at high tide the next day and sailed onward to Java, and then around the Cape of Good Hope and back to Plymouth, England. — January 9, 1839: Louis Daguerre demonstrated his ‘daguerreotype‘ photographic process to the French Academy of Sciences. — The 20th Anniversary SurvivalBlog 2005-2025 Waterproof/EMP-Resistant Archive USB sticks are selling rapidly, in pre-ordering.  The limited number of them packaged in steel keepsake tins have sold out. But there are still plenty of the standard sticks …

On January 8, 1297, Monaco gained its independence. Pictured are Buffalo Bill Cody and Prince Albert I of Monaco, in 1913. He was the first reigning European monarch to visit the United States. — On January 8, 1610,  German astronomer Simon Marius independently discovered the first four moons of Jupiter, just one day after Galileo‘s lunar discovery. — The 20th Anniversary SurvivalBlog 2005-2025 Waterproof/EMP-Resistant Archive USB sticks are available for Pre-Ordering. This year, we are also offering a limited number of them in steel keepsake tins, with keychains.  Both types have been selling very rapidly. Orders should start to be …

On January 7th, 1558, Calais, the last English possession in France, was retaken by French troops under Duc de Guise. (The Pale of Calais had been an exclave and parliamentary borough of England across the Strait of Dover from 1347 to 1558.) The painting above, The Siege of Calais was completed by François-Édouard Picot in 1838. — January 7th, 1610, Galileo Galilei discovered the first three moons of Jupiter: Io, Europa and Ganymede. — And on January 7th, 1930, French physicist Marguerite Perey discovered Francium (Fr), the last naturally occurring element to be found. — Today’s feature article is a guest …

January 6, 1799 was the birthday of Jedediah Strong Smith, one of America’s greatest trapper-explorers. He was born in Bainbridge, New York. Smith explored a huge area of the American West during his short life. “He began his western voyages in 1822, when he joined the pioneering fur trader William Ashley on a trip up the Missouri River. Unlike earlier fur traders, who depended on Native Americans to actually trap or hunt the furs, Ashley eliminated the Natives as middlemen and instead sent out independent white trappers like Smith to do the job. To escape dependence on Native Americans, though, …

On January 5, 1477, the Battle of Nancy (now in France) was won by the Lorraine-Swiss forces led by René II, Duke of Lorraine. More than 7,000 Burgundians were killed, including Duke Charles The Bold. Thus ended the Burgundian Wars and the Burgundian State. — On January 5, 1914, industrialist Henry Ford announced his $5 minimum per-day wage. This doubled most workers’ pay from $2.40 for a 9-hour workday to $5 for an 8-hour workday. — January 5th is the birthday of the late John Pugsley (born 1934, died April 8, 2011), libertarian and economics author. Pugsley was well known …

On January 4, 871, the Viking Great Heathen Army defeated a Wessex force led by King Æthelred and his brother Alfred, in the First Battle of Reading. — January 4, 1896: Following Mormon abandonment of sanctioned polygamy, Utah was belatedly admitted as the 45th US state.  Settlers had first petitioned Congress for statehood in 1849. Several of Utah’s less populous neighboring territories had been admitted to statehood years earlier than Utah. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 122 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: A Gunsite Academy …

On January 3, 1521,  Martin Luther was excommunicated by Pope Leo X from the Roman Catholic Church for failing to recant parts of his Ninety-Five Theses, which started the Protestant Reformation. — January 3, 1749: Benning Wentworth issued the first of the New Hampshire Grants, leading to the establishment of Vermont. — On January 3, 1892, English author and scholar J.R.R. Tolkien, who was perhaps best known for his richly inventive epic fantasy The Lord of the Rings (1954–55), was born in South Africa. — January 3, 1944: Top US flying ace Major Pappy Boyington was shot down in his …

On January 2, 1890, a record 19.2-foot alligator was reportedly shot in Louisiana by American businessman Edward Avery McIlhenny. That claim is now disputed. — January 2,1906: Willis Carrier receives a US patent for an “Apparatus for Treating Air,” the world’s first modern air conditioner. — And on January 2, 1974, a nationwide speed limit of 55 mph was imposed by President Richard Nixon. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 122 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 …

On January 1st, 722, Frankish Hofmeister Charles Martel fled from Bishop Willibrord. Ten years later, Martel’s army defeated the Muslim army at Poitiers. — January 1, 1785: John Walter published the first issue of his newspaper “The Daily Universal Register,” which was renamed “The Times” of London in 1788. — And on January 1, 1928, the first US air-conditioned office building opened, in San Antonio, Texas. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 122 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: A Gunsite Academy Three-Day Course Certificate. This can …

On December 31, 406, “The Great Invasion” sent a vast mixed horde of barbarians that included Vandals, Alans, and Suebians across the Rhine River, at Mainz (pictured). Thus began the invasion of Gallia. — December 31st 1564: William I of Orange demands freedom of religious conscience for his subjects in dramatic speech to the Council of State. — December 31st is the birthday of Alexandr Solzhenitsyn (1918-2008). — December 31st, 1851 was the birthday of Frederick Selous. (He died on January 4th, 1917.) — The 20th Anniversary SurvivalBlog 2005-2025 Waterproof/EMP-Resistant Archive USB sticks are available for Pre-Ordering.  This year, we …

On December 30, 1861, Associated Banks in New York City — innovators in credit clearing circles (pictured above) — halted gold payments to government and investors, to disrupt Abraham Lincoln‘s US bank reform program. — December 30, 1865 was the birthday of Rudyard Kipling. — Today’s feature article is a product review, written by Field Gear Editor Tom Christianson. — We need more entries for Round 122 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. More than $978,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest.  Round 122 ends on January 31st, 2026, so get busy writing and …

December 29, 1812: The USS Constitution, under the command of Captain William Bainbridge, captured the HMS Java off the coast of Brazil after a three-hour battle. — This is also the birthday of inventor Charles Goodyear (1800–1860.) — The 20th Anniversary SurvivalBlog 2005-2025 Waterproof/EMP-Resistant Archive USB sticks are now available for Pre-Ordering!  This year, we are also offering a limited number of them in steel keepsake tins, with keychains.  Orders should start to be mailed in the third week of January.  To be sure that you get yours, order soon! — With the exceptionally large moves in the silver market, …

On December 28, 1867, the United States claimed Midway Island, the first territory annexed outside continental limits. — December 28, 1793 was the day that Thomas Paine was arrested in France for treason. The charges against him were never fully detailed, but he was tried in absentia on December 26 and convicted. Best known as the author of Common Sense, he moved to Paris to be part of the French revolution. Initially welcomed, the tide soon turned against him, because he was opposed to the death penalty and the French revolutionaries were sending hundreds to the Guillotine. — SurvivalBlog Writing …

A special update on the silver market, from JWR: Spot silver jumped 10.35% in just ONE DAY, on Friday. (December 26, 2025.) So, today set new all-time highs for silver, platinum, and gold. Amazingly, the melt value of one U.S. pre-1965 silver dime is now $5.76.  Today’s silver rally dropped the silver-to-gold price ratio to near 57-to-1. Seeing this happen on a Friday was particularly surprising, since Fridays are the usual “Mischief Days” for the Comex short-selling co-conspirators. Clearly, the Shorts have lost control. You may be asking: What will happen next week?  Look for insanely high new margin requirements, …

On December 26th, 1776, after crossing the Delaware River, Washington led his men against Hessian soldiers garrisoned at Trenton. After a brief battle, nearly the entire Hessian force was captured, with negligible losses to the Americans, significantly boosting their flagging morale. — December 26, 2004: The Indian Ocean region Tsunami took more than 250,000 lives. — And on December 26, 1848, the first gold seekers arrived in Panama en route to San Francisco. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 122 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: A …