Category: Note

On February 2, 1892, the bottle cap for beverages was patented by US inventor William Painter and is still used today. — On this day in 1974: The F-16 Fighting Falcon flew for the first time. — Today’s feature piece is by SurvivalBlog staffer Tom Chistianson. — We are now seeking entries for Round 123 of our nonfiction writing contest. Round 123 ends on March 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how-to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging. In 2023, we …

On February 1st, we recognize the 1942 birthday of the late Dr. Gary North. North was a prolific writer on Christian Reconstruction and economics topics. He passed away on February 24, 2022. His more than 50 published books are a lasting legacy. He also assembled a free online library of books by other godly writers, through his Institute for Christian Economics (ICE). Those free books, totaling 38,000 pages, are all still available online, They are a great resource for homeschoolers and economics students. We also remember February 1st, 2003, when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated over Texas and Louisiana as …

On January 31, 1905, the first automobile to exceed 100 mph (161 kph), a Napier six-cylinder racing car named ‘Samson’. It was driven by British daredevil Arthur Macdonald, at Daytona Beach, Florida. A top speed of 104 miles per hour was recorded. — On January 31, 1934, President FDR devalued the US dollar in relation to gold at $35 per ounce. This came just months after FDR’s administration had confiscated all privately-held gold bullion and non-numismatic gold coins. — Today, we present a guest article from a SurvivalBlog reader. Because it is partially promotional for a published book, it is …

On January 30, 1648, Spain and the Netherlands signed the Peace of Munster, ending the Thirty Years’ War. — The late Actor Eugene “Gene” Allen Hackman was born January 30, 1930.  He and his wife both sadly passed away in February, 2025. — January 30th is also the birthday of historian Barbara Tuchman (born 1912, died February 6, 1989). She wrote some very engaging history books. — Jase Medical just updated their affiliate agreement with SurvivalBlog.  All SurvivalBlog readers now get an automatic $10 discount at checkout. Just click on their ad in the SurvivalBlog ad stack, or use this …

On January 29, 1944 USS Missouri (BB-63), the last battleship commissioned by the US Navy, was. launched. It was decommissioned in 1992, and was donated for use as a museum and memorial ship on May 4, 1998. It is now on display near the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. — Today, we present a guest article from a SurvivalBlog reader. Because it is partially promotional for a published book, it is not part of the judging for Round 122 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. More than $978,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running …

On January 28, 1754, British writer Horace Walpole (pictured), in a letter to Horace Mann, coined the word serendipity. — January 28, 1915: The first US ship lost in WW I, William P. Frye. It was sunk by cannon fire from the Imperial German Navy raider SMS Prinz Eitel Friedrich. The William P. Frye had been carrying wheat to the UK. — And on January 28, 2014, DNA analysis confirmed that the 6th Century Plague of Justinian was caused by a variant of Yersinia pestis (the same bacteria attributed to the Black Death.) — A USB Archive Stick Update: All …

January 27, 1939: First flight of the Lockheed P-38 Lightning fighter plane. Pictured is a P-38 at an airfield in Panama, in 1945. — January 27, 1944:  The siege of Leningrad ended, after 880 days, and the deaths of 2 million Soviet citizens. — Today, we present a guest article from a SurvivalBlog reader. Because it is partially promotional for a published book, it is not part of the judging 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 123 of the writing contest …

On January 26, 1887, ground was broken and construction began on the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France.   It was completed on March 29, 1889, in time for the 1889 Paris World’s Fair. The Eiffel Tower then surpassed the Washington Monument as the world’s tallest man-made structure — a record that it held for 41 years. But it was eclipsed by the completion of the Chrysler Building in New York City, in 1930. — And on January 26, 1915, Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado, was established. — All eyes are on the Comex market this morning, after Friday’s surge to $103.91 …

On January 25, 1840 an American naval expedition under Charles Wilkes was the first to identify Antarctica as a new continent. — January 25, 1915:  Transcontinental telephone service officially inaugurated when Alexander Graham Bell in New York City called thomas Watson in San Francisco, California during the Panama-Pacific International Exposition. — 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 any of their one, two, or three-day course (a $1,095 value), A Peak …

On January 24, 1616, Dutch mariners Jacob Le Maire and Willem Schouten were the first Europeans to discover Le Maire Strait, Tierra del Fuego, and then go on and round Cape Horn. — January 24, 1890: The world’s oldest wooden sculpture, the Shigir Idol, was discovered in a peat bog near Kaltay, Middle Urals. It was later radiocarbon dated to 12,500 years old. — 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 23, 1643 the New Model Army led by Thomas Fairfax attacked the royalist garrison and captured Leeds for the Parliamentarians in the English Civil War. — January 23, 1812: A magnitude 7.8 earthquake shook New Madrid, Missouri. — Today is a the birthday of Larry Dean Olsen. (January 23, 1939 — December 26, 2018.)  He was born in Wendell, Idaho, on January 23, 1939, to parents Dean and Lola Olsen and he grew up in Jerome, Idaho. Larry was widely recognized as the father of modern primitive survival education. He was the author of the international bestseller “Outdoor …

On January 22, 1506, the first contingent of 150 Swiss Guards arrived at the Vatican. — January 22, 1840: New Zealand Company settlers arrived aboard the Aurora at Te Whanganui a Tara, which became Port Nicholson, Wellington. — And on January 22, 1990, Robert Tappan Morris was convicted of releasing the 1988 Internet worm, or Morris worm, one of the oldest computer worms distributed via the Internet. — 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 …

On January 21, 1789, the first American novel, “The Power of Sympathy” by William Hill Brown was published by Isaiah Thomas. — January 21, 1974: The price of gold hit a record $161.31, and silver hit $3.97 per Troy ounce, in London. — A USB Archive Stick Update: At last count, we had just 62 of the standard waterproof 2005-2025 SurvivalBlog archive USB sticks still available to order. And all of the sticks in the limited edition keepsake tins sold out in the first two weeks of January. The mailings of both types should begin on Friday. They will be mailed …

On January 20, 1801, John Marshall was appointed as the Supreme Court’s first  Chief Justice. — January 20, 1921: The Republic of Turkey was declared from the remnants of the Ottoman Empire. — On January 20, 1981, 52 American hostages were released by the Iranian government, following 444 days of captivity, to be reunited with their families. Not coincidentally, Ronald Reagan was sworn in is President, the same day. — Today is also the birthday of Congressman Richard Henry Lee (1732–1794.) — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 122 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The …

On January 19, 1937, Howard Hughes set a transcontinental flight record of 7 hours, 28 minutes and 25 seconds. — January 19, 1810: On “Cold Friday”, the temperature at Portsmouth, New Hampshire dropped from 54°F to minus 12°F in one day, and many people were reported frozen to death. — This is also the birthday of the late Carla Emery (born 1939, died October 11, 2005). She is well known in self-sufficiency circles as the author of The Encyclopedia of Country Living. — There were two large solar flares yesterday (Sunday, Jan. 18, 2026.)  One of them was a category …