Category: Note

July 22nd is the birthday of actor Willem Dafoe (born 1955). Perhaps his best role was in the movie The Hunter, set in Tasmania. — A new listing, over at the SurvivalRealy.com spin-off site: Ultimate Self-Sustained Living: Off-grid earth-sheltered home in Rogue River, Oregon. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 95 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000. A Gunsite Academy Three …

July 21st is the birthday of Ernest Hemingway. He was born in 1899 in Oak Park, Illinois. He committed suicide in July 2, 1961 in Ketchum, Idaho, after being diagnosed with haemochromatosis, and after electroshock treatments failed to lift him from chronic alcoholic depression. He had a sad personal life but was a great writer. — As I’m sure most of you readers know, I sell antique guns, through Elk Creek Company — my home-based mailorder business. Per Federal law, these guns do not require an FFL, and are also exempt from paperwork under most state laws. But occasionally, I …

Today is the birthday of novelist Cormac McCarthy (born, 1933.) He is the author of the survivalist novel The Road, which later became a popular movie with the same title. On July 20th, 1969, at 10:56 p.m. EDT, American astronaut Neil Armstrong, 240,000 miles from Earth, spoke these words to more than a billion people listening at home: “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” Stepping off the lunar landing module Eagle, Armstrong became the first human to walk on the surface of the moon. Armstrong later recounted that he had meant to say:  “…step for …

July 19th is coincidentally the birthday of handgun designers Samuel Colt (pictured, born 1814) and Gaston Glock (born 1929). On July 19, 1799: The Rosetta Stone was found by a French soldier serving under Napoleon. — All of the orders for the recent batch of 250 SurvivalBlog archive USB sticks should be mailed out by July 23rd, 2021. Please wait until a few days after that to contact us, if your’s hasn’t arrived. Thanks for your patience. — Today we present a review written by our Field Gear Editor, Pat Cascio.

July 18th, 1954 is the birthdate of Ricky Skaggs, an American country and bluegrass singer, musician, producer, and composer. He primarily plays mandolin; however, he also plays fiddle, guitar, mandocaster, and banjo. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 95 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their …

July 17th, 1889 was the birthdate of Erle Stanley Gardner. He was an American lawyer and author. Though best known for the Perry Mason series of detective stories, he wrote numerous other novels and shorter pieces, as well as a series of nonfiction books, mostly narrations of his travels through Baja California and other regions in Mexico. The best-selling American author of the 20th century at the time of his death, Gardner also published under numerous pseudonyms, including A.A. Fair, Kyle Corning, Charles M. Green, Carleton Kendrake, Charles J. Kenny, Les Tillray, and Robert Parr. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today …

July 16th is the anniversary of the first successful atomic bomb test in Alamogordo, New Mexico in 1945. This portentous event heralded the advent of the age of nuclear weapons. Plans for the creation of a uranium bomb by the Allies were established as early as 1939. In 1940 the federal government granted a total of $6,000 for research, but in early 1942, with the United States at war, the limits on spending were removed. The total cost was in excess of $2 billion. Germany was also feared to be working on a bomb as was Japan, though neither of …

On July 15th, 1888, the Bandai Volcano erupted on the Japanese island of Honshu killing hundreds and burying many nearby villages in ash. While Honshu is in an area of frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, this eruption was surprising. The volcano had erupted only four times in the 1,000 years prior and none had been particularly deadly. However, this eruption was different. The rumblings started just after 7 a.m. Within 30 minutes there was an explosion on the north side of the mountain and over the next two hours there were dozens of explosions giving villagers very little time to …

July 14th is the birthday of Colonel Einar A. Malmstrom. He was born in 1907 and died August 21, 1954 near Great Falls, Montana, in the crash of a T-33 jet. He was a decorated Air Force pilot, a Luft Stalag POW survivor, and test pilot. Malmstrom AFB was one of the settings for my novel Founders. (The base was named in his honor.) — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest We recently heard from one of the prize donor sponsors of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest that because of a change in ownership, they will discontinue providing a prize, starting August 1st.  …

On this day in 1787, Congress enacted the Northwest Ordinance structuring settlement of the Northwest Territory and creating a policy for the addition of new states to the nation. The members of Congress knew that if their new confederation were to survive intact, it had to resolve the states’ competing claims to western territory. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 95 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, …

On July 12, 1865, George Washington Carver, the African-American scientist whose numerous discoveries helped to improve agriculture in the South, was born. He died on Jan. 5, 1943. — We’ve now run out of the second production run of the 2005-2020 SurvivalBlog Archive sticks. The next edition should be available in February of 2022. — Today we present another review written by our Field Gear Editor, Pat Cascio.

July 11th is the birthday of John Quincy Adams. He was born in 1767 and died in 1848. Not to be confused with his father– John Adams– the younger Adams also served as a diplomat, congressman, and as president. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 95 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This …

July 10th is the birthday of British novelist John Wyndham. (His full name was John Wyndham Parkes Lucas Beynon Harris, but Harris shortened that to just John Wyndham for his pen name.) He we was born in 1903 and died March 11, 1969. Harris was a good friend of fellow novelist Samuel Youd (1922-2012), who wrote under several pen names, including John Christopher. Both men were famous for writing what are often called “cozy catastrophies”. Several of Wyndham’s novels and short stories have been adapted to film, with varying degrees of success. One of the best of these was a …

On July 9th, 1755: Battle of the Wilderness — also known as the Battle of The Monongahela. July 9, 1956 was the birthday of actor/director/producer Tom Hanks. — Note: The second batch of the 2005-2020 SurvivalBlog Archive waterproof USB sticks are selling out rapidly.  We are now down to just 35 of the standard USB sticks, and 45 of the special 15th Anniversary Edition sticks that come with a key chain and a specially-labeled keepsake tin. SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 95 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First …

Today marks the birth of actor Kevin Bacon (born 1958.) Preppers usually associate him with the campy movie Tremors. — The second batch of waterproof SurvivalBlog archive USB sticks is now available, and going fast. The first batch of 1,000 sold out quickly, so order soon. There are now less than 45 remaining from this batch of 250! — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 95 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending …