A Brief History On December 19, 1974, former governor of New York, Nelson Rockefeller, was sworn in as Vice President of the US. Gerald Ford had previously served as Vice President when Spiro Agnew resigned in disgrace in 1973, meaning that both the President and the Vice President in late 1974 had both not been elected to office! Digging Deeper The office of Vice President has long been derided as a trivial position, with John Adams, our first Vice President, calling it “the most insignificant Office,” and John Garner, FDR’s first VP calling the job, “almost wholly unimportant.” Critics of…
Author: Major Dan
Major Dan
Major Daniel Zar is a retired veteran of the United States Marine Corps. He served during the Cold War and has traveled to many countries around the world. Prior to his military service, he graduated from Cleveland State University, having majored in sociology. Following his military service, he worked as a police officer eventually earning the rank of captain prior to his retirement.
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A Brief History On December 18, 1932, the first NFL Championship game was played between the Chicago Bears and the Portsmouth (Ohio) Spartans. Due to the snow and cold weather, the game was played indoors at the Chicago Stadium, on a reduced size “field.” The Bears won, 9-0, and in 1934 the Spartans moved to Detroit and became the Lions. Digging Deeper Portsmouth now has a population of only 18,000, but in 1930 boasted over 42,000 people. Some other small cities that hosted major league teams include: Troy, New York, Trojans, of MLB’s National League, played from 1879 to 1882…
A Brief History On December 17, 1947, the Boeing B-47 Stratojet made its first flight. A graceful looking six engine jet bomber, this nuclear “big stick” of the US Air Force was destined to never drop a bomb in anger, although 2,042 Stratojets served from 1951 to 1977. Other highly capable bombers that never saw combat include: Digging Deeper The Convair B-36 Peacemaker, which entered service in 1948 and retired in 1959, 384 of these gigantic bombers were the largest planes in service while they flew. Powered by six propeller engines and four jet engines, the B-36 was defended by…
A Brief History On December 16, 1863, after bungling the defense of Chattanooga, Confederate Army General Braxton Bragg was replaced as Commander of the Army of Tennessee by General Johnston. Nevertheless, a major US Army base was named after Bragg. Digging Deeper Many other American places have been named after people infamous for their failures, including: Fort Polk, Louisiana, named after Confederate General Leonidas Polk, a political appointee with no significant military experience and poor performance during the Civil War. Fort Polk is now Fort Johnson. Custer, South Dakota and Custer City, Oklahoma, named after US Army Lt. Col. George…
A Brief History On December 15, 2001, the Leaning Tower of Pisa was finished with an 11 year project that cost $27 million to make sure it kept leaning, a fix that did not fix the original problem! Digging Deeper Of course, the Pisans were in no hurry to correct the lean of their eponymous tower, as the Leaning Tower is an enormous tourist draw, pulling in five million visitors each year. The 185 foot high tower made of marble and stone took 199 years to build, and was intended as the bell tower for the Pisa Cathedral. The famous…