A Brief History On November 7, 1907, Jesús García saved the entire town of Nacozari de Garcia, Sonora by driving a burning train full of dynamite six kilometers away before it could explode. Digging Deeper By now on History and Headlines, we have had full towns and cities destroyed by everything from armies to earthquakes, floods, and even a tornado! In November 0f 1907, Nacozari, Sonora in Mexico nearly experienced a disaster that could have been added to the list of annihilated cities. The city survived thanks to a man now known as el héroe de Nacozari and for whom…
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A Brief History On November 2, 1947, eccentric airplane designer Howard Hughes performed the maiden and only flight of his Spruce Goose (also known as the H-4 The Hercules), the largest fixed-wing aircraft ever built. Digging Deeper Howard Hughes was a veritable renaissance man. The businessman dabbled in everything from film making to flying. One of the wealthiest men of his day, he had a net worth of $1.5 billion at the time of his death. A man of such wealth and such diverse interests is not surprisingly going to sometimes use that wealth for attempting to make his most…
A Brief History On October 24, 1901, Annie Edson Taylor became the first confirmed person to go over Niagara Falls in a barrel on her 63rd birthday! Digging Deeper Annie Edson Taylor was born on October 24, 1838. She worked as a school teacher before traveling around searching for other employment opportunities. In her later life, the future “Queen of the Mist” eventually decided to become the first person to go over Niagara Falls in a barrel, earning her a ranking of seventh on a list of “Top 10 Daredevils”. To prepare for her short journey, she designed a special…
A Brief History On October 23, 1739, the War of Jenkins’ Ear began when British Prime Minister Robert Walpole declared war on Spain following the exhibition in Parliament of the severed ear of a British captain allegedly maimed by Spaniards. Digging Deeper In 1731, a British captain named Robert Jenkins captained a British brig sailing off of Florida’s coast. When a Spanish patrol boat boarded Jenkins’s brig, the Spanish commander cut off Jenkins’s left ear, accusing the British captain of smuggling. The ear-severing Spaniard then taunted Jenkins, daring him to “tell your King that I will do the same, if…
A Brief History On October 22, 1926, J. Gordon Whitehead dealt a potentially deadly sucker punch to magician Harry Houdini’s stomach. Digging Deeper Harry Houdini (born Erik Weisz in Budapest on March 24, 1874) is almost without any doubt the most famous magician and escape artist of all time, arguably surpassing the David Copperfields and Chris Angels of more recent years. From 1891 to 1926, Houdini dazzled audiences around the world with his many mind-boggling tricks. He gradually acquired such memorable nicknames as “The King of Cards” and “The Handcuff King”. For his many amazing abilities, he is accordingly ranked…