Browsing: February 23

A Brief History This article presents a chronological list of notable events that happened on February 23rd.  For each date below, please click on the date to be taken to an article covering that date’s event. Digging Deeper On February 23, 1896, dentists all over the world must have felt the Earth shake, for on that day the Tootsie Roll was introduced. On February 23, 1903, Cuba made a deal with the United States to lease 45 square miles of land and sea for a period of time with no expiration, virtually forever! On February 23, 1903, the United States…

A Brief History On February 23, 1903, Cuba made a deal with the United States to lease 45 square miles of land and sea for a period of time with no expiration, virtually forever! Digging Deeper In 1898, the US and Spain fought a war, including ground and sea combat in Cuba, then a Spanish possession.  The US won the short war, and took possession of the Philippines, Puerto Rico, and Guam, while Cuba was freed from Spain and became an independent country. The original rent payment was to be paid in Gold, $2000 per year, but after 1934 the…

A Brief History On February 23, 1954, the first mass inoculation of children against the Polio virus took place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.  The developer of the vaccine, Dr. Jonas Salk, was hailed as hero and the scourge of Polio was basically eradicated from the United States.  No longer would “iron lungs” be common, and parents did not have to live the nightmare of their children dying or becoming crippled by Polio.  As with other vaccines, the Salk vaccine saved untold millions of lives and prevented untold amounts of misery, and yet in recent years vaccines have been under fire from…

A Brief History On February 23, 1998, The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario was established in the Canadian province of Ontario to regulate the alcohol, gaming, and horse racing sectors in Ontario.  Gambling is one of the oldest activities in Canada. According to history, Canadians learned the art of gambling from settlers and it is believed that the earliest gamblers in Canada used sticks to gamble. Playing cards were introduced in 1497 when John Cabot arrived at Canadian shores.  As a result, Canadians learned how to play a variety of card games including poker and blackjack.  Poker grew popularity…

A Brief History On February 23, 1903, the United States signed a lease with Cuba for a 45 square mile chunk of land on Guantanamo Bay on that island, a lease for $2000 per year, payable in gold, and lasting in perpetuity (forever). Known by the US military as Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, it is the oldest US naval base outside the United States. Used as a coaling station (when ships were powered by coal) and as a general purpose naval base, the station known as “Gitmo” has since 2002 housed a prison for suspected terrorists captured during the War…