A Brief History On July 3, 1890, Idaho was admitted to the Union as the 43rd US State. Previously, Idaho had been part of the Oregon Country, then the Oregon Territory, and then the Washington Territory before becoming a separate entity known as the Idaho Territory in 1863. So, where does the name, Idaho, come from? Probably from the imagination of lobbyist George M. Willing, who probably just made up the name in order to have something that sounded like an Indian name. In fact, he claimed the name came from the Shoshonean language, variously claiming the word meant “gem…
Browsing: July 3
A Brief History On July 3, 1969, Mark Sosin was fishing off Bermuda when he hooked, fought and landed the heaviest Yellowfin Tuna ever captured by sporting methods with fly fishing tackle. His record catch of 53 pounds 6 ounces took 40 minutes of line ripping fight to finally land, put Mark and his fish in the record books for nearly 50 years now, an impressive amount of time to hold a World Record. Considering that Yellowfin Tuna can grow to weights in excess of 300 pounds, this record for fly tackle is quite possibly within reach of some lucky…
A Brief History On July 3, 1863, the Army of the Potomac fought a defensive battle against the Army of Northern Virginia at the Pennsylvania town of Gettysburg. On the last day of battle, Confederate Major General George Pickett was one of three Confederate generals to lead the final assault on Union lines, lending his name to the battle, a battle that has become synonymous with futility. Here we list 5 of the most valiant, and yet most futile fatal attacks in military history, with no significance to the order listed. Digging Deeper 1. Pickett’s Charge, 1863. When Confederate Commander General…
A Brief History On July 3, 1969, the Soviet Union’s dreams of a moon rocket went up in smoke and fire on the launch pad as the largest explosion of any rocket in history. The Soviet N1 rocket booster was a giant rocket meant to carry objects or people beyond Earth orbit, basically to the moon. Its first stage is the most powerful single stage of any rocket ever made, and that includes the American counterpart, the Saturn V. Digging Deeper The 5 stage monster N1 rockets were 344 feet tall and almost 56 feet in diameter. Weighing in at…
A Brief History On July 3, 1940, the Royal Navy (on purpose) pounded a French fleet moored at the Algerian port of Mers-el-Kebir, sinking 3 French battleships. Usually when we discuss “friendly fire” we are talking about same side or allied forces accidentally targeting other friendly forces, or technical problems that result in one side’s own weapons striking their own people or equipment. Digging Deeper In this case, the attack was quite deliberate, as France had been overrun by the Nazi juggernaut and the desperate British feared the powerful French fleet would be turned over to Germany for their own…
