Browsing: June

A Brief History This article provides a timeline in the life of Vlad the Impaler and his “rebirth” as the Dracula of modern popular culture! Digging Deeper On June 17, 1462, Vlad Tepes, also known as Vlad III The Impaler, or simply Dracula, conducted a night raid against his Turkish enemy, Mehmed II who had invaded Vlad’s land of Wallachia (part of modern Romania). On November 26, 1476, Vlad the Impaler declared his third reign as ruler of Wallachia. On May 26, 1896, Bram Stoker’s horror novel, Dracula, was published.   On October 5 and 7, 2017, Kent State University at Stark’s History Club and…

A Brief History On June 17, 1462, Vlad Tepes, also known as Vlad III The Impaler, or simply Dracula, conducted a night raid against his Turkish enemy, Mehmed II who had invaded Vlad’s land of Wallachia (Romania). Digging Deeper The name Dracula was given to Vlad meaning the “son of Dracul” as his father was known.  (Dracul means dragon in Romanian.)  Being known as The Impaler was a moniker earned all by Vlad himself, after the fashion in which he forcibly sat his enemies onto large spikes planted in the ground, pointy side up. Mehmed II had invaded Wallachia because Vlad had failed to pay tribute (taxes…

A Brief History On June 17, 1932, 17,000 United States military veterans of World War I and 25,000 of their friends and family gathered in Washington, D.C. to demand early payment of their service certificate war bonuses.  Although the bonuses were not due to be paid until 1945, the Great Depression had hit the United States and these veterans were floundering financially.  General Douglas MacArthur, chief of staff of the Army, personally led US troops to forcibly drive away his fellow veterans, even though future 5 star general and president, Maj. Dwight Eisenhower (serving as an aide to MacArthur) counseled…

A Brief History This article presents a timeline of music history. Digging Deeper On January 1, 1773, the first use of the all familiar hymn, “Amazing Grace“, was performed at a church service in England. On May 23, 1829, Austrian maker of keyboard instruments, Cyrill Demian, a man of Armenian descent, was granted a patent for his new musical instrument, the Accordion. On March 31, 1923, the first U.S. dance marathon ended in New York City but began a strange fad with sometimes fatal consequences! On October 11, 1932, in the heart of Depression Era Tennessee, little Dorothy Marie Marsh,…

A Brief History On June 16, 2010, the nation of Bhutan became the first nation in the world to outlaw tobacco.  Growing and otherwise producing tobacco products and the sale of any tobacco product was outlawed.  Harsh penalties were put in place, but within a couple years things eased up a bit.  The actual use and possession of tobacco was not outlawed, just the production and sale.  The government was also mandated to provide anti-tobacco counseling and education. Digging Deeper Not Banned 5.  Tax Revenue. In 2013, the government collected $43.9 billion in tobacco tax revenue, and over half a…