This Day in History on Travel - Page 2 of 16

Famous London Landmark is an Imposter!

By Major Dan on April 10, 2019 April 10, Inventions, Travel

A Brief History On April 10, 1858, the original bell called “Big Ben” in the clock tower at the North end of Westminster Palace was removed because it had cracked when tested. The giant 14.5 metric ton bell was replaced with a smaller version, weighing only 13.76 metric tons (or 30,300 pounds for Yankees), but also called Big Ben. Built by the Whitechapel Bell Foundry, the bell called Big Ben is often confused with either the tower the giant clock sits in or the tower itself. Big Ben is really just the bell that chimes the hours. Digging Deeper Like…

When Did Terrorists Start Taking Down Airliners?

By Major Dan on March 28, 2019 Crime, March 28, Travel, Vehicles

A Brief History On March 28, 1933, the first known incident of an airliner airplane being taken down by the actions of a passenger occurred when the City of Liverpool (airplanes, trains and the like used to have names like ships are named), a biplane operated by Imperial Airways was taken down because of a fire set by a passenger. Ever since then, terrorists, a\saboteurs and assorted criminals have taken down airliners, usually with bombs, but also by commandeering the plane and flying it into the ground or other object, most notably the aerial hijackings of September 11, 2001 in…

Is There No End to Naval “Oops” Moments?

By Major Dan on March 17, 2019 March 17, Military, Travel, Vehicles

A Brief History On March 17, 1891, a civilian ocean liner, the steamship SS Utopia of the Anchor Line ran into the moored battleship, HMS Anson in Gibraltar Bay, causing the ill-fated steamer to sink taking 562 of the 880 passengers to Davy Jones Locker! We have frequently written about naval and maritime disasters, and today we include another one of those times a ship’s captain would love to have a “do over.” Digging Deeper As stated above, the British battleship HMS Anson (the 6th Royal Navy ship to bear the name, but not the last!) was anchored in Gibraltar…

March 16, 1621: Big Surprise for Pilgrims at Plymouth Colony!

By Major Dan on March 16, 2019 March 16, Travel

A Brief History On March 16, 1621, only about 4 months after landing at Plymouth Rock and setting up their new colony in what was then called Plymouth Colony (Now Massachusetts and Maine) the Pilgrims that had traveled across the Atlantic on the Mayflower had their first friendly contact with a Native person, and that contact came as quite a shock! On March 16, 1621, Samoset, a member of the Abenaki Sagamore people simply strolled into the Pilgrim village and greeted the Pilgrims in English! Samoset was not yet through with startling the colonists… Digging Deeper The first thing Samoset…

10 Triumphant Returns

By Major Dan on March 15, 2019 March 15, Military, Nature, Politics, Travel

A Brief History On March 15, 1493, Christopher Columbus made his triumphant return from his first voyage to the New World, a momentous occasion in human history and especially noteworthy for the Spanish Crown that he sailed for. Today we look at 10 such Triumphant Returns, times when a person or a group of people made it back with an air of accomplishment, vindication, or victory, often with a page written in history about that very return. No significance to the order listed, but feel free to add your own nominations to the list. Questions for Students (and others): What…