Browsing: May 10

A Brief History This article presents a chronological list of notable events that happened on May 10th.  For each date below, please click on the date to be taken to an article covering that date’s event. Digging Deeper On May 10, 1849, Astor Opera House in Manhattan was the unlikely scene of another of those goofy named riots we keep telling you about. On May 10, 1865, Union troops ambushed, shot and captured infamous Confederate raider William Quantrill. On May 10, 1865, President of the Confederate States of America, Jefferson Davis, was captured by Federal troops in Georgia. Many Americans…

A Brief History On May 10, 1899, a farmworker in Finland hacked seven people to death with an axe, proving once again that murderers do not necessarily need a firearm to inflict mayhem on the innocent public. Digging Deeper Karl Emil Malmelin, 27 years old at the time, was working on a farm in Klaukkala, Finland, when his offer of marriage was rebuffed by a young lady, the daughter of the property owner.  Not one to take no for an answer, Karl proceeded to kill everyone on the farm, which included two men, three women, and two children. Although convicted…

A Brief History On May 10, 1946, at the White Sands Proving Ground in New Mexico the US Army made the first successful launch of a German designed V-2 rocket, the same sort of weapon the Germans had used to terrorize England and Holland during World War II.  V-2 technology was not the only German inspired technology to be eagerly scooped and later used by the Allies after World War II, and today we take a look at some of those items (keeping the list short and therefore not all encompassing).  As always, feel free to nominate such items as…

A Brief History On May 10, 1967, an experimental “lifting body” aircraft created by Northrup for NASA, the M2-F2, made its 16th and final flight, crashing into the dry lake bed on the desert floor, ruining the aircraft and severely injuring the pilot, Bruce Peterson.  The unfortunate, though spectacular crash, was used as the inspiration for the novel Cyborg, by Martin Caidin, and the television program, The Six Million Dollar Man.  Film footage of the crash of the M2-F2 was used in the opening sequence of the television series! Digging Deeper The horrific crash scene of the M2-F2 rolling over…

A Brief History On May 10, 1849, Astor Opera House in Manhattan was the unlikely scene of another of those goofy named riots we keep telling you about.  Though the Astor Opera House is no more (nor are the 22 to 31 people killed during the riot!), the Astor Place Riot lives on in the Pantheon of Stupid Riots.  (Type in “Riot” in the question box of our website to get our many articles about the seemingly endless supply of riots.)  Along with the many people killed, another 260 (including militiamen) were seriously injured, making the Astor Place Riot one…