A Brief History On September 17, 1862, the same day that the bloodiest one day battle in American military history was fought (Antietam, or Sharpsburg) the civilian population of suburban Pittsburgh was touched by the worst civilian disaster of the Civil War when the Allegheny Arsenal blew up, killing 78 workers, mainly women (down to 15 years old). Digging Deeper A cartridge making industrial plant, the Allegheny Arsenal employed over a thousand workers and supplied the Union forces fighting in the Western half of the conflict. Cartridges at the time consisted of greased paper containing a charge of black powder…
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A Brief History On September 15, 1966, President Lyndon Johnson, in a now all too familiar response to a mass shooting incident at the University of Texas, called on Congress to enact “Gun Control” legislation that would have absolutely nothing to do with preventing such incidents. Digging Deeper On August 1, 1966, mentally disturbed Charles Whitman killed his wife and mother, then went to the University of Texas where he climbed up to the 28th floor observation deck and proceeded to shoot and kill 14 more people and wound a further 32 before he was finally killed by a police…
A Brief History On September 14, 1954, the Cold War warmed up a little when the Soviet Air Force dropped a 40-kiloton atomic bomb from a Tupolev Tu-4, a nearly exact copy of the U.S. Boeing B-29 Superfortress. Digging Deeper The Soviets often relied on technology from the West to further their own development of products and weapons. Joseph Stalin jealously craved a modern heavy bomber of his own, so, when U.S. B-29 bombers made emergency landings on Soviet soil, the bombers were interned by the USSR in spite of American demands that they be promptly returned. Reverse engineering to simple…
A Brief History On September 13, 1862, the Army of Northern Virginia and their commander, Robert E. Lee, suffered a catastrophic blunder when Lee’s battle plans for the upcoming Battle of Antietam (Sharpsburg to the Rebels) were found near Frederick, Maryland by Union soldiers. Digging Deeper The orders, known as “Special Order 191” were found wrapped around 3 cigars where they had been lost by a Confederate officer, gave the Union forces under George McClellan a tremendous advantage. As it was, Lee had half the forces that the Union had available, and the battle was fought to a stalemate, something…
A Brief History On September 12, 1952, stunned citizens of Flatwoods, West Virginia in Braxton County met up with a monster that may have been a close encounter with an alien life form. The incident started with a bright object in the night sky seen by boys to crash or land in a neighboring farm. The boys ran home to collect adults, and accompanied by one of their mothers and a National Guardsman, along with more local kids, investigated the site. Digging Deeper A tall creature, about 7 feet tall, described as black or dark with a glowing face appeared…