Browsing: Society

A Brief History On July 12, 1543, King Henry VIII of England married Catherine Parr, his sixth and final wife.  Henry had divorced #1, beheaded #2, #3 died, divorced #4, beheaded #5, and Catherine outlived Henry.  Over the years, there have been some marriage happy people known for their many spouses.  Here we list 10 of those frequently wed individuals. Digging Deeper 1. King Henry VIII of England. Obsessed with producing one or more viable male heirs to the throne, Henry kept trying to find a wife that would give him the male children he coveted.  Wife #3 died from complications…

A Brief History On July 11, 1921, Former President William Howard Taft was sworn in as the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, becoming the only person to ever serve as President and Supreme Court Justice.  Most Ex-Presidents do not have quite the spectacular second career, but we list 10 Presidents who went on to interesting activities after leaving office. Update, July 11, 2019: In July of 2019, cable news giant CNN reported that former Vice President and current candidate for the Democratic nomination for President, Joe Biden, along with his wife earned a whopping $16 million…

A Brief History On July 9, 1850, US President Zachary Taylor died after consuming mass quantities of fresh fruit and iced milk at a July 4th fund raising and holiday celebration.  Taylor, the only President to hail from Louisiana, suffered severe abdominal distress and fever for 5 days before he died, becoming the second President to die in office (after William Henry Harrison) and leaving Vice President Millard Fillmore to finish his term as President (1850-1853). Digging Deeper Taylor represented the Whig Party, and Fillmore became the last Whig to ascend to the Presidency.  Curiously, Fillmore did not appoint a…

A Brief History On July 7, 1981, President Ronald Reagan made history by appointing Sandra Day O’Connor as the first female justice of the Supreme Court of the United States.  While the active participation of women in politics seems common today, things were not always inclusive for women in politics.  Here we list 10 major “firsts” for women in the realm of politics.   (Note: As an inspiration for girls, we made sure to include the alma mater of each of these highly capable women, except Catherine I.) Digging Deeper 1. 1st Supreme Court Justice, Sandra Day O’Connor, 1981. Sandra got her…

A Brief History On July 4, 2017, most Americans will be reminded that today is the National Birthday, the date back in 1776 when the United States was born.  We take this patriotic opportunity to list some of the Red, White and Blue Americans who were born on this special date. Digging Deeper 1. Ulysses S. Grant III, General. Born in Chicago in 1881, this chip off the old block was the grandson of former general and President of the United States Ulysses S. Grant.  This Grant graduated 6th in his class at West Point in 1903 (the same year Douglas…