Browsing: Society

A Brief History On March 5, 1836, Samuel Colt formed the gun-manufacturing company that would produce the pistols “that won the West.”  We have already written about Mr. Colt and his innovative and successful revolver, but this time around, we are going to discuss the problems with it. Digging Deeper Colt created his invention when percussion caps were replacing flintlock ignition systems, and the percussion cap is what made a revolving cylinder firearm practical.  When relying on flintlock ignition, powder could easily fall out of the individual pan or chain fire, with all cylinders going off at once.  (This could…

A Brief History On March 4, 1917, the U.S. Congress welcomed its first female U.S. Representative (congresswoman) when Jeanette Rankin of Montana joined the exclusive group.  Rankin went on to serve 2 terms in Congress, both terms being during the world wars.   She had been one of only 50 to oppose U.S. entry into the First World War in 1917 and was the only representative who voted against American involvement in the Second World War in 1941. Digging Deeper Not surprisingly, Rankin, who was a Republican, was a pacifist and campaigned against U.S. involvement in any war.  She had been an advocate for women’s suffrage and…

A Brief History On March 1, 1815, Napoleon Bonaparte, Emperor of the French, returned to France from exile on the island of Elba to reclaim his empire.  Of course, his great comeback only lasted about 100 days, but in that time he reshook Europe.  Other people, teams and companies have also made impressive comebacks from near defeat, death, ruin or other calamities.  Here we list 10 of those that rank among the greatest.   Digging Deeper 10. John Travolta, 1994. After becoming a teen idol on television and having experienced success with movies such as Grease, Saturday Night Fever and Urban…

A Brief History On February 28th, Black History Month draws to a close and as such we want to reflect on some notable figures in black history.  History is being made everyday, and recently in 2014 landmark cases involving police shootings of African-Americans has resulted in riots and protests, events that will become history once the journalistic cycle is over.  Today, History and Headlines takes a look at 10 icons of the civil rights movement, including 5 people held up as martyrs that are legitimate American heroes and 5 that are held up as martyrs, but actually may well have…

A Brief History On February 28, 1893, the United States Navy made an enormous step toward eventually ruling the seas by launching its first ever battleship commensurate with those of other great naval powers.  Though the USS Indiana BB-1 was launched on this date, she would not be commissioned until 2 years later. Digging Deeper Designed for coastal defense, the Indiana was not intended to throw her weight around the world as her decks were not designed to take heavy seas in the open ocean.  About 351 feet long and with a beam of 69 feet, she did not have the size or proportions of…