A Brief History On July 9, 2011, South Sudan seceded from Sudan and became the latest new African country.  While Africa has been a center of creating new countries, a dizzying number of new sovereign nations have been formed since 1960. Digging Deeper In 1960 alone, Africa went from having 9 independent nations to 26 countries, an incredible increase.  In 1991 and 1992, when the Soviet Union dissolved, the single nation became 12 separate nations.  Other Soviet era nations that split up into smaller countries include Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia. Besides the erosion of imperialism with nations gaining independence, other factors…

A Brief History This article presents a chronological list of notable events that happened on July 8th.  For each date below, please click on the date to be taken to an article covering that date’s event. Digging Deeper On July 8, 1775, the Continental Congress, forerunner of what would become the government of the United States, signed the so called “Olive Branch Petition,” a last ditch effort to prevent a war of independence against Britain by the American Colonies. On July 8, 1874, about 300 newly recruited troopers of the North-West Mounted Police began the trek Westward to the vast…

A Brief History On July 8, 1874, about 300 newly recruited troopers of the North-West Mounted Police began the trek Westward to the vast prairie areas of Canada, what is now Manitoba and Alberta to the foothills of the Rocky Mountains.  The Canadian government created this force to patrol and protect this area in the wake of violence that culminated in the Cypress Hills Massacre, a battle between White, Native, and mixed-race hunters, trappers, and traders. Digging Deeper An intriguing fact about the deployment of this new force was that each of the six divisions was given a particular color…

A Brief History This article presents a chronological list of notable events that happened on July 7th.  For each date below, please click on the date to be taken to an article covering that date’s event. Digging Deeper On July 7, 1456, Joan of Arc (Jeanne d’Arc) was acquitted of heresy. On July 7, 1550, chocolate is thought to have been introduced to Europe from the Americas.  In the following article, the author will list the foods native to either the North or South American continents that had the most significance on a culinary scale when finally exported to Europe,…

A Brief History On July 7, 1992, the New York Court of Appeals, the highest state court in New York, ruled that women in that state have every bit as much a right to go bare breasted as men do. Digging Deeper The United States is a country that prides itself on individual and group freedoms, as well as equal treatment under the law regardless of race, creed, color, or gender, but laws against public toplessness by women have been a common factor among the various states. As of 2019, only six states have decided that women are free to…