A Brief History On July 27, 1816, US gunboat #154 fired a cannon shot regarded as the deadliest single cannonball ever fired by the US Navy.  The so-called Battle of Negro Fort touched off what became General Andrew Jackson’s conquest of Florida, and was the first big battle of the First Seminole War. Digging Deeper During the War of 1812, the British had garrisoned a fort at Prospect Bluffs on the Apalachicola River of what was then Spanish Florida.  With British Marines (1000 total British fighters) and several hundred Africans (free men and runaway slaves) the British had recruited as…

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A Brief History On July 26, 1861, President Abraham Lincoln appointed Major General George McClellan as Commanding General of the Army of the Potomac, answering to the elderly General Winfield Scott.  (See out article about The 4 Commanding Generals of the Union Army in the Civil War on July 23.)  Today we again address the bloodiest war in US history, and tell you about 10 things you may not know about this horrible period in American History. Digging Deeper 1. Was Abraham Lincoln a racist? Not only did Lincoln publicly state that he had no intention of trying to eliminate…

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A Brief History On July 25, 2017, we celebrate National Hot Fudge Sundae Day.  This tasty treat with (usually) vanilla ice cream covered in hot fudge may or may not be embellished with whipped cream, and/or nuts, and/or a cherry on top.  Plus, you can shake things up by trying a different flavor of ice cream.  Today we list 10 Favorite Frozen Treats (either our favorites or the most popular in the country). Digging Deeper 1. Hot Fudge Sundae. So darn good it gets its own holiday every July 25th.  Probably the favorite type of sundae in the US, you can…

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A Brief History On July 24, 1983, Major League Baseball experienced a strange incident that caused a furor on the field, in corporate offices, and in the homes of baseball fans all over the country when George Brett of the Kansas City Royals blasted a homerun and then had it taken away!  Stunned and outraged, Brett just about had a meltdown on the spot while the Yankee Stadium crowd roared its approval.  Referred to as “The Pine Tar Incident,” the decision to take away Brett’s homer went down in baseball lore as one wacky, weird, and wonderful incident, and here…

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A Brief History On July 23, 1862, President Abraham Lincoln finally found a replacement for General George B. McClellan as General-in-Chief of the Union Army when he appointed General Henry W. Halleck.  Lincoln had spent the previous 4 months as de facto head of the Army himself until he found another commander, having earlier relieved McClellan of such duty. Digging Deeper During the Civil War the US Army (or Union Army if you prefer) had a total of 4 men assigned as General-in-Chief, more or less akin to today’s designation as Chief of Staff of the Army as the top…

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