Kenneth C. Davis's Blog, page 117
July 28, 2010
TODAY IN HISTORY: A Very Significant Amendment
I know. The mere mention of Constitutional Amendments automatically sends most of us for the snooze button. But this one is different. On July 28, 1868, the 14th Amendment to the Constitution was declared in effect.
On July 9, 1868, the state of South Carolina ratified the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, providing the necessary three-fourths of the states to adopt this very significant Amendment as part of the law of the land. One of the "Reconstruction Amendments" ratified in the...
July 22, 2010
July 21, 2010
Don't Know Much About® "Papa"
Ernest Hemingway, the larger-than-life American novelist, was born on July 21 in Oak Park, Illinois in 1899.
They called him "Papa." One of America's most successful and admired novelists, Ernest Hemingway (1899-1961) once compared his bare-bones style to an iceberg:
"There is seven-eighths of it under water for every part that shows."
Beneath Hemingway's famously understated prose, which often celebrated such traditionally masculine pursuits as combat, hunting and boxing, his heroes...
Don't Know Much About "Papa"
Ernest Hemingway, the larger-than-life American novelist, was born on July 21 in Oak Park, Illinois in 1899.
They called him "Papa." One of America's most successful and admired novelists, Ernest Hemingway (1899-1961) once compared his bare-bones style to an iceberg:
"There is seven-eighths of it under water for every part that shows."
Beneath Hemingway's famously understated prose, which often celebrated such traditionally masculine pursuits as combat, hunting and boxing, his heroes...
July 14, 2010
TODAY IN HISTORY: Don't Know Much About® Bastille Day!
Vive la France!
On July 14, 1789, an angry crowd stormed a state prison in Paris that stood as a symbol of royal tyranny. They surrounded the Bastille in order to seize the gunpowder stored inside. Troops fired on the rebels, but the people overpowered them. The bloody French Revolution had begun. The people of France have come to mark July 14 as their national holiday, the French version of the Fourth of July.
What else do you know about this celebration of "Liberty, Equality and Fraternity?"
T...
TODAY IN HISTORY: Don't Know Much About Bastille Day!
Vive la France!
On July 14, 1789, an angry crowd stormed a state prison in Paris that stood as a symbol of royal tyranny. They surrounded the Bastille in order to seize the gunpowder stored inside. Troops fired on the rebels, but the people overpowered them. The bloody French Revolution had begun. The people of France have come to mark July 14 as their national holiday, the French version of the Fourth of July.
What else do you know about this celebration of "Liberty, Equality and Fraternity?"
T...
July 13, 2010
Today in History: Don't Know Much About® New York's Bloody Draft Riots
On July 13, 1863, New York City exploded in a four-day long murderous riot, still considered one of the deadliest urban riots in American history. The cause of the riots–violent opposition to the Civil War draft law.
Since poverty has been our crime,
We bow to the decree.
We are the poor who have no wealth
To purchase liberty.
If your picture of draft dodgers is one of 60s-era hippies shouting "Hell No, We won't go," the ditty above offers another vision.
It comes from the Civil War era, when...
Today in History: New York's Bloody Draft Riots
On July 13, 1863, New York City exploded in a four-day long murderous riot, still considered one of the deadliest urban riots in American history. The cause of the riots–violent opposition to the Civil War draft law.
Since poverty has been our crime,
We bow to the decree.
We are the poor who have no wealth
To purchase liberty.
If your picture of draft dodgers is one of 60s-era hippies shouting "Hell No, We won't go," the ditty above offers another vision.
It comes from the Civil War era, when...
July 7, 2010
Raising the Star and Stripes in California
On July 7, 1846, the United States Navy sailed into Monterey Bay and announced that the Republic of California was now a part of the United States. Just like that, the future state of California fell from Mexico's hands into its American future.
The story of California's shift from Spain to Mexico and then to American control is an extraordinary one. The last part of that story, the annexation of California by the United States, is due largely to the exploits of a somewhat forgotten man...
July 2, 2010
Jefferson's Version-A few key differences
Today , July 2d is the day the Continental Congress actually voted in favor of independence for America. It took two more days of debate to approve Thomas Jefferson's explanation of that vote, the Declaration of Independence.
Once again the New York Public Library is displaying a handwritten version of the Declaration, written by Jefferson. Here is a post I wrote last year after visiting the Library:
Last evening, I had a thrilling experience. In a small, darkened room with the feel of a...
