Scott Allsop's Blog, page 39

12th April 1861: American Civil War begins with the Battle of Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina

After suffering significant damage during the battle from more than 3,000 artillery rounds over 34 hours, at 2:30 p.m the following day Major Anderson and his men formally surrendered, and the Confederate forces took control of Fort ...

11th April 1968: The Fair Housing Act of the Civil Rights Act of 1968 signed into law by President Johnson

The Act made it illegal to discriminate regarding the sale, rental, or financing of housing based on race, religion, or national ...

10th April 1815: The most powerful volcanic eruption in recorded human history occurred at Mount Tambora

The explosion was estimated to be four times more powerful than the 1883 eruption of Krakatoa, making it the most powerful volcanic eruption in recorded ...

8th April 1838: SS Great Western begins her maiden voyage to New York as the first steamship specifically built for transatlantic travel

Great Western’s maiden voyage crossed the Atlantic in a record time of 15 days and five ...

7th April 1954: President Eisenhower first described the ‘domino theory’ of the spread of communism during a news conference

He likened the spread of communism in Southeast Asia to a row of dominoes quickly collapsing after the first one ...

6th April 1793: Committee of Public Safety established by the National Convention of France

The National Convention established the Committee of Public Safety with the primary objectives of maintaining public order, managing the war effort against foreign powers, and rooting out perceived enemies of the ...

5th April 1722: Dutch explorer Jacob Roggeveen becomes the first European to encounter Easter Island

The first sighting coincided with Easter Sunday, so Roggeveen and his crew agreed to name the landmass Easter ...

4th April 1925: Adolf Hitler orders the establishment of the SS

The Nazi Party founded a paramilitary organisation that became the Schutzstaffel, better known as the ...

3rd April 1721: Robert Walpole becomes the first de facto Prime Minister of Great Britain

Walpole was appointed First Lord of the Treasury, Chancellor of the Exchequer and Leader of the House of Commons. This made him the de facto Prime Minister and, while the title was not officially recognized at the time, Walpole wielded considerable power and ...

2nd April 1863: The Richmond Bread Riot saw hundreds of women in Virginia loot storehouses and shops

With the cry of ‘bread or blood!’ the women marched to the city’s market district where they broke into government storehouses and nearby ...