Gilbert M. Stack's Blog, page 136
May 22, 2018
Today in History: The Great Society
On this day (May 22) in 1964, Lyndon B. Johnson launched the Great Society in an attempt to eradicate poverty and racial discrimination in the United States. The Great Society was far reaching (education, medical care, rural poverty, urban problems, and transportation) but many Democrats argued that the great expense of the Vietnam war strangled the programs, diminishing their success.
May 21, 2018
Today in History: Kidnapped!
On this day (May 21) in 1758, ten year old Mary Campbell was kidnapped by the Lenape during the French and Indian War. She was probably adopted by a Lenape family. Six years later the British forced the Lenape to return Mary to her family along with many other captive children (60 names are recorded). To the shock of both the British and the families of these children, about half of them tried to return to the Lenape. The forced return of these children was the subject of two fictional novels by Conrad Richter, The Light in the Forest and A Country of Strangers. I read both as a child—they are haunting novels of children kidnapped at a young age who assimilated with the Lenape and could not transition back to the civilizations they were born into.
May 20, 2018
Dungeons & Dragons is More Than a Great Game
Here's a great article on the benefits of role playing games as therapeutic tools. It's a conclusion I had come to on my own, along with the awesome educational potential of a game set in an historical or literary setting. If, like me, you've spent ten thousand plus hours of your life playing these games, you might check the article out and learn how you were preparing yourself to help people... You can find the article here.
Today in History: A King Murdered
On this day (May 20) in 794, King Aethelberht of East Anglia was murdered. He was on a visit to his fiancé, Princess Aelfthryth of Mercia, at the Mercian court of Sutton Walls when he was taken captive by Aelfthryth’s father, King Offa, and beheaded. It’s not clear why he was murdered, but one theory is that he was trying to exert East Anglia’s independence from Mercia. The story quickly developed that his severed head fell off a cart and cured a blind man. He was eventually canonized.
May 19, 2018
Today in History: A Royal Wedding
On this day (May 19) in 1499, thirteen year old Catherine of Aragon was married to twelve year old Arthur, Prince of Wales cementing an alliance of state between Spain and England. Just under three years later, Arthur died. Catherine maintained that the marriage had not been consummated and on this excuse, a dispensation was granted that permitted Arthur’s brother, Henry (soon to be Henry VIII), to marry Catherine. (Under canon law, marrying a sister-in-law was considered to be as bad as marrying a sister.) The marriage between Catherine and Henry would not ultimately be a happy one.
May 18, 2018
Today in History: Volcano!
On this day (May Eighteen) in 1980, Mount St. Helens erupted in Washington State. The large scale flow of lava flattened vegetation over 230 square miles. For more than 9 hours hot ash erupted to a height of 12-16 miles above sea level. The eruption killed 57 people and some 7,000 big game animals. It is also estimated that 12 million fish died. The overall economic damage has been calculated at $3 billion.
May 17, 2018
Today in History: Kids Rejoice!
On this day (May 17) in 1977 the first Chuck E. Cheese restaurant opened. It was located in San Jose, California and my guess is that any American who is my age and has kids has probably spent a heck of a lot of time in one of these establishments. The food isn’t that good but the kids love the games.
May 16, 2018
Today in History: The Nickel
On this day (May 16) in 1866, Congress established the nickel. In 1796 there was a half dime but even though the monetary value is the same, it’s not a nickel. There's a picture of the original shield nickel on my Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/GilbertStackAuthor/
May 15, 2018
Today in History: Hatfield Attempts to Assassinate George III
On this day (May 15) in 1800, James Hatfield attempted to assassinate King George III of England out of the belief that if he himself were killed, it would help bring about the second coming of Christ. So he tried to murder the king so that he, himself, would be executed. His lawyer successfully demonstrated that eight saber wounds to the head that Hatfield had received in war six years earlier had driven him into a delusional state. Parliament passed the Criminal Lunatics Act of 1800 to make it possible to legally confine Hatfield after his acquittal. He spent the rest of his life in Bethlem Royal Hospital—except for the brief period when he escaped and tried to flee to France.
May 14, 2018
Today in History: Lewis and Clarke
On this day (May 14) in 1804, Lewis and Clarke began their journey of exploration into the Louisiana Territory. The Louisiana Territory was the single largest land purchase in U.S. history, but in practical terms the extent of the new territory was unknown before the expedition.
