Month: June 2015

On June 18, 1983, Sally Ride became the first American female astronaut. Here are a few facts you may not know about Sally Ride and other women in space. One: Ride was born in 1951 in Los Angeles, raised there before attending college at Swarthmore, UCLA before earning a bachelor’s degree in English and Physics, and a master’s degree and […]

On June 17, 1885, the Statue of Liberty arrived in New York harbor as a gift from France. Here are a few facts you may not have known about the Statue of Liberty. First: Parts of the statue were displayed in France before it was disassembled and sent to New York. The gift did not include the pedestal that the […]

June 16 is marked as “Bloomsday,” a celebration of the novel “Ulysses” and its author James Joyce. Here are some facts you may not have known about “Ulysses” and its author. First: The events of “Ulysses” take place on June 16, 1904, following Leopold Bloom through the events of his day. As you can probably tell from the title, the […]

June 15, 1859 marked the start of the Pig War, a conflict between the United States and Great Britian over the international boundary in the San Juan Islands of Washington state. Here are a few facts about the Pig War you may not have known. First: It was a bloodless conflict, except for that of one pig. Lyman Cutlar, an […]

According to legend, on June 14, 1789, the Reverend Elijah Craig was the first person to distill what today is called bourbon whiskey. Here are a few things you may not know about bourbon whiskey. First: Craig probably wasn’t actually the first person to distill whiskey from corn. Many farmers in Kentucky were making similar products and calling it “bourbon” […]

A list of the things that Elvis Presley wanted to be kept in the kitchen at his home, Graceland, at all times: fresh, lean, unfrozen ground meat one case regular Pepsi one case orange drinks rolls (hot rolls – Brown ‘n’ Serve) 6 cans of biscuits hamburger buns pickles potatoes and onions assorted fresh fruits cans of sauerkraut wieners 3 bottles […]

On June 13, 1967, U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson nominated Thurgood Marshall to the Supreme Court. Here are some things you may not have known about the first African-American to serve on the Supreme Court. First: Marshall was born in Baltimore in 1908. His father worked as a railroad porter and his mother was a teacher. Marshall studied at Lincoln […]

On June 12, 1939, the National Baseball Hall of Fame was dedicated in Cooperstown, New York. Here are some things you may not know about the Hall of Fame. One, the first Hall of Fame class was inducted in 1936 and consisted of five former players: Ty Cobb, Christy Mathewson, Walter Johnson, Honus Wagner and Babe Ruth. Two, Cooperstown was […]

On June 11, 1959, the first hovercraft was launched off the coast of England. Here are a few things you may not have known about hovercrafts. First, the hovercraft was invented by ship designer Christopher Cockerell, who was trying to create a way for boats to go faster by reducing the friction with water. His first experiment involved floating a […]

Today is the 86th anniversary of the birth of American author and illustrator Maurice Sendak. Here are a few things you might not have known about him: One, Sendak was inspired to become an illustrator after seeing the Disney movie “Fantasia” when he was 12 years old. His first illustrations were published in a text book when he was in […]