Harriet Quimby, The Pilot Who Became “Queen of the Channel Crossing”
Aviation pioneer Harriet Quimby isn't as well known as Amelia Earhart or Bessie Coleman but, as the first woman to fly across the English Channel, she definitely made an impact.
Violet Jessop Lived Through Three Shipwrecks, Including The Titanic
One of the more than 700 survivors of the sinking of RMS Titanic was Violet Jessop, a stewardess who helped passengers get into lifeboats and wait for rescue. Amazingly, Jessop had been in one shipwreck before that, and would go on to be in another. Plus: today marks 100 years since the death of the man who patented the Ouija board. His tombstone pays special tribute to his contribution.
Evelyn Berezin And Her Word Processor Brought The Computer Age Closer To Everybody
Today is the birthday of Evelyn Berezin, whose inventions include the first computer-based word processor, the first computerized airline reservations system, and so much more that so many of us use regularly today.
Here’s How The Pencil Left Its Mark On The World
Today in 1827, Joseph Dixon began manufacturing pencils at his factory in Salem, Massachusetts, so it's a good day to go back through the centuries and centuries that helped make the pencil what it is now.
Henry Brown Escaped From Slavery By Mailing Himself To Philadelphia
On this day in 1849, Henry Brown escaped slavery from a Virginia plantation in a very unusual way: he arranged it so he could hide in a small wooden box that was sent to Pennsylvania. Here's some of his story.
A “Mammoth Loaf” Once Turned The U.S. Senate Chamber Into A Big Bread Box
Today in 1804, the US Senate held a party featuring something called the “Mammoth Loaf.” To explain, we have to first tell you about Thomas Jefferson, an enormous block of cheese and an archeology project. Plus: a very cold town in Siberia has some very cool music, thanks to spring ice drums.
How Elevators Started Moving Up In The World
It was on this day in 1857 that the first commercial elevator began operating at a department store in New York City. And once elevators took off, they started shaping the world around us in some pretty big ways.
“Stagecoach” Mary Fields, Montana’s One-Of-A-Kind Mail Carrier
Mary Fields was the first Black woman to receive a Post Office contract to deliver the mail, and in the Wild West, no less. Here's a little more about a pioneer who definitely made some history.
How The Hula Hoop Got The World Up And Moving
Today in 1963 the Hula Hoop was patented, although by that point it had already become a worldwide phenomenon. And toy hoops go way, way back even before the toys we know today first became popular.
The Time Kate Warne, America’s First Female Detective, Saved Abraham Lincoln’s Life
Today in 1861, President-elect Abraham Lincoln arrived in Washington, having been snuck into the city to avoid a plot against his life in Baltimore. Kate Warne, the first women detective in America, was key to getting him there safely.