Day Tripping: March 5
Creations, Compromises, and Catch Phrases
Welcome to my daily feature where each day on the calendar marks a part of our shared history.
An Inventive Day
Samuel Colt manufactures the first “Texas” model pistol, a 34-calibre with a five-chamber revolving cylinder in 1836. Later in England, C.H. Gould receives a patent for the stapler in 1868. Four years after that, George Westinghouse Jr. earns a patent for his triple air brake for use on trains in 1872. Also, in 1904, the process of the ball lightning formation is explained by Nikola Tesla in Electrical World and Engineer, a non-linear form that he was never able to prove existed.
Put these discoveries all together in a different order and perhaps the brakes would have been applied to a future staple of society that we didn’t really need. Explain that!
Civil Accord
Mahatma Gandhi and the viceroy of India, Lord Irwin sign a pact in 1931 that ends Salt marches against taxation and paves the way for the release of prisoners incarcerated for marching. The agreement also guaranteed citizens the right to produce and use salt for their private gain without taxation, and it marked the end of the Civil Disobedience Movement in India.
Coining A Phrase
During a speech at Westminster College in Missouri in 1946, Winston Churchill warned of the presence of the Soviet Union in Europe as an Iron Curtain descending on the continent. It was the first time the phrase was used and it stuck as a descriptive term for the growing divide between Eastern and Western Europe.
The year previous, Great Britain, the US and the Soviet Union had been allies in defeating the Nazis, but Churchill had a clear vision of Stalin’s intent and hoped to form closer ties with American interests.
Musical Milestones
There may never be another reality TV show quite like the MTV series that followed the daily lives of the Osbourne family and its patriarch, Ozzy. The 2002 launch of The Osbournes quickly made the rest of the rocker’s family household names.
Narratives
The American Air Force first learns that Joseph Stalin has died when a young Staff Sergeant named Johnny Cash was working the radio and intercepted a Soviet message. The future singing star deciphered the code from his post in the 12th Squadron Mobile Radio unit in West Germany in 1953.
Remembrance
1982 — A comedic genius who suffered the ravages of drug addiction, John Belushi died overdosing on a Heroin infused speedball at the age of thirty-three.
Notable Births
1938 — Fred ‘The Hammer’ Williamson was a destructive force on the football field before becoming an accomplished actor.
1958 — The youngest brother from the singing group The Bee Gees, Andy Gibb.
Thanks for taking the time to read this article dedicated to the days of our history. I hope to see you tomorrow for another instalment.
K. Barrett Katie Wallace Maria Rattray Joseph M. Learned Maryam Merchant Dr Mehmet Yildiz Tree Langdon Myriam Ben Salem Phil Truman Chelsea Mandler MAT Terry Mansfield Hollie Petit, PhD. Terry Trueman Dr Preeti Singh John Gruber Bill Abbate James G Brennan ScienceDuuude
