Just two years after the Titanic, and a year before Lusitania, another passenger ship sank with an even greater loss of life, yet few remember the tragic tale. The Empress of Ireland sank in Canada’s St. Lawrence River in the spring of 1914 after colliding with another ship in a dense fog bank in theContinue reading “The Forgotten Sinking of the Empress of Ireland”
Author Archives: andrewspaulw
Devil’s Island, the French Guiana Penal Colony
Long before Alcatraz Prison there was Devil’s Island. It was a living hell, not just a violent, tropical prison, but also rampant with malaria, cholera and yellow fever. From 1852 to 1953, Devil’s Island operated as part of the Îles du Salut Penal Colony in French Guiana. Up to 90% of prisoners perished there dueContinue reading “Devil’s Island, the French Guiana Penal Colony”
The Real Musketeer d’Artagnan, Fact vs Fiction
The Three Musketeers is a classic novel full of intrigue, friendships, adventure and love. The central character is the brave, young hero d’Artagnan. Les Trois Mousquetaires was published in 1844 by French novelist Alexandre Dumas. But d’Artagnan and the Musketeers were real 17th century characters and NOT fiction. Dumas did however take some liberties withContinue reading “The Real Musketeer d’Artagnan, Fact vs Fiction”
The Red Summer Race Riots of 1919
A wave of deadly, anti-black violence swept across the United States in the summer of 1919. The name Red Summer was coined to recognize the amount blood that was shed. During that spring to fall season, at least 26 major riots and white mob actions broke out across the country. Hundreds of blacks were killed,Continue reading “The Red Summer Race Riots of 1919”
The Tragic Death of Harry Houdini
Harry Houdini was perhaps the greatest illusionist/escape artist who ever lived. He jumped into icy rivers while in handcuffs and leg irons. He escaped from a sealed milk can filled with water. He hung by his ankles from the side of a building in a straight-jacket. And he devised the famous “Chinese Water Torture Cell,”Continue reading “The Tragic Death of Harry Houdini”
The German POW Great Escape of World War II
The biggest World War II Prisoner of War (POW) escape in Britain occurred on the 10 March 1945 when 70 German POWs tunneled their way to freedom. The 1963 movie “The Great Escape” made famous the British POW escape from Stalag Luft III in March 1944. But a year later, in 1945 was the largestContinue reading “The German POW Great Escape of World War II”
The Forgotten Sook Ching Massacre of World War II
The Sook Ching Massacre was a deadly Japanese military operation during World War II aimed at purging “anti-Japanese elements” from Chinese Singapore. From February to March 1942, Chinese men between 18 and 50 were ordered to mass screening centers across the region. Those even remotely suspected of being “anti-Japanese” were trucked away at gunpoint toContinue reading “The Forgotten Sook Ching Massacre of World War II”
Rosalind Franklin and the DNA Double Helix
Dr. Rosalind Franklin was the trailblazing scientist whose first photo of DNA revealed its secret double-helix structure. Her critical contribution however went largely unrecognized for nearly 50 years. James Watson and Francis Crick are the famous British scientists credited with discovering the DNA double helix. They came up with it, however, only after borrowing dataContinue reading “Rosalind Franklin and the DNA Double Helix”
The Hunt for the Source of the Nile River
For centuries, the quest to discover the source of Africa’s great Nile River has captivated explorers, much like the race to reach the North Pole or climb Mt. Everest first. The river’s vast expanse across central Africa complicated matters though, making exploration both daunting and dangerous. Egyptian and Sudanese kingdoms depended on the river and itsContinue reading “The Hunt for the Source of the Nile River”
Were the Luddites right all along?
Today, Luddite is often used as a derogatory term to describe a technophobe, any person who scorns new technology. But its origin dates back over two hundred years to an early 19th-century English labor rebellion. Luddites railed against mechanized manufacturing that threatened the livelihood of skilled craftsmen and artisans during the Industrial Revolution. The originalContinue reading “Were the Luddites right all along?”