Who was the first Socialist elected to the U.S. Senate?
Wisconsin’s Victor Berger, elected in 1911, was the first Socialist elected to the U.S. Senate.
The series of trials in Massachusetts in 1692-93, known as the Salem witch trials, resulted in 27 convictions. Of those, 20 were executed: 19 were hanged, one was crushed to death. In 1693, Massachusetts governor William Phips created a new court, with stricter guidelines for evidence. Through it, remaining prisoners were either acquitted or set…
Legend claims that when sentenced to death in 1776 by the British for spying, Nathan Hale proclaimed, “I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country.” But British officer Captain Frederick Mackenzie reports in his diaries that Hale said, “It is the duty of every good officer to obey any…
In 1992, the biggest corporation in America was General Motors, with sales of $133 billion and assets of $191 billion. In second place was Exxon, with sales of $104 billion and assets of $85 billion.
Broadway’s all-time longest-running show was A Chorus Line. It ran 6,137 performances from 1975 to 1990. Its nearest competitor is Oh! Calcutta! with 5,959 performances between 1976 and 1989.
Instituted a century ago (in 1896) and named for businessmen Charles Dow and Edward Jones, the economic indicator the Dow Jones industrial average has set all three records within the last 25 years. It first closed higher than 1000 on Nov. 14, 1972. On January 8, 1987, it closed higher than 2000. Four years later,…
Benedict Arnold (1741-1801) demanded £20,000 from the British but received only £6,315. In exchange, he revealed American battle plans, tried (but failed) to deliver West Point, and crossed over to the British army. Although Arnold was given 13,400 acres of land in Canada after the war, he lived the rest of his life in England.