The names of these two English political parties Whig and Tory were each invented by the respective party’s rival as a pejorative term.
The Country Party, representing the merchants and middle class, called their opponents tories, a word for Irish plunderers.
The Court Party, representing the aristocrats, squires, and Anglican clergy, called their opponents Whigs, or Scottish cattle rustlers.
Passengers used New York’s original Pennsylvania Station for 53 years, from its opening in 1910 to its demolition in 1963. Designed by McKim, Mead & White, the two-square-block structure was made of granite with a Doric colonnade. It was torn down to make way for the Madison Square Garden sports and office complex.
SDS stood for Students for a Democratic Society. The “New Left” movement for social and political change was organized at Port Huron, Michigan, in June 1962. Its manifesto was called the “Port Huron Statement.”
Fans of Frank Sinatra rioted at the Paramount Theater on Columbus Day 1944, at the height of his popularity. Thirty thousand bobbysoxers rioted at the New York theater where Sinatra was performing. It was reported that cries of “Frankie, Frankie!” could be heard blocks away.
Richard and Maurice McDonald opened their original drive-in stand that would be known as McDonald’s in San Bernardino, California, in 1940. Beginning in 1948, they switched to a new streamlined system, with a limited menu, low prices, fast service, and disposable wrappings. In 1954, milkshake machine salesman Ray Kroc became the franchising agent for the…
Caspar Weinberger, who went on to become Ronald Reagan’s secretary of defense (1981-87), served as secretary of health, education, and welfare (1973-75) under both Nixon and Ford.
Yes, the man behind the “Sherman Anti-Trust Act” was related to the man behind “Sherman’s March to the Sea”. The Sherman Anti-Trust Act, passed in 1890, was sponsored by John Sherman, the younger brother of William Tecumseh Sherman. It was the latter Sherman who, as a Union general, led the destructive march across Georgia in…