Back in 1863, news traveled slowly. And we mean really slowly. It’s hard for us to imagine in the technology age, but it took so long for news of the Emancipation Proclamation to reach slaves in Galveston, Texas that they didn’t receive word of the monumental proclamation until June of 1865—two months after Lincoln was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth!
June 19th, the day the news reached slaves in Galveston, is now celebrated as “Juneteenth” and marks a major moment in African American History. Thank goodness news travels a bit faster these days!
A Balloon Killed Five People In 1945
Not many American civilians lost their lives during WWII—in fact, only six casualties are recorded. It’s hard to believe, but five of those casualties happened because of a balloon. Tragically, five children found a balloon in the woods one day and were killed.
The balloon was actually a bomb sent over from Japan and it detonated when the children discovered it. There was no way for them to know what that balloon actually was and sadly, they lost their lives because of it.
There Could Have Been a German Colony in Texas
In 1842 a German organization attempted to establish a “new Germany” in Texas after they bought 4,428 acres of land. The organization was called Adelverein which meant “Nobility Society,” and German citizens who were connected to the organization began to settle on the large swath of land that was bought in Texas.
However, Adelverein ran into money issues, and “new Germany” was never able to take root due to issues with debt.
President Millard Fillmore Was Involved in a Teacher-Student Relationship
When Millard Fillmore was 19, he met his first wife Abigail Powers. She was 21-years-old and also happened to be his teacher! A romance between the two happened somewhere along the way and the two were married when President Fillmore was 26 and Abigail Powers was 28.
We’re not sure if the two started seeing one another while Fillmore was still a student of Powers, but extra credit goes to anyone who can find out!
The Donkey Symbol of the Democratic Party Originated from an Insult!
In 1828, a random antagonist called Andrew Jackson a jackass. Rather than letting the insult get to him, Jackson decided to one-up the insult flinger and adopted the donkey as the symbol of his party.
The symbol that originated from a rude remark exists to this day! Talk about not letting the haters get you down!