Daily Content Archive
(as of Friday, October 11, 2019)Word of the Day | |||||||
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henchman
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Article of the Day | |
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BlackbirdingBlackbirding refers to the recruitment of people through kidnapping and fraud to work on plantations, particularly the sugar cane plantations of Fiji and Queensland, Australia, in the latter half of the 19th century. Those "blackbirded" were kidnapped from the indigenous populations of Australia or nearby Pacific islands. In 1872, the British Parliament passed a law in an attempt to curtail the practice, but it continued until the turn of the century. How did blackbirding get its name? More... |
This Day in History | |
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Second Boer War Erupts in South Africa (1899)The Boer Wars were fought between the British Empire and Dutch settlers in South Africa, called Boers. The Second Boer War was sparked by the discovery of gold in the Transvaal, a region annexed to Britain but controlled by anti-British statesman Paul Kruger. Tensions rose as the Boer government began limiting the rights of British settlers moving into the region. It has been argued that what method of control now commonly associated with the Nazis was first employed by the British in this war? More... |
Today's Birthday | |
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Henry Heinz (1844)Heinz was a pioneer in the American food industry. He got an early start in the food business, peddling surplus home-grown vegetables to neighbors by the age of eight. In 1876, he, his brother, and a cousin founded a pickles and condiments company that became the H. J. Heinz Company when he bought them out in 1888. The company's tomato ketchup quickly became a bestseller and remains the most popular ketchup in the US today. Why did Heinz make "57 varieties" his company slogan? More... |
Quotation of the Day | |
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There is no living thing that is not afraid when it faces danger. The True courage is in facing danger when you are afraid. L. Frank Baum (1856-1919) |
Idiom of the Day | |
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come to a parting of the ways— To separate. To leave someone or something behind, often at a dramatic moment. More... |
Today's Holiday | |
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General Pulaski Memorial Day (2022)Count Casimir Pulaski first arrived in America in 1777 to help General George Washington and the Continental Army overthrow the British. It was on October 11, 1779, that the Polish count died while trying to free Savannah, Georgia, from British control. The president of the United States proclaims October 11 as Pulaski Day each year, and it is observed with parades and patriotic exercises in communities in Georgia, Indiana, Nebraska, and Wisconsin. The biggest Pulaski Day parade takes place in New York City on the first Sunday in October. More... |