The Loch Ness Monster was sighted in 1933, starting the search craze. J. Edgar Hoover died in 1972, creating congressional reforms in the FBI. Confederate General Stonewall Jackson was wounded by friendly fire in 1863. Spanish citizens rebelled against French occupiers in 1808. The first airliner flew in 1952. Tennessee Williams won the Pulitzer Prize in 1955. Precision GPS became publicly available in 2000. Prisoners took control of Alcatraz in 1946. Good Housekeeping was put up for sale in 1885. Jack Benny’s first radio show premiered in 1932.
The Loch Ness Monster has reportedly been sighted. (1933) This was the first modern sighting of the creature, and it started the Loch Ness search craze. Theories about what the Loch Ness Monster is – or if it even exists – abound and include everything from a rare species of whale to a dinosaur that survived the swing of the water.
J. Edgar Hoover has died. (1972) Hoover was the director of the FBI for nearly 50 years and virtually created it in its modern form. He wielded an incredible amount of power and kept files on millions of potential “dissidents,” which eventually led to congressional reforms in the FBI.
Confederate General Stonewall Jackson was wounded by friendly fire. (1863) he Died a few days later of his wounds. Jackson was Robert E. Lee’s right hand man and his death was a major blow to the Confederacy.
Spanish citizens rebelled against the French occupiers. (1808) French forces had occupied Spain since February of that year on Napoleon’s orders. The revolt was violent, but ultimately unsuccessful, and was the subject of two famous paintings by Francisco de Goya.
The first airliner flew. (1952) The de Havilland Comet was the first commercial aircraft to be powered by jet engines as opposed to the much more inefficient turboprop engine. It made its first flight on this day from London to Johannesburg.
Tennessee Williams won the Pulitzer Prize for Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. (1955) The play, which was later adapted into a film, was said to be Williams’ favorite.
Precision GPS has become publicly available. (2000) Before today, precision GPS was tightly controlled and only available to the military. The degraded “Selective Availability” signal available to civilians was turned off at midnight on May 1, and precision GPS was made available to the public.
Prisoners have taken control of Alcatraz. (1946) Alcatraz prisoners took over the facilities for two days in what was later dubbed the “Battle of Alcatraz.” Several guards and prisoners were killed before prison officials regained control, and the incident led to increased security at the prison.
Good Housekeeping was initially put up for sale. (1885) The magazine quickly became popular with women and featured female guest writers including Virginia Woolf, Somerset Maugham and Edna St. Vincent Millay.
Comedian Jack Benny’s first radio show premiered. (1932) Benny was an extremely popular comedian and was known for his many different characters, propensity to play the violin badly, and absurd scenarios.
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