The American Warship That Accidentally Launched A Torpedo At FDR
Today in 1943, a US Navy ship almost caused a gigantic tragedy, by inadvertently launching a torpedo at the president of the United States.
The “Parcel Post Bank” Was Mailed To Its Construction Site, A Few Bricks At A Time
This day in 1916 was an important day in US Postal Service history - a rule change that came after the community of Vernal, Utah basically had a bank mailed to them, in installments of bricks.
Each Year, London Pays Rent To The Crown For Land That’s… Somewhere
The UK has lots of traditions. Here's another one: once a year, sometime between about now and mid November, the city of London pays rent to the Crown for several pieces of land in what’s called the Ceremony of Quit Rents.
Carlton Fisk’s Home Run Wave Changed TV Sports, But It Almost Didn’t Get Filmed At All
Today in 1975, game 6 of the World Series between the Cincinnati Reds and the Boston Red Sox. The iconic clip of Carlton Fisk waving his game-winning home run fair was caught by the camera kind of by accident.
There’s A Farm In The Middle Of A British Highway
Stott Hall Farm is an unusual place; on either side of the place, there's the UK's M62 highway. We'll explain how it happened.
The Guy Who Traded A Paper Clip And Ended Up With A House
This week in 2005, Kyle MacDonald of Montreal had a red paperclip. This week in 2006, MacDonald had traded away the paperclip, and, after a few more trades, ended up with a house.
Elizabeth Prettejohn, The Last Person In Hallsands Village
On this day in 1917, a massive storm destroyed most of the small village of Hallsands, in southern England. Nearly everyone in town moved away after that, but one resident, Elizabeth Prettejohn, stayed for the rest of her life, until the mid 1960s.
A Guy Taking An Online Class May Have Made An Archaeological Find
Chris Sedden was looking at scans of a site near where he lived, and spotted something “a bit odd, and a bit round.” It might be a lost henge!
The Most Powerful Cat May Be The One At 10 Downing Street
Whenever a new Prime Minister takes office in the UK, the first question many people ask is: what happens to the cat living at the official residence at 10 Downing Street? We'll look at some of the most famous felines to ever hold the title Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office.