United States
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Robert Frost
“Nature’s first green is gold, Her hardest hue to hold. Her early leaf’s a flower; But only so an hour. Then leaf subsides to leaf, So Eden sank to grief, So dawn goes down to day Nothing gold can stay.” I was introduced to Frost at a young age and the above poem “Nothing Gold Can Stay” is the earliest poem that I remember learning in school. It’s one of the only poems I can still recite word for word. I figured since today is National Poetry Day I would post about one of my favorite poets. Robert Frost was born in San Francisco, California, to journalist William Prescott Frost,…
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RMS Titanic
Probably one of the most famous ships of all time the RMS Titanic was at the time (before she tragically sank) a modern marvel, being the largest ship afloat. Her name Titanic was derived from Greek mythology and meant gigantic. Built in Belfast, Ireland, in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, Titanic was the second of three, the RMS Olympic was the first and the third was the HMHS Britannic. The Britannic would also tragically sink in 1916, after hitting a mine or torpedo laid by the German minelayer submarine U79 in a barrier off Kea during World War I (another post). They were by far the largest…
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Edgar Allan Poe: A Mystery Even in Death
One of the largest misconceptions about Edgar Allan Poe is that he was a supposed drug addict and alcoholic which led to his untimely and mysterious death. On a chilly October afternoon in Baltimore, Poe was seen spending time in a bar room before being found in a delirious state wearing ragged clothes – that were not his mind you – that led to a one-way trip to the hospital. While this has lead to many theories about what happened to Poe that afternoon, and in the following days, it has always been assumed that Poe was drunk and died of alcohol poisoning. Even though this has been popular theory…
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Hatfield – McCoy Family Feud
When thinking of great family feuds most would think of the Wars of the Roses but for Americans, The Hatfields and Mccoys feud is notorious. The Hatfields of West Virginia were led by William Anderson “Devil Anse” Hatfield while the McCoys of Kentucky were under the leadership of Randolph “Ole Ran’l” McCoy. Those involved in the feud were descended from Ephraim Hatfield and William McCoy. The majority of the Hatfields lived in Mingo County (then part of Logan County), West Virginia and fought for the Confederacy in the American Civil War; most McCoys, lived in Pike County, Kentucky, also fought for the Confederacy; with the exception of Asa Harmon McCoy,…
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Jean Lafitte
Little is known of Lafitte’s early life, but records show that by 1809 he and his brother Pierre appeared to have established themselves in New Orleans, Louisiana. They started a blacksmith shop that was actually serving as a depot for smuggled goods and slaves brought ashore by bands of privateers. From around 1810 to 1814 this group probably formed what would become Lafitte’s illicit colony on the secluded islands of Barataria Bay south of the city. Holding privateer commissions from the republic of Cartagena (in modern Colombia), Lafitte’s group preyed on Spanish commerce, eventually disposing of its plunder through merchant connections on the mainland. Barataria Bay was a very important…
