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The Loony Gas Building
In 1924, five men dropped dead in New Jersey. Not altogether a strange occurrence, but it led to the discovery of a case of industrial poisoning. The bodies were taken to the New York medical examiner’s office to be studied by our old friend, Chuck Norris. This Chuck Norris, as you know from a previous post (http://wp.me/p7RlFb-4z), was not the martial arts specialist, but a badass in a different arena. Dr. Charles Norris was one of the foremost pioneers in the science of forensic pathology. The five men all worked in the Standard Oil Refinery in Bayway, New Jersey in a building nicknamed the Loony Gas Building. It looked like…
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Manco Inca Yupanqui
The Inca had a great empire in what is now Peru, parts of Ecuador, western and south central Bolivia, northwest Argentina, north and Chile and a small part of southern Colombia. They were the Roman Empires of the Americas. However, they when the Spanish explorers first encountered them the Inca were coming off a debilitating civil war and in the middle of a smallpox epidemic. 160 Spanish Conquistadors arrived in Peru with Francisco Pizarro, and they took full advantage of the destabilizing political situation. The civil war was between two brothers who both claimed the throne- Atahuallpa and Huascar. The war was only ended when Atahuallpa killed his brother, however,…
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Chuck Norris and Prohibition
No Virginia, I do not mean Chuck Norris the martial arts expert. I am referring to Dr. Charles Norris of Hoboken, NJ who grew up to be New York City’s first medical examiner. Working with toxicologist Dr. Alexander Gettler, the two revolutionized the science of forensic pathology. You can thank them for every CSI show on television today. The two of them worked for the state of New York at the height of prohibition. Coroners in New York was a government job like everything else and handed out like a political appointment. Many were corrupt and charged fees to turn over a body or sold causes of death on the…
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Lady Agnes Randolph, Countess of Moray- Black Agnes
As a person of Scottish descent, I can attest that you do not mess with a Scottish woman. My grandmother was five foot four and ninety pounds soaking wet, and could put the fear of God in her six foot plus and two hundred pound sons with only a look. I was put in mind of that memory when I researched the story of Lady Agnes Randolph. She faced down an English army without ever raising a sword and won. Born in 1312 to Thomas Randolph 1st Earl of Moray and his wife, Isabel Stewart. The Earl was the nephew of Robert the Bruce, who had become king of Scotland…
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David Walker- Radical for Justice
David Walker was an Abolitionist who wrote one of the most radical pamphlets of the anti-slavery movement. Born in Wilmington, North Carolina on September 28, 1785, his father was a slave and his mother was free. Because of his mother, David grew up free as well and was given an education. However, growing up free did not protect him from the ugly side of slavery. One incident that left a mark on him was being forced to watch a son whip his mother to death. He moved to Boston, where there was a bit more freedom, but there was still discrimination. David set up a used clothing store in…
