November 9, 1979: False Alarm Scares NORAD

On November 9, during the height of Cold War tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union, NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense Command) computers and the Alternate National Military Command Center at Fort Ritchie, Maryland, sounded a chilling alarm. The automated systems detected…

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November 8, 1861: Lincoln’s Greatest Diplomacy

On November 8, 1861, the Abraham Lincoln and Secretary of State William Seward found themselves caught in one of the most important diplomatic conflicts during the Civil War. Called the “The Trent Affair,” the incident involved the interception of a British mail steamer, the RMS Trent,…

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