On the late summer of 1859, the world of energy shifted dramatically toward petroleum. On August 27, 1859, Edwin L. Drake—working on behalf of the Seneca Oil Company (formerly the Pennsylvania Rock Oil Company)—succeeded where many before him had failed. Along Oil Creek near…
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The first edition of the Guinness Book of Records was published in Great Britain on August 27, 1955, marking the beginning of what would become a global phenomenon. Conceived as a book to settle pub arguments, it quickly transformed into one of the most…
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“Rome, once the capital of the world, is now the grave of the Roman people,” wrote Saint Jerome of a cataclysm in 410 of a disaster that few could have predicted. On August 27 of that year, following 800 years of military domination and…
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On August 26, 2021, just days before the United States was set to complete its withdrawal from Afghanistan, the war’s closing chapter turned bloody. At Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, where tens of thousands of Afghans were crowding the gates in a desperate…
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John Fitch, an American inventor, secured a patent for the steamboat on August 26, 1791, marking a significant milestone in the early history of American innovation and transportation. Fitch’s journey to this achievement was fraught with challenges, yet his relentless determination laid the groundwork…
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On August 26, 1883, the loudest sound ever recorded happened in Indonesia on a caldera situated in the Sunda Strait between the islands of Java and Sumatra in the Indonesian province of Lampung. The volcano known as Krakatoa erupted with such force that it…
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On August 25, 1945—just ten days after Japan announced its surrender and brought the Second World War to a close—an American intelligence officer named John Birch was killed in China under circumstances that soon became freighted with political meaning. To his comrades, he was…
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On August 25, 1950, as the Korean War raged overseas, the United States faced a critical threat on the home front—a looming nationwide railroad strike that could paralyze the nation’s transportation network and cripple the war effort. Recognizing the catastrophic impact such a strike…
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On August 24, 1814, a significant and devastating event unfolded in American history—the burning of the White House by British forces. This dramatic episode occurred during the War of 1812, a conflict between the United States and Great Britain that had been raging for…
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On August 23, 1839, the Union Jack was raised over Hong Kong, securing for Britain not only a natural harbor but also a vital position from which to defend free commerce in Asia. What might have seemed a barren outpost to the casual observer…
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