May 24, 1883: Brooklyn Bridge Opens to Traffic
On this day in 1883, the Brooklyn Bridge opened to traffic. The first person to cross the bridge was Emily Roebling, wife of project engineer Washington Roebling. Washington Roebling had become sick after taking over for his father, John Roebling, who had died as a result of a freak accident at the construction site.
Having studied mathematics and the concepts of bridge building, Emily assisted her husband throughout the entire construction of the Brooklyn Bridge.
The period after the Civil War was a time of great transition – and innovation – in the United States. From the Ken Burns’s Brooklyn Bridge site, this timeline shows the progression of the New York-Brooklyn Bridge, which was the premier engineering feat of its time, and puts its construction in greater historical context.
Source: to.pbs.org
May 21, 1927
Charles Lindbergh Completes First Solo Transatlantic Flight
Fighting fog, icing, and sleep deprivation, Charles A. Lindbergh becomes the first aviator to make a solo, non-stop, transatlantic flight.
Lindbergh and his “Spirit of St. Louis” took off from Roosevelt Field on Long Island, New York on May 20 and landed at Le Bourget Field in Paris 33 hours and 30 minutes later.
He covered a distance of 3,610 miles. By making the flight, Lindbergh collected a $25,000 purse that had been offered by New York hotel owner Raymond Orteig.
Read the entire timeline of Lindbergh’s flight here.
Source: to.pbs.org
May 17, 1954
Supreme Court Rules Against School Segregation in Brown v. Board of Education
On this day in 1954, the Supreme Court ruled against school segregation in the Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka ruling.
Although African Americans first sued (unsuccessfully) to stop mandated racially segregated education in 1849, the successful lawsuits known as Brown v. Board of Education were the culmination of a litigation strategy initiated in the 1930’s.
For more information on the this history of segregation, check out our Evolution of Brown vs. Board of Education fact sheet.
Source: to.pbs.org
May 10, 1994: Nelson Mandela Becomes President of South Africa
On this day in 1994, Nelson Mandela was inaugurated as South Africa’s first black president. Mandela had spent 27 years imprisoned for working in the anti-apartheid movement.
FRONTLINE’s “The Long Walk of Nelson Mandela” site takes an inside look at his childhood, revolutionary years, imprisonment, and personal life.
Source: to.pbs.org
Chernobyl in Pictures
Last year, on the 25th anniversary of the meltdown at Chernobyl, NewsHour science correspondent Miles O’Brien visited Chernobyl to see what life is like there now.
See the pictures from his visit and watch his report on the PBS NewsHour site.
Source: to.pbs.org
April 26, 1986: Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Disaster
During a test of Reactor number four on April 26, 1986, engineers lost control of the Chernobyl Power Plant, resulting in a series of explosions and fires.
Chernobyl is widely considered to be the worst nuclear plant accident in history. The meltdown was given the highest rating on the International Nuclear Event Scale, Level 7.
The Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster in 2011 is the only other event to receive a Level 7 rating.
Twenty-six years after the Chernobyl disaster, radiation levels continue to be unsafe in areas surrounding the plant, and meltdown-related environmental and health effects in the region persist.
Infographic: It’s estimated that Chernobyl’s nuclear meltdown released about 400 times more radiation than the Hiroshima bomb. However, it’s important to note that the immediate death toll was far greater for Hiroshima, since Hiroshima was a densely-populated city.
Source: to.pbs.org
APRIL 24, 1945: Manhattan Project Revealed to President Truman
On this day in 1945, President Truman was made of aware of the top secret Manhattan Project to develop the first atomic bomb. During his presidency, President Roosevelt had not divulged the details of the project’s plans to Truman.
In the clip above, a contributor brings History Detectives a patent with his father’s name on it. He is certain that his father worked on the famous Manhattan Project - America’s covert effort to be the first to build an atomic weapon during World War II.
Was this invention used to build the Atomic Bomb? History Detectives discovers a plan to hide atomic secrets in plain sight. Watch the video.
Source: to.pbs.org
APRIL 23, 1564: William Shakespeare is Born
Historians believe that Shakespeare was born on this day in 1564. He also died on this same day in 1616, at the age of 52.
William Shakespeare is most famous for Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, King Lear, and A Midsummer Night’s Dream, but he had countless other tragedies, comedies, and poems.
You think you have what it takes to succeed as an Elizabethan playwright? Play the choose-your-own adventurePlaywright Game!
Source: to.pbs.org
APRIL 20, 2010: Deepwater Horizon Explosion
Two years ago today, an explosion on the Deepwater Horizon oil rig caused a massive oil spill that would last for months in the Gulf of Mexico.
Soon after the spill, FRONTLINE and ProPublica set out to joint investigate the trail of problems that led to the disaster, including deadly accidents and countless safety violations which long troubled the oil giant, BP.
Could the disaster in the Gulf of Mexico have been prevented?
Watch “The Spill” right here and read Azmat Khan’s “Do We Need a ‘Death Penalty’ for Negligent Oil Companies?”
Source: to.pbs.org
APRIL 12, 1861: The Civil War Begins
On this day in 1861, the Civil War began with the Confederate army’s attack on Union-controlled Fort Sumter in South Carolina.
“Send me your picture” was a common refrain in letters to soldiers from the homefront. The soldiers obliged often sending carte de viste photographs - so-called because they were the size of visiting cards.
For more portraits of soldiers, visit Ken Burns’s companion site for his award-wining documentary, The Civil War.
Photos (clockwise): boy soldier, Pvt. Philip Carper (C.S.A), unknown Confederate soldier, Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman, Gen. Robert E. Lee, and Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant.
Source: to.pbs.org
