March 19 The United States, along with coalition forces primarily from the United Kingdom, initiates war on Iraq. Just after explosions began to rock Baghdad, Iraq’s capital, U.S. president George W. Bush announces in a televised address, “At this hour, American and coalition forces are in the early stages of
This month, the Aurora Public Library (APL) is recognizing the year 2020 as historically significant for several reasons that impact all members of our community, State, and Country. August 18, 1920, after a campaign for suffrage led by some of the greatest heroes of their time, the 19th Amendment to
The Aurora Navy League Council 247 will hold its monthly dinner meeting Tuesday, March 17. The meeting will be held at Grandma’s Table Restaurant, 1700 Douglas Road, Montgomery, just north of U.S. Route 30. The after-dinner speaker will be John Lindstedt who will speak on The History of the U.S.
March 12 In a dramatic speech to a joint session of Congress, U.S. president Harry S Truman asks for U.S. assistance for Greece and Turkey to forestall communist domination of the two nations. Some historians often have cited Truman’s address, which came to be known as the Truman Doctrine, as
“She may be the face I cannot forget. She may be the beauty or the beast, the famine or the feast.” “She” was composed by Charles Aznavour. Shahnour Variag Aznavourian was born in Paris, France May 22, 1924 to Armenian parents. His father sang in restaurants in France before opening
March 5 A mob of American colonists gather at the Customs House in Boston and begins taunting the British soldiers guarding the building. The protesters, who called themselves Patriots, were protesting the occupation of their city by British troops. The colonists threw snowballs and other objects at the British and
“Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?” —Mary Oliver I wish we could have met. It would have been a meeting of the minds. In writing, Mary Oliver could create her own world with nature as her teacher. Just as do
February 27 A group of masked and costumed students dance through the streets of New Orleans, La. to mark the beginning of the city’s famous Mardi Gras celebrations. – 1827. The 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which provides for female suffrage, is unanimously declared constitutional by the eight members
Stolp Avenue, Aurora, part three: Part two is available at thevoice.us/aurora-hotel-and-leland-tower-start-early-days-on-stolp In 1964, Stolp Avenue and Island Avenue downtown were conjoined into one street (Stolp), and all of the addresses changed to either North or South Stolp with Galena Boulevard as the zero point. Before listing any new businesses, I’ll
The Aurora Police and Fire Departments observed a moment of silence over the radio Saturday, Feb. 15 to mark one year since the mass shooting at the Henry Pratt Company where five workers were killed and five Aurora Police officers were injured. At 1:24 p.m. Saturday, exactly one year since
An interesting book entitled “The Axemaker’s Gift” was written by James Burke and Robert Ornstein and released 25 years ago. Their premise is that axemakers, their discoveries and innovations, significantly improved and changed lives. In the ancient past, we all came out of Africa and began to inhabit the planet.
The Batavia Depot Museum will open for the season March 2 with a new exhibit, Community, Culture, and Conversations; African American Heritage in Batavia. Attendees can learn why early African Americans decided to call Batavia home, and what their lives were like here after the Civil War. An opening reception
February 20 U.S. president George Washington signs legislation to create the U.S. Postal Service to guarantee inexpensive delivery of all newspapers, stipulating the right to privacy, and granting Congress the ability to expand postal service to new areas of the Nation. – 1792 From Cape Canaveral, Fla., John Hershel Glenn,
“Haste and bow at Cupid’s shrine and welcome in St. Valentine. “All be merry, frank and free and form the Lover’s Jubilee.” —From a Valentine writer, 19th Century British printers produced the first ready-made valentine cards in 1797. Images of popular love tokens were combined with inscribed verses. Fancy papers
The Parker & Sons Mills at Oswego, ground grain into flour, sawed timber into lumber, and manufactured furniture. At 1:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 29, historian and architect Michael Lambert will recount the “Early Industrial Development Along the Fox River” at the Little White School Museum, 72 Polk Street in Oswego.
February 13 Italian philosopher, astronomer, and mathematician, Galileo Galilei, arrives in Rome to face charges of heresy for advocating Copernican theory, which holds that the Earth revolves around the Sun. Galileo officially faced the Roman Inquisition in April of that same year and agreed to plead guilty in exchange for
This school year the bands at West Aurora High School are celebrating their centennial. It is an amazing milestone that very few programs in the Nation can claim. We are seeking help in promoting some of the activities we have planned for the Centennial Celebration. In an effort to create
This week we will revisit naturalist and author Beatrix Potter and her magical creations. In 2014 I wrote an article about her, but a friend gave me a book recently entitled “Beatrix Potter’s Gardening Life,” and there is much more to tell about her enchanting life. Beatrix was born July
February 6 Ironworkers from six cities meet in Pittsburgh, Pa. to form the International Association of Bridge and Structural Iron Workers of America. Their pay in Pittsburgh at the time: $2.75 for a nine-hour day. – 1896. After a long illness, King George VI of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
“Non, je ne regretted rien. No, I regret nothing.” —Edith Piaf The high drama of Edith Piaf’s life brought her 47 years on this earth to a place where her singing of chanson and torch ballads gave love, loss, and sorrow, a deep resonance. What a beginning! Edith Giovanna Gassion
