January 9 Southern Tenant Farmers’ Union leads Missouri Highway sit-down of 1,700 families. They were evicted from their homes so landowners wouldn’t have to share government crop subsidy payments with them. – 1939. Apple Inc. CEO Steve Jobs unveils the iPhone, a touchscreen mobile phone with an iPod, camera, and
January 2 Georgia votes to ratify the U.S. Constitution to become the fourth state in the modern United States, and was one of the original 13 colonies. – 1788. Albert Fall, the secretary of the U.S. Department of Interior, resigns in response to public outrage over the Teapot Dome scandal.
By Ricky Rieckert Dear subscribers and readers, I hope everyone had a merry Christmas. In last week’s article on Aurora’s Aurora’s historical Fox Street (now E. Downer Place), I forgot to mention about the Stallion Restaurant, 35 S. Broadway, on the northwest corner of E. Downer Place, and Broadway. Today,
December 26 The first day of the first Kwanzaa is celebrated in Los Angeles under the direction of Maulana Karenga, the chair of Black Studies at California State University in Long Beach. The seven-day holiday, which has strong African roots, was designed by Dr. Karenga as a celebration of African
By Ricky Rieckert Hello everyone. I’m back to recount Aurora’s history, continuing from Fox Street, E. Downer, from Lincoln Avenue and heading towards downtown Aurora. On the southeast corner of Fox Street and Lasalle Street was the original Y.M.C.A.. It ended up being a drive-up for Merchants Bank. The “Y”
December 19 After nearly 14 hours of debate, the House of Representatives approves two articles of impeachment against president Bill Clinton and charges him with lying under oath to a federal grand jury and obstructing justice. Clinton, the second president in American history to be impeached, vows to finish his
The historic William Tanner House Museum is now festively decorated in holiday finery and is ready to receive visitors for the annual Tanner House Holidays, through December 29. Open days and hours are Sunday afternoons from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., December 8, 15, 22, and 29; and Friday evenings
By Ricky Rieckert This week in Aurora’s past, I’m going to write about the Main Hatters Store. But first, thanks to the subscribers and/or readers, and The Voice, for two more fan letters. Last week, we were discussing the Hammond family on Liberty Street. This week will be Main Hatters,
December 12 More than two years after it was stolen from the Louvre Museum in Paris, Leonardo da Vinci’s masterpiece The Mona Lisa is recovered inside Italian waiter Vincenzo Peruggia’s hotel room in Florence. Peruggia previously had worked at the Louvre and had participated in the heist with a group
By Ricky Rieckert As we enter a new week, I hope everyone enjoyed Thanksgiving Day, and any extra, time with family and friends. Last week when writing about The First Presbyterian Church, we had a small glitch: It was organized in 1858, not 1958. On the First United Methodist Church,
December 5 A fire at the Brooklyn Theater in New York City kills nearly 300 individuals and injures hundreds more. Some victims perished from a combination of burns and smoke inhalation; others were trampled to death in the general panic that ensued. – 1876. The 21st Amendment to the U.S.
By Ricky Rieckert I want to wish all subscribers, readers, and all, a happy Thanksgiving Day, with your families and loved ones. I was unable to write for a few weeks because I have been in the hospital with foot injuries. I’ll be out soon, hopefully. Back to Aurora’s history,
November 28 After sailing through the dangerous straits below South America, that now bear his name, Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan enters the Pacific Ocean with three ships to become the first European explorer to reach the Pacific from the Atlantic. – 1520. Frank Duryea wins the first motor-car race in
Honor Oswego’s veterans from the Civil War through the 21st Century by visiting the Little White School Museum annual “Remembering our Veterans” special exhibit at the museum, 72 Polk Street (Jackson at Polk), just two blocks from historic downtown Oswego. This is the 18th year the museum has hosted the
November 21 The American inventor Thomas A. Edison announces his invention of the phonograph, a way to record and play back sound. – 1877. A Senate committee issues a report charging that U.S. government officials were behind assassination plots against two foreign leaders and were heavily involved in at least
November 14 In Constantinople, capital of the Ottoman Empire, the religious leader Sheikh-ul-Islam declares an Islamic holy war on behalf of the Ottoman government and urges his Muslim followers to take up arms against Britain, France, Russia, Serbia, and Montenegro in World War I. – 1914. The Depression-era Public Works
Honor Oswego’s veterans from the Civil War through the 21st Century by visiting the Little White School Museum annual “Remembering our Veterans” special exhibit at the museum, 72 Polk Street (Jackson at Polk), just two blocks from historic downtown Oswego. It will be the 18th year the museum has been
November 7 U.S. president Franklin Delano Roosevelt is elected to an unprecedented fourth term in office. FDR remains the only president to have served more than two terms. – 1944. November 8 U.S. president Franklin D. Roosevelt announces plans for the Civil Works Administration to create four million additional jobs
By Ricky Rieckert Dear readers, subscribers, all. This week, I’m going to write about, first, something a reader suggested. Betty sent me a compliment about my articles and that she likes reading them. She said it brings back memories. This letter was forwarded to me from The Voice. Upon reading,
October 31 The priest and scholar Martin Luther approaches the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany, and nails a piece of paper to it containing the 95 revolutionary opinions that would begin the Protestant Reformation. In his theses, Luther condemned the excesses and corruption of the Roman Catholic
