Today in History
October 04
1957: The former Soviet Union (now Russia) successfully launched Sputnik into space. Sputnik was an unmanned spacecraft, a satellite, that because of its success in achieving orbit, ushered in the space race between the United States and the Soviet Union. This space race was a facet of the Cold War between the two countries. When President John F. Kennedy took office in 1961, he challenged the United States to be the first country to send a man to the moon before the end of the decade, a feat accomplished in 1969.
1861: Construction of the first U.S. Navy ironclad warship, the USS Monitor, was authorized.
1822: Rutherford B. Hayes, 19th president and first "high tech" president, was born in Ohio. Hayes was the first president to use a typewriter and a telephone in the White House.
STAY CURRENT
25th Anniversary of 9/11 in Shanksville, Pennsylvania
Editor’s Note: Sept. 14, 2026 – On September 11, 2001, I was producing a student news section within a major broadcast network’s website. While...
Independence One Draws Thousands at EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh
Aug. 10, 2026 – Independence One, Southwest Airlines’ tribute to the nationwide America250 celebration, recently attracted thousands of visitors when it was on display...
SCIENCE IN HISTORY
Pathfinder Pilot Recalls D-Day
Editor's Note: In May 2019 I traveled to Oxford, Connecticut for media day hosted by the D-Day Squadron as they prepared to depart to...
See the Forest AND the Trees at Redwood National Park
Editor's Note: In 2015, I visited a redwood forest in northern California for the first time. Before arriving at the edge of the forest,...
Take a Hike – Into a Cauldron!
Editor's Note: In 2015, I visited Lassen Volcanic National Park in northern California. Its history is the history of the National Park Service because...
Glass: a Hot and Cool Combo of Art and Science
Editor's note: One of the hottest and coolest stories I have covered was my 2016 visit to the Toledo Museum of Art's Glass Pavilion...
Sneakers Have Soles – and Soul
Editor's note: In December 2015 I learned of a new exhibit at the Toledo Museum of Art - The Rise of Sneaker Culture. Curated...
A Graphic Novel: On the Front Lines with Larry Lather*
Editor's note: Feb. 11, 2026 - In 2020 as the pandemic unfolded, I decided to create a graphic novel about the importance of handwashing...
RECOMMENDED READING
Nancy Love: WASP Pilot
May 22, 2026 - Nancy Love: WASP Pilot by Sarah Byrn Rickman (2019) is the story of...
Book Recommendation: The Berlin Candy Bomber
March 20, 2026 - The Berlin Candy Bomber by Gail Halvorsen (2010, 244 pages) is Halvorsen's autobiography...
Book Recommendation: Rosa Parks: A Life
March 17, 2026 - In the 1990s, Douglas Brinkley, author and historian, was searching for a definitive...