It’s May 10, and raise your hand if you saw yesterday’s transit of Mercury across the Sun. (I haven’t gotten any photos from readers.)
On this day in 1869, the first transcontinental railroad in North America was completed with the joining of rails at Promontory Summit, Utah, so today is officially called Golden Spike Day. (They used a ceremonial golden spike, which was of course removed.) In 1916, Ernest Shackleton and five brave men arrived at South Georgia Island on the last leg of their Most Horrible Journey. They still had to cross the island to get to a whaling station where they could summon help for the rest of the men, marooned 800 miles away on Elephant Island. It was a most remarkable journey. On this day in 1954, Bill Halley and the Comets released “Rock Around the Clock”, thought by many to be the first rock and roll song. I can still remember hearing it for the first time, where I heard it (General Quinn’s house in Greece)—and I was only four and a half years old! On this day in 1994, Nelson Mandela took office as South Africa’s first black president.
Births on this day include John Wilkes Booth (1838), Fred Astaire (1899), Donovan (1946), Sid Vicious (1957), and Bono (1960). Those who died on May 10, include Paul Revere (1818), Joan Crawford (1977), and Walker Percy (1990).
Meanwhile in Dobrzyn, the beasts are taunting each other:
Hili: Are you enjoying freedom or do you feel excluded?Cyrus: It bothers me that I can’t nip you now.
Hili: Czy cieszysz się wolnością, czy czujesz się wykluczony?
Cyrus: Martwię się, że nie mogę cię teraz ugryźć.
Did the general approve?!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Wilson_Quinn
I must say, the Gen. Quinn story sounds better than hearing rock around the clock the first time. Very long and impressive life…
The three part series on Shackleton with Kenneth Branagh is excellent. Its from A&E when it was still Arts and Entertainment not reenacted grisly murders.
I endorse that recommendation.
One of the men on that boat, was on the Discovery expedition, Tera Nova expedition and the Endurance expedition.
Tom Crean was from a small village in Kerry and after his adventures set up a small pub called the south pole in Annascaul, Kerry. Look him up, story is just unbelievable.
From Kilauea volcano on the Big Island Hawaii, my wife and out put out our small refractor with solar filter. Caught about 25 minutes of the transit just after sunrise. Then clouds obscured the sun thereafter.
We have a vacation rental next door. There was a family from China in for the night. We beckoned to them to come over and have a look. They did, with much interest.
That would be Bill Haley, not Bill Halley.
I seem to recall that this was a pet peeve of Steve Gould, who blamed rocker Haley for the common mispronunciation by Americans of astronomer Halley’s name. Though it now appears that Halley himself wasn’t very consistent about spelling or pronunciation.
In one of those quirky little asides to history, the Union Pacific – Central Pacific ‘transcontinental’ rail route wasn’t truly completed until 1872, when the Missouri bridge at Omaha was completed. It was scooped by the Kansas Pacific from Kansas City via Denver which connected in to the Union Pacific main line at Cheyenne. So really the KP’s joining at Strasburg, Colorado (just east of Denver) in August 1870 is the date when the east and west coasts were truly connected.
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