Gov. John Peter Altgeld, 175 Years

John Peter Altgeld was governor of Illinois in 1893-1897. Born in what is now the Rhineland-Palatinate on December 30, 1847---175 years ago today---he was an infant when his parents emigrated with him to the U.S. As governor he led progressive reforms like child labor laws and workplace safety. Among the several people whom he pardoned were three men convicted in the Haymarket bombing of 1886. He also refused to break up the Pullman railroad strike by force. Controversial in his time, he is considered one of Illinois' best governors, up there with Edward Coles (1822-1826) and Thomas Ford (1842-1846). In my lifetime, at least, Illinois governors have been notorious for getting in trouble with the law. (Photo from: https://primarysourcenexus.org/2013/12/today-history-john-peter-altgeld/)

Stan Lee, 100 Years!

100 years!  Stan Lee was born on this day (as Stanley Lieber) in 1922!  He died in 2018.

(picture from: https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/people/stan-lee)

Of course, comics always makes me think of Capps' Drug Store and the Day 'n' Nite Supermarket in my hometown Vandalia, IL, where I typically bought them. 

 

Wounded Knee Anniversary

"On December 29 [1890], the U.S. Army’s 7th Cavalry surrounded a band of Ghost Dancers under Big Foot, a Lakota Sioux chief, near Wounded Knee Creek [on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota], and demanded they surrender their weapons. As that was happening, a fight broke out between an Indian and a U.S. soldier and a shot was fired, although it’s unclear from which side. A brutal massacre followed, in which an estimated 150 Indians were killed (some historians put this number at twice as high), nearly half of them women and children. The cavalry lost 25 men.... Some historians speculate that the soldiers of the 7th Cavalry were deliberately taking revenge for the regiment’s defeat at Little Bighorn in 1876."

https://www.history.com/topics/native-american-history/wounded-knee?fbclid=IwAR0E8tdCMXJ3pM0Kr3oWikgFfSIpfqDfrytgs3tUUuWOA5e9emXbVYCJBGM

Actor James Gregory

I meant to post this last week. Actor James Gregory was born December 23, 1911. He was a regular on the series "Barney Miller," the 1959-1961 series "The Lawless Years," and an episode of "Star Trek TOS." He also appeared on stage, and in movies like "The Manchurian Candidate," "PT 109," "Beneath the Planet of the Apes," and others. 

When Emily was a baby and we still lived in Arizona, we were eating supper at a Sedona restaurant. As it turned out, Gregory was also there, a few tables away. (We learned later that he'd retired in Sedona. He died in 2002 and is buried there.) Gregory waved at Emily from his table during the meal. We told him that he was the first celebrity whom she'd met, which pleased him.

(Photo copied under fair use principles.) 

Dakota Indian Tragedy

The largest mass hanging in U.S. history took place 160 years ago yesterday. In the aftermath of the U.S.-Dakota War of 1862, 303 Dakotas were tried and sentenced to death, while 16 were given prison terms. President Lincoln commuted the sentences of all but 38, who were hanged at Mankato, Minnesota on December 26, 1862--two by mistake. 

https://www.usdakotawar.org/history/aftermath/trials-hanging?fbclid=IwAR3_xUPRBQtkkVmUykdYiC-Os6Fc5SSTqwbT7ODnCMO86ZdJ0zi2EuXNULc 

Louis Pasteur: 200 Years!

Don't let this birthday get past your eyes... Chemist and microbiologist Louis Pasteur was born on this day in 1822! 200 years!

Ava Gardner

Actress Ava Gardner was born 100 years ago, December 24, 1922. She died in 1990. She was alluringly beautiful and an excellent, honored actress. She was a lifelong supporter of civil rights for African Americans. She was born in central North Carolina and is buried there with family members.