Tag: History

History Lessons

How Florida fiddled with state flag

One hundred and seventy years ago – in 1845 – Florida entered the United States as its 27th member and designed a state flag that failed almost immediately. Ever since, Florida has been fiddling with its banner. The first flag carried a motto – “Let Us Alone” – that many people found offensive. A Vermont… continue

History Lessons

Truce flags summoned Christmas peace

It happened 100 years ago on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Soldiers from England, France and Germany, who had been killing one another in the trenches of World War I, stopped for a brief time. Hoisting white truce flags, they crawled over the tops of their trenches. The spontaneous event is known as the Christmas… continue

History Lessons

Tribe massacred despite American flag | Sand Creek

In late 1864, the Civil War was nearing its end. For nearly four years, American flags and Confederate banners had been flying above frays fought mainly on the East Coast. Another battle, which occurred in the Far West, involved flags that were ignored. Unrelated to the war, Federal troops descended on hundreds of Cheyenne and… continue

History Lessons

Famous bridge opens; infamous Nazi flag is ripped

A flag and a famous bridge were recently linked when two German artists/activists climbed the Brooklyn Bridge to fling two white-washed American flags to the breeze. They later claimed that they were honoring “the beauty of public space” and saluting the German-born architect who designed the span. In 1937, another famous bridge, on the verge… continue