History Dispatches

Hygiene is a critical component to one's health. But our understanding of hygiene goes back only to the mid-19th century, where a Bavarian chemist, Max von Pettenkofer, turned hygiene principals from a series of old wives tales to a hard science. This is the story of Max von Pettenkofer, the father of modern hygiene.

Sources

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2723483/pdf/12199_2008_Article_BF02898030.pdf

https://www.mvp.uni-muenchen.de/en/institute/geschichte/

Image: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Max_Joseph_von_Pettenkofer#/media/File:Max_von_Pettenkofer2.jpg

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In 1970, a 45 foot long, eight ton whale washed up on the beach near Florence, Oregon. Local officials weren’t sure what to do with the stinking, decomposing whale - so they decided to get rid of it by blowing it up with half a ton of dynamite. This is the story of the Exploding Whale of Florence.

Sources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exploding_whale

https://www.xplodingwhale.com/

https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/florence_whale_explosion/

https://davebarry.substack.com/p/the-exploding-whale

Watch the whale blow up: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V6CLumsir34

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In the early morning hours of April 29, 1903, an enormous landslide in the mining town of Frank, Alberta, swept down the mountainside, killing dozens of people, and leaving half of the town buried. The worst part, if the town had listened to local lore, it could have been preventable.

Sources

https://www.geoinstitute.org/news/case-study-frank-slide

https://ags.aer.ca/our-science/turtle-mountain/frank-slide

Image: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Slide#/media/File:News03a.jpg

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In late 1775, British and American forces were locked in a stalemate around Boston. The British were dug in, and the Americans lacked the heavy artillery to unseat them. And that’s when a Boston bookseller - 25 year old Henry Knox - suggested that artillery recently captured at Fort Ticonderoga be hauled overland to Boston. The only problem was that Fort Ticonderoga was more than 300 miles away, and many said bringing 60 tons of artillery over lakes, rivers and mountains - in the winter - was impossible. This is the story of Henry Knox and the Guns of Fort Ticonderoga.

Sources

https://www.battlefields.org/learn/articles/guns-ticonderoga

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noble_train_of_artillery

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Knox

Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Siegeofbostonartillery.jpg

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Military units often have mascots, but not many are as impactful as Sgt. Gander, a massive Newfoundland dog donated to the Royal Rifles of Canada. Sgt. Gander was the quintessential military dog - and his actions during World War II saved many lives during the Battle of Hong Kong.

Sources

https://www.veterans.gc.ca/en/remembrance/memorials/canada/sergeant-gander-and-his-handler-memorial

https://www.hkvca.ca/cforcedata/indivreport/indivdetailed.php?regtno=X200#gsc.tab=0

Image: Canada. Dept. of National Defense / Library and Archives Canada - https://recherche-collection-search.bac-lac.gc.ca/fra/accueil/notice?idnumber=3241498&app=FonAndCol&resource=folderlist&ecopy=a116791-v6

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