Professor Walter's History Lessons

The South Shall Rise Again!

In 1865 when General Lee surrendered at Appomattox Courthouse it was clear the south had lost the Civil War.  A group of approx. 200 loyal Confederate Citizens collected as many valuables and weapons that they could carry (slaves were not included for fear they could escape and alert the Union) and made their way into the Appalachian Mountains.  Even as reconstruction started this band, who became known as the Southern Survivors dug into the mountain and built a life for themselves.  They worked carefully to hide all traces of their whereabouts from the United States and grew their society digging deeper into the mountains.  By the 1920s there were an estimated three thousand Southern Survivors in their city.  Through the roaring '20s the Survivors sent out small bands to major cities to monitor the changes that had occurred as they hid in the mountains. 

Upon reporting back the Survivors determined that the United States was not and never could be their country.  They decided to seal the entrances to their cities to prevent discovery and live completely under ground fed via natural springs and a wide assortment of cultured mushrooms and small livestock.  They remained in their city until they were accidentally discovered by the crew of Unsolved Mysteries in 1988, which was filming a show on Bigfoot.   After negotiations with the crew of the show, the decision was made to not publicly announce their whereabouts.  A small group of representatives from the Southern Survivors trekked to Washington D.C. and were granted a secret sovereignty for their city underground.  As per the terms of the agreement the land above would remain part of the United States but the land below would be the Confederate City of America.

Today the Confederate City of America survives within their subterranean country trading with the outside world as necessary.  Many hope that one day they will re-integrate with American society.  However, since those who are members of the Southern Survivors are proud of their independence and the fact that after one hundred years they won their sovereignty, it is doubtful this will ever happen.

-Professor Walter

p.s. April Fools ;)

In hindsight not the best idea

Robert Overcracker was a 39 year old Californian who wanted to promote awareness of homelessness.  He decided that racing his jet ski towards Horseshoe Falls at Niagara Falls then leaping off at the last minute before he plunged to his death would do the trick.  His plan called for a rocket propelled parachute to carry him to safety.  On October 1st 1995 he launched his jet ski into the water without any problem and raced towards the falls.  Upon leaping off he was undoubtedly dismayed to discover his parachute did not work.  Workers from the Maid of the Mist later recovered his body.  A vacationing Egyptian captured a photograph of the episode just after Overcracker leaped off his jet ski.  Google the name Robert Overcracker and you can see the epic image.

Sadly Overcracker's efforts brought limited attention to homelessness, but he has become a poster child for parachute awareness.

-Professor Walter

It got him elected, and he had to live with it

The 1968 presidential election was the 46th election and one of the most challenging.  The election was conducted against a backdrop of race riots, the assassination of presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, the assassination of civil right leader Martin Luther King Jr., anti-war demonstrations at the 1968 Democratic National Convention and widespread demonstrations against the Vietnam War.  There were three key candidates, Richard Nixon (Republican), Hubert Humphrey (Democrat) and George Wallace (American Independent).  For a torn nation it was a challenge to choose a candidate.  It was then that Nixon would do something unexpected that would give him the win

Richard Nixon took the unusual step of appearing on Rowen and Martin's Laugh-In to utter it's trademark phrase "Sock it to me?" in a questioning manner.  Candidate Humphrey was also invited but declined.  Later Humphrey stated that not doing it may have cost him the election.  The rest of his life Nixon said that appearing on Laugh-In is what got him elected, and he's had to live with that.

Nixon's legacy is laced with excellence and failure, honesty and deception, making him one of the most controversial presidents and the only one to resign.  However, his real legacy may be his appearance on Laugh-In.  In the last election all presidential and vice-presidential candidates appeared on Saturday Night Live, taking a cue from Nixon and his success and that of Humphrey's failure.

-Professor Walter

Confederate John S. Mosby and his impact on WWII

Born on December 6, 1833 John S. Mosby would grow to be come the "Gray Ghost" as a Confederate cavalry battalion commander.  He earned the nickname by his ability to guide his men into daring raids, then disappearing amongst the civilians when the Union soldiers arrived.  Though Mosby was not an advocate of slavery, he explained his position:

"I am not ashamed of having fought on the side of slavery —a soldier fights for his country — right or wrong — he is not responsible for the political merits of the course he fights in ... The South was my country."

After the war he became a staunch Republican and worked as future President Ulysses S. Grant's campaign manager.  His support of many of those who were with the Union during the war made him a controversial figure in the South.  He received death threats, his childhood home was burned down and there was an attempt on his life.

In his later years he was friends with the Patton family and spent time with a young George Patton reenacting Civil War events and planning strategy in the sands of a beach.  George Patton would grow to become one of the greatest generals during WWII.  There is no doubt that Patton's experiences with Mosby helped to shape the outcome of WWII.

-Professor Walter

Faith and Love started a revolution in public perception of Down Syndrome

In the first portion of the 20th century people with Down Syndrome were stigmatized.  Often they were taken away and placed in mental institutions.  These "flawed" children often lived short lives and doctors thought they were helping parents by assisting them in ridding themselves of these children. 

On August 26, 1950 Dale Evans, half of the singing duet with Roy Rogers, gave birth to their only child together.  She was a beautiful baby girl they name Robin Elizabeth Rogers.  Doctors knew something was amiss and a few days later informed the parents that their little girl had Down Syndrome (known as Mongoloid at the time).  The doctors, believing they were doing what was best for the parents, encouraged Roy and Dale to give the child up.  They would not, and took the child home with them against doctor advice.  Dale refused to keep her child hidden from public view.  

"In those days people saw an offspring as evidence of genetic weakness in the parents.  Mongoloid children were usually hidden because society was not willing to accept them...But God knew that if we would accept the challenge of caring for Robin, he could use us to witness of his love in new and exciting ways."

Robin spent nearly 2 years with her loving parents as a happy child.  Then, shorty before her second birthday, Robin passed away from heart disease.  Roy and Dale were devastated.  Dale could not bring herself to view their child after death.  Roy took that responsibility and, afterwords, spoke to Dale describing Robin as "a small size sleeping angel".  That statement sparked a memory in Dale and she recalled the passage from Hebrew 13:2, "Be not forgetful to entertain strangers; for thereby some have entertained angels unawares."  Dale took it to heart.

"Like sunlight breaking through clouds after a storm of darkness, it all became clear to me. She had come to us from God - an angel – with all her handicaps and frailties to make us aware that his strength is found in weakness. In the two years she had been among us we had grown close as a family and we had learned how deeply we needed to depend on God. My job was to help deliver that message that had been given us by an angel."

Dale wrote a book about Robin entitled, Angel Unaware. The short book told of Roy's and her love of Robin and the life they lived together utilizing a strong Christian Faith to get through the hard times.  Her book would go on the become her greatest legacy.  Her book would be at the forefront in changing the public's perception of Down Syndrome.

While there is still progress to be made in achieving full public acceptance of those with Down Syndrome, Dale Evan's book was a great catalyst change.  She brought it from a state of family shame to a part of society.

-Professor Walter

The Ford Nucleon: miles ahead in alternative fuel innovation

In 1958 the Ford Motor Company was developing multiple concept cars.  One of them was designed to take advantage of the recent advances in nuclear power.  The car was a sleek two seater with a small nuclear reactor located in the rear.  Designed to go up to 5,000 miles on one nuclear core, the car was a leap forward in thinking.  Designers envisioned the owners driving their cars to changing stations at the 5,000 mile mark and replacing their nuclear core. 

The car was an example of the public's limited knowledge of atomic power at the time.  Designers assumed that the shielding and bulk of reactors would eventually be overcome.  They did not fully understand the technology to make such a system operate.  The car never passed the concept phase, and a working prototype was never built.  Today you can see a mock-up of this car at the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan.

-Professor Walter

How Charlie McCarthy & Edgar Bergen saved the world

On October 30, 1930 the American Radio Drama Mercury Theatre on the Air, which was broadcast on CBS, ran an adaptation of H.G. Wells' novel The War of the Worlds, performed by Orson Welles.  The first two thirds of the program was simulated news reports of an alien invasion.  People tuning into the program mistook it as fact, since they hadn't heard the disclaimer at the beginning.  Across the United States, millions were in a panic.

During the broadcast, Edgar Bergen (the famous ventriloquist) was performing with his dummy, Charlie McCarthy, on another station.  His show was so popular that most of the listeners of the time were tuned in to hear them instead of the Mercury Theatre.  Though people changed stations during the musical break at the fifteen minute mark, and heard War of the Worlds, it was the light hearted humor of McCarthy that kept them calm until the truth of the play was known.  For this reason Charlie McCarthy & Edgar Bergen are sometimes credited with "saving the world"

You can read more about Charlie McCarthy and Edgar Burgen here.

-Professor Walter

What's in a name?

In 1989 Apple Computer release the most expandable of the original black and white Macintosh's. This new computer was based on the Macintosh SE chassis.  The SE stood for System Expansion.  The new Macintosh was essentially a Macintosh IIx.  The x was included to note the addition of a 68030 microprocessor in the computer.  The logical name for the new Macintosh, which was an SE with a 68030 processor, would be the Macintosh SEx.  Apple was, understandably, reluctant to name their new computer the Macintosh SEx.  The final decision was to abbreviate 68030 to 30 for the naming convention and call the new computer the Macintosh SE/30.

-Professor Walter

Don't be a square, it could kill you

After WWII it was the dawn of a world of new technology, but one innovation was devised in 1929 that saw the light of day in the 1950s.  Frank Whittle, an office of the Royal Air Force, proposed powering an airplane with a gas turbine engine.  It took eleven years for his idea to reach fruition with Britain's first jet fighter the Gloster Meteor.  But, it was in 1952 that the de Havilland Comet would make history as the world's first commercial jetliner.  

The Comet has the ability to fly at speeds of up to 490 miles per hour while the fastest propeller planes could only go 315.  The cabin was pressurized and the plane could fly above storms rather than through them.  The new jetliner was a hit and soon everyone was aware that Great Britain would lead the world in commercial jetliners.  American Aviation Magazine said:

    "Whether we like it or not, the British are giving the U.S. a drubbing in jet transport."

Then on October 26th 1952 a Comet failed to get airborne and crashed on takeoff.  No one had major injuries, but the plane was a loss.  The blame was placed on pilot error.  That March another Comet crashed on takeoff becoming the first time anyone had died in a jetliner incident.  Once again pilot error was blamed.  But on January 10th 1954 it was clear that pilot error was not a factor when a Comet crashed into the Mediterranean.  The pilot was in the process or radioing "Did you get my ..." then it cut off.  Fishermen saw the pieces of the plane falling into the sea.

Immediately all the Comets were grounded and a massive investigation was launched.  Unfortunately the wreckage was 500 feet below the water so that the investigation was not complete when 50 recommendations were made to correct the problem, which had not been determined.  The Comet was cleared to fly again, until April 8th 1954 when another Comet went down in the ocean.  By that time more wreckage had been recovered from the first water crash and there were some odd findings.  The tail stabilizer had blue marking on it.  Analysis determined that they were from the seats hitting the stabilizer at high speeds.  Just what had happened?  The Ministry of Civil Aviation came up with a novel method of finding out.

They constructed a massive water tank and put the fuselage of a Comet into it.  The wings were connected to hydraulics to provide vibrations similar to what would be felt at high altitude cruising.  Then the tank was filled with water to a pressure that would match the 33,000 feet cruising altitude of the Comet.  After the testing was complete they opened the tank and were shocked at what they found.  There was a split in the fuselage starting from an escape hatch that stretched eight feet.  Eight months later when more wreckage was pulled from the sea of the second crash a similar fracture was found.  The real problem was metal fatigue.  The cause was the square windows.  A round window distributes the pressure, but a square one puts too much stress on single points at the corners.  To make matters worse the rivets were punch driven stressing the metal more, and the windows had been designed to be glued and riveted, but they were just riveted.  Every Comet was declared unsafe to fly.  It would take four years for the Comet to be redesigned with oval windows and thicker metal skin.  By that time the Boeing 707 had been released with the ability to carry twice as many passengers twice the distance.  The Comet would remain a major contender in the commercial jet liner market, but would never fully recover from the loss of market share. 

The blame for the failure to detect the problems before the plane took flight fell to he testers.  They had tested the fuselage in a stationary pressurized room without any of the other stresses the plane would encounter during use.  If the plane had been properly tested the disaster could have been averted. In the United States the U.S. Civil Aeronautics Administration which was the predecessor to the FAA was not comfortable with the square windows and refused to grant it an air-worthiness certificate.  Without the certificate the Comet never flew in the U.S. with square windows.  One good thing that came out of this disaster was the development of the modern "Black Box" data recorder.  The disaster inspired Australian engineer Dr. David Warren to create a device that would record the instruments and the cockpit voices. 

-Professor Walter

Charles F. Kettering - Protecting the people's hands

Charles F. Kettering was born in Loudonville, Ohio on May 8th 1876.  Despite his poor eyesight, he earned a degree from Ohio State University in electrical engineering in 1904.  His life would be rife with innovations, but one of his greatest would eliminate hand injuries, broken arms and deaths.

In the early days of the automobile the internal combustion engine was started via a hand crank.  If the engine backfired or misfired, the handle could kickback and break a thumb or even worse the person in question could be killed.  In 1899 Clyde J. Coleman filed the first patent for an automatic starter but it wasn't suitable for regular automotive use.  It wasn't until Charles F Kettering of Dayton Engineering Laboratories Company (DELCO) invented the first reliable and useful electric starter.  In 1912 the Cadillac was the first vehicle to carry the innovation.

That single innovation saved more thumbs and arms than can ever be counted, but it also had another great impact.  Women were considered too fragile and weak to operate the crank starter.  Suddenly women were the ones behind the wheel and soon brands such as Plymouth were marketed toward them.

-Professor Walter