Crabs and Beer!

On this day in 1957, President Dwight D. Eisenhower sent the 101st Airborne Division to Little Rock, Arkansas to support the integration of Little Rock High School.

In 1954, the US Supreme Court had ruled that laws mandating racially-segregated schools were unconstitutional and called for all schools to be de-segregated. After the decision, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) attempted to register black students in previously all-white schools in cities throughout the South. In Little Rock, Arkansas, the school board agreed to comply with the high court’s ruling. Virgil Blossom, the Superintendent of Schools, submitted a plan of gradual integration to the school board on May 24, 1955, which the board unanimously approved. The plan would be implemented during the fall of the 1957 school year, which would begin in September 1957.

When integration began on September 4, 1957, the Arkansas National Guard was called in by Governor Orval Faubus to “preserve the peace”. Originally at orders of the governor, they were meant to prevent the black students from entering due to claims that there was “imminent danger of tumult, riot and breach of peace” at the integration. President Eisenhower issued an order federalizing the Arkansas national guard and thus taking it out of the Governor’s control and sent in troops from the 101st Airborne Division to protect the nine African-American students newly enrolled in Little Rock High School.

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Arkansas Sushi…

Today is the birthday, in 1949. of US singer, songwriter and guitarist Bruce Springsteen. Nicknamed ‘The Boss’, he won an Academy Award in 1994 for his song ‘Streets of Philadelphia’, which appeared on the soundtrack to the film Philadelphia. His most successful studio albums, Born in the U.S.A. and Born To Run showcase a talent for finding grandeur in the struggles of daily American life; he has sold more than 71 million albums in the United States and more than 140 million worldwide. He has earned numerous awards for his work, including 20 Grammy Awards. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-Ds-FXGGQg

On this day in 1692, Martha Corey, Mary Eastey, Alice Parker, Mary Parker, Ann Pudeator, Wilmot Redd, Margaret Scott, and Samuel Wardwell were hanged, the last of those to be executed in the Salem witch trials. A majority of people accused and convicted of witchcraft were women (about 78%). Overall, the Puritan belief and prevailing New England culture was that women were inherently sinful and more susceptible to damnation than men were. Women who did not conform to the norms of Puritan society were more likely to be the target of an accusation, especially those who were unmarried or did not have children.

In the years after the trials, several of the accusers – mostly teenage girls – admitted that they had fabricated their charges. In 1702, the General Court of Massachusetts declared the trials “unlawful”, and in 1711 the colonial legislature annulled the convictions, passing a bill “mentioning 22 individuals by name” and reversing their attainders.

Two alleged witches being accused in the Salem witch trials, 1892 engraving

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Today is the birthday, in 1958. of American rock guitarist, singer, songwriter, and producer Joan Jett. She was a founding member of The Runaways and with Joan Jett & the Blackhearts, scored the 1982 US No.1 & UK No.4 single I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll. She is also known as the Godmother of Punk. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpNw7jYkbVc

On this day in 1937, J.R.R. Tolkien’s novel, The Hobbit, was first published. It received wide critical acclaim, being nominated for the Carnegie Medal and awarded a prize from the New York Herald Tribune for best juvenile fiction. It is recognized as a classic in children’s literature and is one of the best-selling books of all time, with over 100 million copies sold.

The Hobbit is set in Middle-earth and follows home-loving Bilbo Baggins, the titular hobbit who joins the wizard Gandalf and the thirteen dwarves of Thorin’s Company on a quest to reclaim the dwarves’ home and treasure from the dragon Smaug. Bilbo’s journey takes him from his peaceful rural surroundings into more sinister territory.

The book has been translated into over sixty languages, with more than one published version for some languages.

Dustcover of the first edition of The Hobbit, taken from a design by the author

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Need a monkey wrench???

DOGS

Today is the birthday, in 1947, of American musician Don Felder, who was the lead guitarist of the rock band the Eagles, from 1974 to 2001. With five No.1 singles, six No.1 albums, six Grammy Awards and five American Music Awards, the Eagles were one of the most successful musical acts of the 1970s. Their Greatest Hits is the best-selling album in the United States, having sold 38 million copies. At the age of 13, Felder started his first band, the Continentals, which also included Stephen Stills. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AaBw37-nWaY

On this day in 1924, the United States ended its military occupation of the Dominican Republic. The goal of the occupation, which began in 1916, was to force the Dominicans to repay their large debts to European creditors, whose governments threatened military intervention.

The US Marines landed and established effective control of the country within two months. Three major roads were built, largely for military purposes, connecting for the first time the capital with Santiago in the north, Azua in the west, and San Pedro de Macorís in the east; the system of forced labor used by the Americans in Haiti was absent in the Dominican Republic.

With the United States occupation of Haiti to the west of the Dominican Republic, the United States Marines controlled all of Hispaniola “through censorship, intimidation, fear, and military force”, according to Lorgia García Peña, a contemporary American academic. Like Haiti, the finances of the Dominican Republic were controlled by National City Bank of New York, subsequently allowing American businesses to acquire Dominican properties to cultivate sugar. American corporations would then force Haitians to migrate to the Dominican Republic and work on sugar plantations in poor conditions.

U.S. forces withdrew on September 18, 1924, and handed policing authority to the Dominican National Guard. Despite the withdrawal, there were still concerns regarding the collection and application of the country’s customs revenues. To address this problem, representatives of the United States and the Dominican Republic governments met at a convention and signed a treaty, on December 27, 1924, which gave the United States control over the country’s customs revenues. In 1941, the treaty was officially repealed and control over the country’s customs revenues was again returned to the government of the Dominican Republic. However this treaty created lasting resentment of the United States among the people of the Dominican Republic.

Marine machine gun unit in the Dominican Republic

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Coming soon…

Today is the birthday, in 1962, of Joanne Catherall, singer with The Human League. Formed in Sheffield, England in 1977 the group attained widespread commercial success with their third album Dare in 1981. The album contained four hit singles, including the UK/US No.1 hit ‘Don’t You Want Me’. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zM_T4wYZg0k

On this day in 1849, Harriet Tubman made her first attempt at escape. Her owner had died and his widow was in the process of selling off his slaves. Tubman had been hired out to Anthony Thompson (the son of her father’s former owner), who owned a large plantation in an area called Poplar Neck in neighboring Caroline County; it is likely her brothers labored for Thompson as well. Because they were hired out, her owner, Eliza Brodess probably did not recognize their absence as an escape attempt for some time. Two weeks later, she posted a runaway notice in the Cambridge Democrat, offering a reward of up to US$100 each (equivalent to $3,870 in 2025). Once they had left, Tubman’s brothers had second thoughts. Ben may have regretted leaving his wife and children. The two men went back, forcing Tubman to return with them.

Sometime in October or November, Tubman escaped again, this time without her brothers. After escaping slavery, Tubman made some 13 missions to rescue approximately 70 enslaved people, including her family and friends, using the network of antislavery activists and safe houses known collectively as the Underground Railroad. When the Civil War began, Tubman worked for the Union Army, first as a cook and nurse and then as an armed scout and spy. For her guidance of the raid at Combahee Ferry, which liberated more than 700 enslaved people, she is widely credited as the first woman to lead an armed military operation in the United States.

Tubman, c. 1868/1869

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BACK IN THE DAY…

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Here’s the Big Trombone…https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=khpL08_O1WE