Historical
Trains of Yore. Top Story - December 2021.
One of the many old books we got when some elderly antique shop owner neighbours retired many years ago was a 1917 Encyclopedia called The Wonder Book of Knowledge. It was a bit beaten up and battered but it was a treasure that I pored over many times. And one of the fascinating items was a picture gallery of steam locomotives and other vintage railroad lore.
By Marco den Ouden4 years ago in FYI
John Gray
“The Picture of Dorian Gray” by Oscar Wilde was required reading for many of us in college and in high school. The gothic tale of decadence and debauchery has never failed to enthrall readers for over one hundred years, but did you know, that there has been rumored to have been a “real life Dorian Gray”, and that the story was based upon a short, but intense relationship Oscar Wilde had with a young poet named John Gray?
By Julie O'Hara - Author, Poet and Spiritual Warrior4 years ago in FYI
Never Leave, Raven, Never Leave
“If the Tower of London ravens are lost or fly away, the Crown will fall and Britain with it”. Seven ravens are kept at the Tower of London all times — six of whom make up the number of ravens that (it is said) need to remain in order to protect the Crown (and one is a back-up, just in case!).
By Ruth Elizabeth Stiff4 years ago in FYI
The Unsolved Murder of Mary Cecilia Rogers
Mary Cecilia Rogers was known as a great beauty. She worked in a New York tobacco store where she turned the heads of many prominent men. When her body was found in the Hudson River on July 28, 1841, it was assumed that she had been the victim of gang violence. However, a witness claimed that she had been dumped there after a failed abortion attempt. A note written by her boyfriend before his suicide suggests that he might have been involved in her demise. After all of these years, her death continues to be unexplained.
By A.W. Naves4 years ago in FYI
LONDON’S FLEET PRISON
The notorious Fleet prison was built in 1197. It stood near the side of the Fleet River and was rebuilt frequently. It was used right until 1844 and was finally demolished in 1846. It was the largest and notorious of England’s medieval prisons. Known as the King’s own prison, anyone who held debts to the King would be sent there. During the 18th century, the Fleet Prison was mostly used for bankrupts and debtors.
By Paul Asling4 years ago in FYI
This is Why the Vatican Censored Michelangelo's David. Top Story - December 2021.
Have you been to Notre Dame? A medieval cathedral in Paris, completed mostly in the 13th century. At the front entrance to Notre Dame, there is a depiction of 'the fall of man'. The dramatic moment at the garden of Eden where Eve eats the forbidden fruit and shares the fruit with Adam. Ashamed of their nakedness, both are expelled from the Garden of Eden.
By Kamna Kirti4 years ago in FYI
The Man Who Died First
On December 10, 1826—195 years ago today—a young boy named John Torrington was baptized in Manchester. We don’t know his birthdate. He may have been born in 1826, along with his sister, Esther, who was baptized the same day as him. Or he may have been born in 1825, as some records suggest. He came from a working-class family, one where not everyone could read or write, and there are few records of him at all. His father was William, a coach man, and his mother was Sarah, whose maiden name, Shaw, became John’s middle name. He was an ordinary boy, one of many who were baptized that day. His name sits at the bottom of the page of the parish baptism registry, easily missed, easily forgotten.
By Lauren Triola4 years ago in FYI
