This Day in History Class

On this day in 1887, Groundhog Day was celebrated for the first time at Gobbler’s Knob in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this day in 1861, delegates of the people of Texas voted to adopt an ordinance of secession, making Texas the seventh state to secede from the Union. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this day in 1961, a specially trained chimpanzee named Ham became the first primate to travel into space. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this day in 1933, radio western “The Lone Ranger” was broadcast for the first time from the WXYZ radio station in Detroit, Michigan. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this day in 1820, following a decades-long struggle with mental illness, King George III died at Windsor Castle after a reign of almost 60 years. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this day in 1958, at precisely 1:58 pm, the LEGO Group filed the patent application for a new kind of building system that would forever change the way that children played. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this day in 1924, the embalmed body of Vladimir Ilych Lenin, communist revolutionary and founder of the Soviet Union, was put on public display in Red Square in the center of Moscow. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this day in 1905, a 3,106-carat diamond was discovered at the Premier Mine in Pretoria, South Africa. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this day in 1979, Robert Williams, an assembly line worker at a Ford casting plant in Flat Rock, Michigan, was killed on the job by a robotic arm. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this day in 1972, a former soldier in the Japanese Imperial Army was discovered hiding in the jungles of Guam, unaware that World War II had ended nearly three decades earlier. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this day in 1957, the Wham-O toy company produced its first batch of plastic, flying discs — now known to fans of all ages as Frisbees. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this day in 1881, an ancient Egyptian obelisk, also known as Cleopatra’s Needle, was installed in Central Park, just behind the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this day in 1865, a Union Army Colonel turned oil tycoon used a makeshift torpedo to increase the flow of fossil fuels from a well. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this day in 1971, Motown legend Marvin Gaye released the powerful hit single “What’s Going On.” Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this day in 1929, a horned lizard named Old Rip died of pneumonia after allegedly surviving 31 years sealed in the cornerstone of the Eastland, Texas courthouse. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this day in 1943, Claude R. Wickard, the Secretary of Agriculture and head of the War Food Administration, banned the sale of pre-sliced bread in America during World War II Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this day in 1950, a group of armed robbers stole more than $2 million from the Brink’s Armored Car depot in Boston, Massachusetts. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this day in 1605, the first half of Miguel de Cervantes' landmark novel Don Quixote was published in Spain. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this day in 1870, political cartoonist Thomas Nast first used the donkey as a symbol for the Democratic Party in a cartoon titled “A Live Jackass Kicking a Dead Lion." Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this day in 1690, German instrument maker Johann Christoph Denner created the world’s first clarinet. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this day in 1939, a series of fires converged and swept rapidly across large areas of Victoria, Australia, leaving a widespread trail of death and destruction. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this day in 1908, French radio pioneer Gustave Ferrié transmitted the first long-distance message ever sent from the Eiffel Tower. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this day in 1569, in a public square outside Old St Paul’s Cathedral in London, the drawing began for the first state-run lottery in English history. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this day in 1984, fast food restaurant chain Wendy’s released its first commercial featuring the famous “Where’s the beef?” catchphrase. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this day in 1493, Italian explorer Christopher Columbus recorded a sighting of three “mermaids” while sailing near what is now the Dominican Republic. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.