In 1860 president Lincoln walked into Corneau & Diller drug store in Springfield, Illinois and purchased 50 cents worth of Cocaine. The alkaloid had only been isolated from the cocoa plant 5 years earlier and had just been named “Cocaine,” by Albert Nieman a year before. Lincoln was one of the first Americans to use the new drug.

Harry E. Pratt found this fact when researching for his book, The Personal Finances of Abraham Lincoln published in 1943. Pratt studied Corneau & Diller’s order books and found that on October 12, 1860 an order was filled for Lincoln in the amount of 50 cents for Cocaine. In fact, other historians found in earlier order books from the same drug company, that the Lincoln family had bought other powerful drugs in 1853, and 1854. The drugs they purchased in 1853 and 1854 were camphorated opium tincture used at the time for its anti-diarrheal and pain relief properties. The main ingredient in this drug was Morphine, a highly addictive and dangerous drug. But one must understand that little was known about drugs and their side effects at the time. Mary Lincoln experienced depression, mood swings, and hallucinations due to the drug use.

Source: Curious Events in History
Michael Powell

Attention Glenn Miller fans… Remember that famous song PEnnyslvania 6-5000? Well did you know that this telephone number is said to be the oldest and continuing phone number in New York City? The number still belongs to the Hotel Pennsylvania where the Glenn Miller Orchestra played many times and where he got his inspiration for this song. Of course, the days of rotary phones are behind us and so the number reads 736-5000 now. In fact, the PE exchange was the first to switch from letters to number system.

The hotel has been around since 1919. Ah, if the walls could only speak.

We always see our 16th president, President Lincoln in pictures with the stovepipe hat, but did you know that not only was the stovepipe hat stylish for the day, but he used it for practical reasons as well? President Lincoln used to carry letters, bills, and notes in his hat. You can take a man out of the backwoods, but you can’t take the backwoods out of a man. Gee, I wonder if that’s where he carried the Gettysburg Address.

For more information on this visit encarta.com

Did you know that women fighting wars is not a modern thing? During the American Revolution there were many women that served not only as cooks, or nurses, but as soldiers as well. The best known is Mary Ludwig Hays, AKA “Molly Pitcher.” Her husband was wounded in a battle and Molly traded her pots and pans for a cannon! She took her husband’s place at his cannon during the Battle of Monmouth in 1778. Another woman named Margaret Corbin also fought in the Battle of Harlem Heights in 1776. She was badly wounded in this battle. Thousands of other women served in Washington’s army in other capacities.

Mary Ludwig was issued a warrant as a noncommissioned officer by General George Washington, and then after she was nicknamed “Sergeant Molly.”Margaret Corbin was the first woman in the United States to receive a pension from Congress. This pension was given to her because she was wounded and for her service.

Some Historians have different opinions about Molly Pitcher. Some don’t really know if there ever really was a Molly Pitcher at all. Some Historians regard her as a legend, folklore, and not history. Oh well, I choose to believe that if the women of the Revolution were anything like we women are today, they fought and fought hard to defend their land.

The Revolution recruited anyone who wanted to fight for freedom. Maybe, just maybe, these women thought like the slaves did, that if they fought, it’d be their ticket to freedom. It took another 100-150 years for women to even begin to feel free. I guess we can say that these women opened up the door for the emancipation of women.

How much did The Boston Tea Parties cost the Brits? Yes, I meant the plural. Did you know that there were 2 Boston Tea Parties? The first one took place in 1773 when “The Sons of Liberty,” protested the 3 cents per pound of tea tax. The second one took place in 1774. These two parties cost the Brits the equivalent of 3 million bucks today!!!!

The forefathers knew how to get the Brits’ attention… hitting them where it hurts most, the pocket.

source [theamericanrevolution.com]

The American Revolution has always fascinated me. The tenacity, courage, and fortitude of our forefathers are admirable to say the least. If we were caught in a situation as they had back in 1776, would be have the same resolve?

Fact: We always hear a lot about how good America was doing in the 20’s, the roaring 20’s. But did you know that America, well the colonies, were doing just as good, if not better back in 1776? In fact, they had the highest standard of living, and the best part, they had lowest taxes in the Western world.

The colonies had wealthy farmers, lawyers and entrepreneurs. It was booming. Some merchants and plantation owners were earning, ready for this one, the equivalent of $500,000 a year! Not just the big wigs were doing well, but others as well. Life was good. The British wanted a piece of the pie, and they decided to try to tax the colonists.

One thing the Brits didn’t know too well, and that is, you don’t mess with people’s money! The colonists were not going to take this lying down. They feared for their liberties and prosperity. They were going to fight and fight hard. I can truly understand why Patrick Henry said, “Give me liberty, or give me death.” The funny thing about this to me is that money was a factor for the Revolution, yet Liberty was the heart beat of the war. Many of our forefathers lost everything, in fact, many died penniless and indebted. They were willing to give up their money for the bigger picture, liberty. After all if we don’t have liberty can we even achieve prosperity?

source [americanrevolution.com]

Hi all, many may know me from my classic movie blog, my new blog is one that I’ve been contemplating for a while now. As an avid student of History, I want to tell you what most History books don’t. Little known things, little stubborn facts. I hope you will enjoy this ride as much I.