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Today in History
History's Happenings for February 25 (Stay tuned for a write-up on this event.
First Presidential Cabinet Meeting
(Stay tuned for a write-up on this event.
Colt Patents His First Revolver
(Stay tuned for a write-up on this event.
Women and Children First!
"When it sailed from Simon's Bay near Cape Town, South Africa, on Feb. 25, 1852, under the command of Capt. Robert Salmond, the British paddle wheel frigate HMS Birkenhead was loaded with more than 640 men, women and children. Mostly, however, the passengers were British soldiers, their horses and ammunition. Their destination was Algoa Bay, South Africa, as reinforcements for Sir Harry Smith in the eighth campaign of the Kaffir War." "Several hours after sailing, the Birkenhead struck a rock at Danger Point in the dead of night and was instantly in distress. While many of the military men sleeping below decks drowned immediately, others who reached the main deck were told to maintain order and discipline. As the ship took on water at a brisk pace, the lifeboats were lowered, but only three of them could be used because of mechanical problems. Though he did not utter the phrase as we know it today, it was at this point in the disaster that Salmond instituted the great maritime emergency tradition to save women and children first. His troops assisted the women and children on the sinking vessel in boarding the few available lifeboats, and all of them were rescued eventually. Most of the soldiers and sailors went down with the ship."
J. P. Morgan Organizes U. S. Steel
(Stay tuned for a write-up on this event.
Communists Seize Czechoslovakia
(Stay tuned for a write-up on this event.
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