What is a Duck and Cover Drill?
For millions of people who grew up during the Cold War era, a drill known as "duck and cover" was just as familiar as a school fire or tornado drill is today. Students were urged to duck under their desks…
History
What Happened at Valley Forge?
While Valley Forge was not a site of a great battle during the American Revolutionary War, it was the site of one of its pivotal moments. George Washington and the Continental Army spent a brutal winter there in 1777-78, and…
Why Was Cincinnati Once Known As Porkopolis?
Having experienced many a nickname, the city of Cincinnati, Ohio, has over time fostered a love/hate relationship with one of its monikers, “Porkopolis.” Cincinnati already housed its first slaughterhouse when it was first incorporated as a city in 1819. Between…
Why Is Boston Called the “Cradle of Liberty”?
The city of Boston, in the U.S. state of Massachusetts, is often called the Cradle of Liberty because of the many important historical events, meetings, and revolutionary activities that took place there in the mid- to late-1700s. These events helped…
What Was the Whitewater Scandal?
The political scandal which became known as Whitewater reached a boiling point during the first term of former president Bill Clinton. In the end, several business associates and personal friends of the Clintons were indicted on various counts of fraud…
What Was the Rampart Scandal?
The Rampart Scandal was a police scandal which broke in the late 1990s in the Rampart Division of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD). The events of the Rampart Scandal attracted the attention of the nation, and shocked many people,…
What Was the Cause of the War of 1812?
There were several causes of the War of 1812: the elevated tensions between America and Great Britain led to several conflicts both political and military, and the American desire for expansion into the Northwest Territory forced Great Britain to develop…
What Was Plamegate?
Plamegate was a scandal which broke in the United States in 2003. It involved the disclosure of the identity of a covert Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) operative named Valerie Plame, potentially putting both her and the missions she worked on…
What is the National Youth Administration?
The National Youth Administration was part of the New Deal initiative designed by the U.S. government to provide jobs and relief to Americans affected by the Great Depression. The program focused, as the name suggests, on impoverished and unemployed people…
What is the Mayflower Compact?
The Mayflower Compact is famous as the first written charter of government in the New World. It was signed aboard ship in Provincetown Harbor, in what became Massachusetts in the United States, on November 21, 1620 by the men of…