1493 Barcelona, History: Christopher Columbus met Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand to report on his first voyage. We have seen the steps where they greeted him.
1729 Leipzig, Music: The premier of Johann Sebastien Bach’s ‘Saint Matthew’s Passion’ was at the Saint Thomas Church pictured below.
1755 London, Lexicography: Dr Samuel Johnson published the ‘Dictionary of the English Language’ in two volumes. We have a copy but not the first edition shown below.
1912 Mid-Atlantic, History: Molly Brown survived the sinking of the Titanic. Brown got into a lifeboat and took charge, hauling others abroad while keeping up a stream of invective and off-colour jokes from her days on the Colorado goldfields where her husband had made a fortune. She became ‘The Unsinkable Molly Brown.’
1955 Des Plaines (IA), Commerce: Ray Kroc started the McDonald’s restaurant with a simple menu, direct delivery to the customer, families welcome, and no fuss. Get it, eat it, and beat it. Rather than waiting for a made to order hamburger, they were ready to go. The alternatives were cafés/bars where families were not welcome and did not want to go, and hotel restaurants with menus in French, where tipping was essential, neckties were required, and children had to be little adults.
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