On this day in history.

[giradman]

Many Varied Events Through the Centuries Occurred on April 25!

Boy, I was just going through This Day in History and many listed piqued my personal interest, e.g. the Battle of Guilford Courthouse, where Major General Nathaniel Greene retained the battlefield - the city of Greensboro is named after him (if interested, see one of my travelogues).

In entertainment, Ella Fitzgerald is probably my favorite female singer from the 20th century (born not too far from me in Newport News, Virginia) - own nearly two dozen CDs of her performances; and Ginger Rogers whose films w/ Fred Astaire are still popular today.

Finally, the horrible Gallipoli Campaign which lasted nearly a year - Allies vs. the Ottoman Empire, WW I - over 100,000 killed! See stats below from the link. Dave

1719 - Robinson Crusoe is published
1781 - Cornwallis retreats from Guilford Courthouse
1859 - Suez Canal started w/ ground breaking
1915 - Allies begin invasion of Gallipoli
1917 - Ella Fitzgerald is born
1945 - Americans & Russians link up in Germany
1995 - Ginger Rogers dies

.

 

[scifan57]

April 25, 1990;

The space shuttle Discovery places the Hubble Space Telescope in low Earth orbit. Hubble Space Telescope - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[J. A.]

April 26, 1986:
Reactor number 4 of the Chernobyl plant explodes. The explosion and the fire sends radioactive particles into the atmosphere. Radioactivity spreads across Western Russia and Europe. It's two days later that European countries are informed about the accident, but not by the Soviet Union.
In Sweden, at a nuclear power plant, someone notices radioactive particles on workers's clothes. As there's no leak in their plant, they find the source of radioactivity in Chernobyl.
At first, Russian News Agency TASS tell about an "accident" in Chernobyl, and that the power plant is damaged.
The first time the Soviet Union mention a "disaster", is one day later, on April 29, 1986.

Chernobyl disaster - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[giradman]

Sultana Explodes & Burns on this day in 1865 Killing 1800 people!

The steamboat Sultana overloaded w/ 2,400+ passengers (nearly all Union troops returning north) exploded, burned to the waterline, and sunk near Memphis, TN on April 27, 1865 - the greatest maritime disaster in USA history; Abraham Lincoln had just been assassinated and died on April 15 (oops, the Wiki quote is wrong on this date). Dave

Sultana was a Mississippi River side-wheel steamboat. On April 27, 1865, the boat exploded in the greatest maritime disaster in United States history. An estimated 1,800 of her 2,427 passengers died when three of the boat's four boilers exploded and she burned to the waterline and sank near Memphis, Tennessee.[1] This disaster has long been overshadowed in the press by other contemporary events; John Wilkes Booth, President Lincoln's assassin, was killed the day before.

The wooden steamboat was constructed in 1863 by the John Litherbury Boatyard[2] in Cincinnati, and intended for the lower Mississippi cotton trade. Registering 1,719 tons,[3] the steamer normally carried a crew of 85. For two years, she ran a regular route between St. Louis and New Orleans, frequently commissioned to carry troops.

.

 

[scifan57]

I found this engraving of the disaster.

The wreck is almost certainly the one found about 32' under a soybean field about 2 miles from the river on the Arkansas side, about 15 miles from Memphis.

 

[giradman]

I found this engraving of the disaster.
View attachment 71299
The wreck is almost certainly the one found about 32' under a soybean field about 2 miles from the river on the Arkansas side, about 15 miles from Memphis.

In the Wiki link given in my post on the disaster, the last paragraph (quoted below) verifies your comments - Dave

In 1982, a local archaeological expedition, led by Memphis attorney Jerry O. Potter, uncovered what was believed to be the wreckage of Sultana. Blackened wooden deck planks and timbers were found about 32 feet (10 m) under a soybean field on the Arkansas side, about 4 miles (6 km) from Memphis. The Mississippi River has changed course several times since the disaster, leaving the wreck under dry land and far from today's river. The main channel now flows about 2 miles (3 km) east of its 1865 position.[22]

 

[J. A.]

April 28, 1926:
Nelle Harper Lee, better known as Harper Lee (To Kill A Mockingbird) was born in Monroeville, Alabama.
Harper Lee - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[giradman]

April 28, 1926:
Nelle Harper Lee, better known as Harper Lee (To Kill A Mockingbird) was born in Monroeville, Alabama.
Harper Lee - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Lee just passed away a few months ago at 89 years of age - the film To Kill A Mockingbird (1962) is a favorite (last year replaced my older DVD w/ the BD shown below - great restoration!) - now, I've not read her recently released novel; the reviews were somewhat mixed? Dave
.

 

[scifan57]

April 28, 1789;

The Mutiny on the Bounty.
Fletcher Christian and most of the crew mutiny against Captain William Bligh and set him and the few loyal crew members adrift in one of the ships boats. Mutiny on the Bounty - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[giradman]

April 28, 1789;

The Mutiny on the Bounty.
Fletcher Christian and most of the crew mutiny against Captain William Bligh and set him and the few loyal crew members adrift in one of the ships boats. Mutiny on the Bounty - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The most remarkable fact about that mutiny was Bligh's skills of navigating that row boat over 3500 miles to safety - a remarkable accomplishment. Fletcher Christian took the ship w/ his men & Polynesians to Pitcairn Island (see quote below), which is now in drastic decline, i.e. NO ONE wants to live there (or even visit - ) - last year there was a whole PBS show on this topic (may have been Diane Rehm - can't remember?) - quite interesting.

Over the years of sound movies, three films have been made: 1) 1935 w/ Gable & Laughton; 2) 1962 w/ Brando & Howard; and 3) 1984 w/ Gibson & Hopkins - I own just one (but have seen all) - the BD of the '35 film - hard to beat Clark & Charles in those roles! Dave

The Pitcairn Islands are a group of four volcanic islands in the southern Pacific Ocean that form the last British Overseas Territory in the Pacific. The four islands – Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie, and Oeno – are spread over several hundred miles of ocean and have a total land area of about 47 square kilometres (18 sq mi). Only Pitcairn, the second-largest island that measures about 3.6 kilometres (2.2 mi) from east to west, is inhabited.

The islands are inhabited mostly by descendants of the Bounty mutineers and the Tahitians (or Polynesians) who accompanied them, an event retold in numerous books and films. This history is still apparent in the surnames of many of the islanders. With only about 56 inhabitants, originating from four main families, Pitcairn is the least populous national jurisdiction in the world (Source).

.

 

[scifan57]

A larger number of Bounty mutineer descendants live on Norfolk Island, Australia, New Zealand, and various other countries. Descendants of the Bounty mutineers - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[giradman]

A larger number of Bounty mutineer descendants live on Norfolk Island, Australia, New Zealand, and various other countries. Descendants of the Bounty mutineers - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Hi SciFan.. - thanks for the links - not aware of the details of that split of the mutineers - but, don't believe that I'll plan a visit to Norfolk island either - Dave

 

[J. A.]

April 29, 1907 was the day when Alfred Zinnemann, Austrian-American film director, was born in Rzeszów, Poland, which was part of Austria-Hungary at that time.

Fred Zinnemann - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[KevinJS]

30th April marks the anniversary of the suicides of Adolf Hitler and Eva Braun in Berlin.

Hitler killed himself with a gunshot and Braun took cyanide.

Their marriage had lasted less than 40 hours.

 

[The OB]

April 29, 1907 was the day when Alfred Zinnemann, Austrian-American film director, was born in Rzeszów, Poland, which was part of Austria-Hungary at that time.
View attachment 71386
Fred Zinnemann - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"The day of the jackal" is one of my all-time favourite films. Thanks for filling in some extra info. on this very talented director.
Andrew