On this day in history.

[scifan57]

June 28, 1953;

Workers in Flint, Michigan begin to assemble the first Corvette. It rolled off the assembly line 2 days later on the 30th of June. Chevrolet Corvette - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[giradman]

Pat Summitt Dies Today at 64 years - NCAA Record for Most Basketball Wins!

Pat Summitt was the women's basketball coach at the University of Tennessee, i.e. the Lady Vols - for those reading my Knoxville travelogue - her teams for 38 years were there. She had the most wins in NCAA history of any coach, regardless of sex - also, 8 NCAA National Championships. She died from early onset and rapidly progressive Alzheimer's Disease - some more information quoted below w/ links. Dave

P.S. Just a few more pics - the U of TN basketball arena & Summitt receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Obama.

Patricia Sue Summitt (June 14, 1952 – June 28, 2016) was an American college basketball head coach who achieved the most wins in NCAA basketball history of any coach, male or female.[1] She served as the head coach of the University of Tennessee Lady Vols basketball team from 1974 to 2012, winning eight NCAA championships (an NCAA women's record when she retired), and surpassed only by the 10 titles won by UCLA coach John Wooden and the 11 titles won by UConn coach Geno Auriemma. She was the first NCAA coach, and one of four college coaches overall, to achieve at least 1,000 wins (she achieved 1,098) (Source). [2]

Summitt also won an Olympic Gold Medal as head coach of the 1984 U.S. women's basketball team, and was named the Naismith Basketball Coach of the Century in April 2000. In 2009, the Sporting News placed her at number 11 on its list of the 50 Greatest Coaches of All Time in all sports; she was the only woman on the list. In 38 years as a coach, she never had a losing season. In 2012, Pat Summitt was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama. She received the Arthur Ashe Courage Award at the 2012 ESPY Awards (Source).

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[J. A.]

June 29, 1940:
Swiss artist Paul Klee died in Muralto, Switzerland. His style was influenced by Surrealism, Cubism, Expressionism amd other movements. He also published his lectures. His "Paul Klee Notebooks" (Schriften zur Form und Gestaltungslehre) are held to be important for modern art.

Paul Klee - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[giradman]

June 29, 1940:
Swiss artist Paul Klee died in Muralto, Switzerland. His style was influenced by Surrealism, Cubism, Expressionism amd other movements. He also published his lectures. His "Paul Klee Notebooks" (Schriften zur Form und Gestaltungslehre) are held to be important for modern art.
View attachment 72699
Paul Klee - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Susan & I have seen many of Klee's art works over the decades - I like the ones w/ mystical & mysterious figures the best, probably the more surrealistic aspect of this style; just a few below from the web. Dave
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[giradman]

Scotty Moore Died on June 28, 2016 - Elvis Presley Guitarist

Well, just a day late but now listening to a tribute on NPR at the moment - I've visited Sun Studio in Memphis twice where the first commercial Presley recordings were made w/ Moore on guitar, and Sam Phillips in charge of the sessions, mid-1950s - a MUST visit if you're in Memphis. Dave

Winfield Scott "Scotty" Moore III (December 27, 1931 – June 28, 2016) was an American guitarist and recording engineer. He is best known for his backing of Elvis Presley in the first part of his career, between 1954 and the beginning of Elvis's Hollywood years. He was ranked 29th in Rolling Stone magazine's list of 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time in 2011.[1] He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000 and the Memphis Music Hall of Fame in 2015 (Source).

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[giradman]

Battle of the Somme began July 1, 1916 w/ massive casualties!

The Battle of the Somme occurred in the middle of WW I and started today in 1916 - the battle was a prolonged struggle which did not end until November of that year; more than one million men were killed, wounded, or MIA making it one of the bloodiest battles in human history - and little was gained, as indicated in the quotes below.

At 7:30 a.m., the British launch a massive offensive against German forces in the Somme River region of France. During the preceding week, 250,000 Allied shells had pounded German positions near the Somme, and 100,000 British soldiers poured out of their trenches and into no-man’s-land on July 1, expecting to find the way cleared for them. However, scores of heavy German machine guns had survived the artillery onslaught, and the infantry were massacred. By the end of the day, 20,000 British soldiers were dead and 40,000 wounded. It was the single heaviest day of casualties in British military history. The disastrous Battle of the Somme stretched on for more than four months, with the Allies advancing a total of just five miles (Source).

Except for its effect of diverting German troops from the Battle of Verdun, the offensive was a miserable disaster. It amounted to a total gain of just 125 square miles for the Allies, with more than 600,000 British and French soldiers killed, wounded, or missing in the action. German casualties were more than 650,000. Although Haig was severely criticized for the costly battle, his willingness to commit massive amounts of men and resources to the stalemate along the Western Front did eventually contribute to the collapse of an exhausted Germany in 1918 (Source).

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[scifan57]

July 2, 1964;

President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Civil Rights Act at a televised ceremony in the East Room of the White House. Civil Rights Act of 1964 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[giradman]

Canada Day July 1 - Enactment of Constitution Act in 1867!

Sci-Fan.. - just off by a day, but w/ July 4 about to come up, a couple of days to celebrate for our two countries! Dave

Canada Day is the national day of Canada. A federal statutory holiday, it celebrates the anniversary of the July 1, 1867 enactment of the Constitution Act, 1867 (then called the British North America Act, 1867), which united the three separate colonies of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick into a single dominion within the British Empire called Canada.[1][2][3] Originally called Dominion Day, the holiday was renamed in 1982, the year the Canada Act was passed. Canada Day celebrations take place throughout Canada, and are also held throughout the world by Canadians living abroad (Source).

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[scifan57]

Canada Day July 1 - Enactment of Constitution Act in 1867!

Sci-Fan.. - just off by a day, but w/ July 4 about to come up, a couple of days to celebrate for our two countries! Dave


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View attachment 72745

Thanks, Dave.

 

[scifan57]

July 2, 1776;

The second Continental Congress, meeting in Philadelphia, unanimously adopts Richard Henry Lee's resolution for independance from Great Britain with only New York abstaining. This date has largely been forgotten in favour of Thomas Jefferson's edited version of The Declaration of Independance adopted on July 4, 1776. Lee Resolution - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
July 2nd resolution.

Richard Henry Lee

 

[giradman]

July 2, 1776;

The second Continental Congress, meeting in Philadelphia, unanimously adopts Richard Henry Lee's resolution for independance from Great Britain with only New York abstaining. This date has largely been forgotten in favour of Thomas Jefferson's edited version of The Declaration of Independance adopted on July 4, 1776. Lee Resolution - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
July 2nd resolution.
Richard Henry Lee
View attachment 72748

The Lee Virginia Dynasty is complex - Richard Henry Lee grew up at Stratford Hall on the Potomac River east of Fredericksburg, Virginia - on a trip to Richmond not too long ago, Susan and I did a day trip. His great grandson, Robert E. Lee (1807-1870) was born there - his father was Henry Lee III (1756-1818), a.k.a. Light Horse Harry during the American Revolution - he presented a eulogy at George Washington's funeral which included the famous words "First in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen." Below several pics of the location of Stratford Hall near Chesapeake Bay and of the house - if you're in the area, a highly recommended visit! Dave

P.S. Just to further complicate these Virginia genealogies, Robert E. Lee married a distant cousin, Mary Custis, who was a grand daughter of Martha Washington - the circled is completed, I guess -
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[J. A.]

July 3, 1930, is the birthday of Carlos Kleiber. The German-Austrian conductor, born in Berlin, is one of the greatest conductors of the 20th century.

Carlos Kleiber - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[giradman]

Battle of Gettysburg ended July 3, 1863 after a Three Day Struggle!

Robert E. Lee invaded the north for the second time and fought the bloodiest battle of the Civil War over a three day conflict - about 50,000 soldiers on both sides were killed, wounded, or captured/missing. The next day, the Siege of Vicksburg (May 18, 1863 – July 4, 1863) ended on the Mississippi River w/ U.S. Grant in charge of the Union forces - July 4, 1863 was indeed a day of joy for Abraham Lincoln - seemed like the war would end soon, but would continue until April of 1865, and shortly after Lee's surrender to Grant at Appomattox, Lincoln was assassinated at Ford's Theater.

For those more interested in the Civil War and for much more on Gettysburg, take a look at my Virginia travelogue from last year. Dave

The Battle of Gettysburg was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, by Union and Confederate forces during the American Civil War. The battle involved the largest number of casualties of the entire war[13] and is often described as the war's turning point.[14]Union Maj. Gen. George Meade's Army of the Potomac defeated attacks by Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia, ending Lee's attempt to invade the North (Source).

Lee led his army on a torturous retreat back to Virginia. Between 46,000 and 51,000 soldiers from both armies were casualties in the three-day battle, the most costly in US history. On November 19, President Lincoln used the dedication ceremony for the Gettysburg National Cemetery to honor the fallen Union soldiers and redefine the purpose of the war in his historic Gettysburg Address (Source).

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[J. A.]

July 4, 1826:
John Adams, 2nd President of the United States, and Thomas Jefferson, 3rd President of the United States, die at the same day.

Adams died in Quincy, Massachusetts, aged 90.
John Adams - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jefferson died in Charlottesville, Virginia, at the age of 83, just a few hours before Adams.

Thomas Jefferson - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

July 4, 1826, is also the 50th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.

 

[scifan57]

July 4, 1776;

The Continental Congress declares independence from Great Britain and issues The Declaration of Independance. United States Declaration of Independence - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia