Today in military history: FDR signs the GI Bill into law
On June 22, 1944, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the G.I. Bill into law, providing a variety of benefits for returning World War II veterans, fondly known as GIs (short…
This WWII program was more expensive than the Manhattan Project
The Manhattan Project, America’s nuclear bomb program, was one of the most expensive research and development undertakings of WWII. In total, the program cost about $2 billion, or nearly $30…
7 cool facts about the Battle of San Juan Hill
You’ve heard of the Rough Riders, Teddy Roosevelt, his Medal of Honor, and the ass-beating the United States gave Spain in Cuba. But do you know just how much went down on the Caribbean Island that day?
Let’s start off with a big reveal:…
This is the Bible passage Roosevelt used to promise aid to England
Almost a year before America was attacked at Pearl Harbor and officially joined World war II, President Franklin D. Roosevelt sent his top aide to London to promise aid to Prime Minister Winston Churchill with a slightly amended Bible quote. This wa…
Roosevelt’s daughter placed bets in the White House
Today, anything the first children do is under public scrutiny. So imagine the scandals underway when Alice Roosevelt, daughter of President Teddy Roosevelt, turned heads with her dicey pastimes. She…
Today in military history: FDR approves of the draft
On Sep. 16, 1940, President Franklin Roosevelt signed the Selective Service Act, requiring all male Americans between the ages of 26 and 35 to register for the military draft. Though…
That time a badger lived in the White House
President Theodore Roosevelt is known for being a Rough Rider, a trust-buster, and coining the infamous phrase, “Walk softly, but carry a big stick.” He also turned the White House into a veritable menagerie during his stay there. He, of course, h…
This is how Theodore Roosevelt turned a ‘cowboy cavalry’ into the battle-ready ‘Rough Riders’
Few figures in American history loom as large as Teddy Roosevelt. The man embodied the can-do American spirit and the gritty resolve of the American fighting man.
But when the former “Rough Rider” was offered up his first military com…
The last of Teddy Roosevelt’s ‘Rough Riders’ died in 1987
The people who live through the world’s most historic events are the best connection to our past. Today, as we lament the growing losses of veterans who fought in World…
5 legendary speeches delivered on D-Day over 75 years
June 6, 2019, marks 75 years since D-Day, when Allied troops stormed the beaches of Normandy during World War II.
On June 6, 1944, roughly 160,000 troops landed in Normandy, France, on five beaches with the code names Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno, …