Category:
War
War
The CSS Shenandoah
The ship that continued to fight the Civil War after the surrender of the South.
From the Wikipedia entry:
On June 27, 1865, he learned from a prize, the Susan & Abigail, that General Robert E. Lee had surrendered his Army of Northern Virginia. Her captain produced a San Francisco newspaper reporting the flight from Richmond, Virginia, of the Confederate Government 10 weeks previously. However, the newspaper also contained Confederate President Jefferson Davis's proclamation that the "war would be carried on with re-newed vigor."[9] Waddell then captured 10 more whalers in the space of 7 hours just below the Arctic Circle.
On August 3, 1865, Waddell finally learned of the war's end when he met at sea the Liverpool barque Barracouta, which was bound for San Francisco.[10] He received the devastating news of the surrender of General Joseph E. Johnston's army on April 26, Kirby Smith's army's surrender on May 26, and crucially the capture of President Davis and a part of his cabinet. Captain Waddell then knew the war was over.[9]
Captain Waddell lowered his Confederate flag, and the CSS Shenandoah underwent physical alteration. Her guns were dismounted and stored below deck, and her hull was painted to look like an ordinary merchant vessel.
Article here.
Posted By: Paul - Tue Jan 02, 2018 -
Comments (2)
Category: Confusion, Misunderstanding, and Incomprehension, War, Nineteenth Century
Air Raid Noise Experiment
These pictures in the Google Arts picture archive don't come with any explanatory text, except that they're from an "Air Raid Noise Experiment" conducted in Nuneaton in 1941. But I suspect that the experiment was part of a series of psychological experiments conducted in the UK in 1941 that attempted to "harden Britons to bomb shock." The idea was to expose people to the sounds of air raid sirens and battle sounds so that they would lose their fear of them. As described in the news clipping below:The suggestion was advanced that whole populations be put through the experiment to make them 'immune, through familiarity, to fear caused by air raid noises.'
The Greenfield Daily Reporter - Nov 28 1941
I've been aware of these experiments for a while. I previously posted something about them back in 2009. But I just came across these photos and realized they must be from one of these experiments.
Posted By: Alex - Thu Nov 02, 2017 -
Comments (2)
Category: Noises and Other Public Disturbances of the Peace, War, Experiments, Psychology, 1940s
Drip Fire Rifle
Invented by Lance Corporal William Charles Scurry during WWI, while fighting in Gallipoli. The Drip Fire Rifle was a way to jerry-rig a rifle using readily available materials so that it would randomly fire on its own. The Australian forces set up a whole bunch of these Drip Fire Rifles, and in this way were able to fool the Turkish forces into thinking they were actively manning the front lines, when in fact they were all sneaking away in boats. From abc.net.au:His invention involved water dripping from one ration tin into a lower tin attached to a weight, which was tied to a trigger. Depending on the hole in the ration tin, the lower one could take between 20 minutes to an hour to fill. The weight would then pull the rifle trigger. The resultant sporadic fire sounded like any other night, and mirrored the rhythms of the Anzacs that the Turkish forces had grown familiar with.
Posted By: Alex - Sat Sep 16, 2017 -
Comments (1)
Category: Inventions, War, Weapons, 1910s
Peace Pilgrim II
The Peace Pilgrim (aka Mildred Lisette Norman) is fairly famous. In 1953 she began walking across America, wearing a shirt that said "Peace Pilgrim," and vowed to keep walking "until mankind has learned the way of peace." She was already an experienced walker when she started this, having been the first woman to hike the entire Appalachian trail in one season. She walked for 28 years until her death in 1981, logging over 25,000 miles.Peace Pilgrim II (aka Ronald Podrow) isn't quite as famous or inspirational. In 1989, inspired by the first Peace Pilgrim, he adopted her name and also began walking to promote peace. But unlike her, he wasn't an experienced walker. From wikipedia:
Peace Pilgrim II was only able to walk the first year of his pilgrimage. After 2,000 miles on foot, his hips required surgical replacement, but he continued his pilgrimage thereafter with the aid of a donated car and Social Security benefits.
Peace Pilgrim II wrote a book about his experiences, Enjoying the Journey: The Adventures, Travels, and Teachings of Peace Pilgrim II. It was published in 1995.
More info.
Posted By: Alex - Sun Jul 02, 2017 -
Comments (5)
Category: Exercise and Fitness, War
The Sky Is Your Target!
"Air Flash from the Joneses!" What if they had to deal with drones?
Posted By: Paul - Tue Feb 14, 2017 -
Comments (3)
Category: War, Civic Duties, Air Travel and Airlines, 1950s
The Pantheon de la Guerre
What was once the world's largest painting featured 6000 identifiable real-world figures. The postcard below represents just a fragment of it.Full story here.
Posted By: Paul - Sat Feb 11, 2017 -
Comments (2)
Category: Art, War, 1910s
Don’t Waste Paper
In 1918, the U.S. War Industries Board ran ads in magazines and newspapers urging everyone to save paper. The reason: "Paper contains valuable chemicals necessary for war purposes. Economy in the use of paper will release a large quantity of these materials for making poisonous gas."All patriots were urged to do their part to help "Gas the Fiendish Huns."
The Illustrated Milliner - Sep 28, 1918
Every time you economize in paper, every time you do without a sheet of letter paper or a sheet of wrapping paper or paper bags — every sort of paper in fact, you are saving just so much more sulphur for our Government to put into war gases.
The more of this powerful gas we have at the battle front the more of our boys' lives we save and the quicker we will win the final victory.
Do not waste a scrap of paper.
The more of this powerful gas we have at the battle front the more of our boys' lives we save and the quicker we will win the final victory.
Do not waste a scrap of paper.
Posted By: Alex - Fri Oct 14, 2016 -
Comments (2)
Category: War, 1910s
Follies of the Madmen #293
Death-dealing war instrument of mass destruction compared to treasured hymn.
Original ad here.
Posted By: Paul - Mon Sep 26, 2016 -
Comments (6)
Category: Death, War, Armed Forces, Weapons, Advertising, 1970s
Early Car Bomb and/or Guided Missile
Original article here.
Posted By: Paul - Tue Sep 13, 2016 -
Comments (9)
Category: Inventions, War, Weapons, 1910s, Cars
Escape Training
Just in case ISIS captures you on your next Middle Eastern vacation.
Posted By: Paul - Wed May 11, 2016 -
Comments (7)
Category: PSA’s, War, Armed Forces, 1950s
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| Alex Boese Alex is the creator and curator of the Museum of Hoaxes. He's also the author of various weird, non-fiction, science-themed books such as Elephants on Acid and Psychedelic Apes. Paul Di Filippo Paul has been paid to put weird ideas into fictional form for over thirty years, in his career as a noted science fiction writer. He has recently begun blogging on many curious topics with three fellow writers at The Inferior 4+1. Contact Us |