Uncommon History

If you have served in the armed forces at any time in our nation’s history, you will no doubt have memories of long periods of silent, lonely boredom. Today’s soldiers face the same isolation and a number of radio drama companies are banding together to provide some relief and you can help.

The goal is to send 10,000 CD’s packed with hours of entertaining radio drama for the soldier’s listening pleasure. For a list of participating radio drama companies and to find out more about this tremendous project, listen to the radio spot below.

Sounds4Soldiers spot

To thank our soldiers for their service and to make a tax-deductible donation to Sounds4Soldiers, visit:http://www.sounds4soldiers.org

The golden age of radio was an unprecedented era that was the dawn of broadcast news and entertainment. In its preserved form, “old time radio” presents history through they eyes of time. Not all history presented may be completely accurate, but it is a snapshot of how history was viewed at that time.

Understanding history through this medium presents a glimpse into the past and its interpretation. Enjoy this episode of Uncommon History’s series, History Through Radio.

Here is a list of the current History Through Radio entries:

Program Name	Date Aired	Listen Now	Download

I don’t know what your favorite time of the year is, but for me it is always spring. Each season has its own pros and cons, but there is something different about spring. Perhaps it is the once dead looking trees shrouding themselves once more with coats of green. Certainly the endless fields of flowers are enough to brighten just about anyone’s day! Even just the chance to go outside without bulky jackets and heavy clothes presents a liberating experience every year.

Spring might not be the favorite for all, but it seems that most everyone has a bigger, brighter smile this time of year. As they say, “Spring is in the air!”

This year I have seen a number of families in my neighborhood celebrating the return of spring and the much needed rain. Perhaps you too would like to host a party of your own. Sometimes planning such an event can be challenging, but there are many places that can offer you theme party ideas for any situation.

Don’t let spring pass you by! Summer will be here soon, so enjoy the change of seasons.

theme party ideas

Shortly after the chaotic adjournment of the 1860 Democratic National Convention, there was wind in the sails of the Republican party. Convened in the newly constructed WigWam building in Chicago, Illinois in the middle of May, the Republicans began the process of selecting a platform and a nominee.

Politics within the Republican party were not much more allied than that of their Democratic challengers. Chase had recently deserted his Democratic colleagues for the Republican party. Slavery was a contentious issue not only for the Democrats as it caused many rifts within the Republican convention as well. Upon completion of the first two ballots, it appeared that the likely nominee would be William H. Seward, but other contenders were Salmon P. Chase, Edward bates, Simon Cameron and Abraham Lincoln. While internal battles waged, the Republicans realized they had a real possibility of winning the coming election. Slowly Abraham Lincoln became recognized as having the most visible national and was certainly the most articulate of all the candidates. By the third ballot however, Abraham Lincoln captured the nomination of the Republican party. A total of 233 votes were needed, but in the final vote Abraham received 364 votes from a total of 466.

The Republican Party Platform of 1860 is presented below. It is interesting to note paragraphs 2, 7, 8, 9 and 10. Many debates have been waged over the decades about tempers in the South being inflamed by Abraham Lincoln’s anti-slavery stance. Others have argued that Abraham Lincoln had never declared any personal intention to end or constrain slavery. When you consider that the Republican Candidate was the person most able to enact the principals of that party’s platform, the anti-slavery direction laid down in this platform was most certainly supported by Abraham Lincoln, the candidate.

Republican Party Platform of 1860

“Resolved, That we, the delegated representatives of the Republican electors of the United States, in convention assembled, in discharge of the duty we owe to our constituent and our country, unite in the following declarations:

1. That the history of the nation during the last four years has fully established the propriety and necessity of the organization and perpetuation of the republican party, and that the causes which called it into existence are permanent in their nature, and now more than ever before demand its peaceful and constitutional triumph.

2. That the maintenance of the principles promulgated in the Declaration of Independence and embodied in the Federal Constitution, “That all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; that to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed,” is essential to the preservation of our Republican institutions; and that the Federal Constitution, the rights of the states, and the Union of the states, must and shall be preserved.

3. That to the Union of the States this nation owes its unprecedented increase in population; its surprising development of material resources; its rapid augmentation of wealth; its happiness at home and its honor abroad; and we hold in abhorrence all schemes for disunion, come from whatever source they may; and we congratulate the country that no republican member of congress has uttered or countenanced the threats of disunion so often made by democratic members, without rebuke and with applause from their political associates; and we denounce those threats of disunion, in case of a popular overthrow of their ascendancy, as denying the vital principles of a free government, and as an avowal of contemplated treason, which it is the imperative duty of an indignant people sternly to rebuke and forever silence.

4. That the maintenance inviolate of the rights of the states, and especially the right of each state, to order and control its own domestic institutions according to its own judgment exclusively, is essential to that balance of power on which the perfection and endurance of our political fabric depends, and we denounce the lawless invasion by armed force of the soil of any state or territory, no matter under what pretext, as among the gravest of crimes.

5. That the present Democratic Administration has far exceeded our worst apprehension in its measureless subserviency to the exactions of a sectional interest, as is especially evident in its desperate exertions to force the infamous Lecompton constitution upon the protesting people of Kansas – in construing the personal relation between master and servant to involve an unqualified property in persons – in its attempted enforcement everywhere, on land and sea, through the intervention of congress and of the federal courts, of the extreme pretensions of a purely local interest, and in its general and unvarying abuse of the power entrusted to it by a confiding people.

6. That the people justly view with alarm the reckless extravagance which pervades every department of the Federal Government; that a return to rigid economy and accountability is indispensable to arrest the systematic plunder of the public treasury by favored partisans; while the recent startling developments of frauds and corruptions at the federal metropolis, show that an entire change of Administration is imperatively demanded.

7. That the new dogma that the Constitution of its own force carries slavery into any or all of the territories of the United States, is a dangerous political heresy, at variance with the explicit provisions of that instrument itself, with cotemporaneous exposition, and with legislative and judicial precedent, is revolutionary in its tendency and subversive of the peace and harmony of the country.

8. That the normal condition of all the territory of the United States is that of freedom; that as our republican fathers, when they had abolished slavery in all our national territory, ordained that no “person should be deprived of life, liberty or property, without due process of law,” it becomes our duty, by legislation, whenever such legislation is necessary, to maintain this provision of the constitution against all attempts to violate it; and we deny the authority of congress, of a territorial legislature, or of any individuals, to give legal existence to slavery in any territory of the United States.

9. That we brand the recent re-opening of the African Slave Trade, under the cover of our national flag, aided by perversions of judicial power, as a crime against humanity, and a burning shame to our country and age, and we call upon congress to take prompt and efficient measures for the total and final suppression of that execrable traffic.

10. That in the recent vetoes by the federal governors of the acts of the Legislatures of Kansas and Nebraska, prohibiting slavery in those territories, we find a practical illustration of the boasted democratic principle of non- intervention and popular sovereignty, embodied in the Kansas-Nebraska bill, and a demonstration of the deception and fraud involved therein.

11. That Kansas should of right be immediately admitted as a state, under the constitution recently formed and adopted by her people, and accepted by the House of Representatives.

12. That while providing revenue for the support of the general government by duties upon imports, sound policy requires such an adjustment of these imposts as to encourage the development of the industrial interests of the whole country, and we commend that policy of national exchanges which secures to the workingmen liberal wages, to agriculture remunerating prices, to mechanics and manufacturers an adequate reward for their skill, labor and enterprise, and to the nation commercial prosperity and independence.

13. That we protest against any sale or alienation to others of the public lands held by actual settlers, and against any view of the free homestead policy which regards the settlers as paupers or suppliants for public bounty, and we demand the passage by congress of the complete and satisfactory homestead measure which has already passed the house.

14. That the Republican Party is opposed to any change in our naturalization laws, or any state legislation by which the rights of citizenship hitherto accorded by emigrants from foreign lands shall be abridged or impaired; and in favor of giving a full and efficient protection to the rights of all classes of citizens, whether native or naturalized, both at home and abroad.

15. That appropriation by Congress for river and Harbor improvements of a National character, required for the accommodation and security of an existing commerce, are authorized by the constitution and justified by the obligation of Government to protect the lives and property of its citizens.

16. That a railroad to the Pacific ocean is imperatively demanded by the interests of the whole country; that the Federal Government ought to render immediate and efficient aid in its construction; and that, as preliminary thereto, a daily overland mail should be promptly established.

17. Finally, having thus set forth our distinctive principles and views, we invite the cooperation of all citizens, however differing on other questions who substantially agree with us in their affirmance and support.

Supplementary Resolution. Resolved, That we deeply sympathize with those men who have been driven, some from their native States and others from the States of their adoption, and are now exiled from their homes on account of their opinions; and we hold the Democratic Party responsible for this gross violation of that clause of the Constitution which declares that the citizens of each State shall be entitled to all the privileges and immunities of citizens in the several States.”

The golden age of radio was an unprecedented era that was the dawn of broadcast news and entertainment. In its preserved form, “old time radio” presents history through they eyes of time. Not all history presented may be completely accurate, but it is a snapshot of how history was viewed at that time.

Understanding history through this medium presents a glimpse into the past and its interpretation. Enjoy this episode of Uncommon History’s series, History Through Radio.

Series Name: Cavalcade of America
Episode, Date: Conservation / 3/25/1936
Uncommon History Rating: ***
Review: In the spirit of celebrating Earth Week/ Earth Day I thought it would be appropriate to play an Old Time Radio program dedicated to the topic of conservation. In this episode there are some interesting insights into the ideas of 1936 conservation efforts.

Interestingly, one of the items the program highlighted as needing conservation were the  fundamental American character and ideals. We could all probably agree to some degree that the fundamental American character and ideals have indeed been eroded greatly since the airing of this program. There is no doubt we have made many strides in various civil freedoms, but there has been a trade off that is tipping the scale.

Another interesting facet of this program is their radio dramatization of the story of Johnny Appleseed as an example of conservation. It is an example of how decades passed with the idea that planting trees, any trees, was a good environmental practice. Since then we have learned the harm that can be produced when we plant non-native and invasive species into foreign lands.

Enjoy the show:

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As far as this writer is concerned, every day is (or should be) mother’s day. Every day across our land mothers are making sacrifices and loving choices for their families. But just when did people begin to officially recognize the efforts of our mothers with a single, special day of remembrance?

In the United States of America, the year was 1913 and the House of Representatives unanimously adopted a resolution to this effect in the month of May. This resolution requested that all government officials, including Congress and the President, wear a white carnation to recognize the mothers of the United States of America.

A year later on May 8, 1914, another resolution was passed in Congress that set aside the second Sunday in May as the official “Mother’s Day.” On this day, the US Flag should be displayed on all government buildings and homes as a “public expression of our love and reverence for the mothers of our country.” This first proclamation was given by then President Woodrow Wilson.

Still, this isn’t exactly the beginning of the recognition of the efforts of mothers. According to popular histories, the first official observance of Mothers Day occurred on May 10, 1908. Church services held in Grafton, West Virginia and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania marked the day by wearing Carnations, the favorite flower of Mrs. Anna Reese Jarvis’ mother. Anna Jarvis had requested the observance in honor of her departed mother. Tradition holds that white carnations are representative of mothers that have passed away and red carnations represent mothers that are still living.

Mrs. Jarvis’ efforts had been spurned by her own mother who had taught lessons in her Sunday School. During one of the lessons, Anna’s mother pronounced that, “I hope and pray that someone, sometime, will found a memorial mother’s day. There are many days for men, but none for mothers.” The groundwork was laid by Mrs. Anna Jarvis who petitioned local businessmen and even Presidents Taft and Roosevelt to support her desire to recognize mothers.

Mrs. Jarvis saw her dream come to fruition, but over time merchants and businesses began capitalizing on the new national holiday. These businesses increasingly promoted material gifts, cards, presents and flowers to their customers. Such greedy materialism did not match the intent Anna Jarvis intended and she became increasingly frustrated with the practice. So much so that she filed a lawsuit in 1923 to halt a Mother’s Day festival. Later still, Mrs. Jarvis was arrested for disturbing the peace while trying to sell carnations at a war mother’s group. Ultimately Mrs. Jarvis died in 1948, full of regret for starting the mother’s day tradition.

However, long before there was an Mrs. Anna Jarvis, others had pressed for recognition of the plight of mothers. In Boston, in the year 1870, Julia Ward Howe (Author of the “Battle Hymn of the Republic”) issued her own proclamation in the name of peace.

Arise, then, women of this day! Arise all women who have hearts,
whether our baptism be that of water or of fears!

Say firmly: “We will not have great questions decided by
irrelevant agencies. Our husbands shall not come to us, reeking
with carnage, for caresses and applause. Our sons shall not be
taken from us to unlearn all that we have been able to teach
them of charity, mercy and patience.

We women of one country will be too tender of those of another
country to allow our sons to be trained to injure theirs. From
the bosom of the devastated earth a voice goes up with our own.
It says “Disarm, Disarm! The sword of murder is not the balance
of justice.”

Blood does not wipe our dishonor nor violence indicate possession.
As men have often forsaken the plow and the anvil at the summons
of war, let women now leave all that may be left of home for a
great and earnest day of counsel. Let them meet first, as women,
to bewail and commemorate the dead.

Let them then solemnly take counsel with each other as to the
means whereby the great human family can live in peace, each
bearing after their own time the sacred impress, not of Caesar,
but of God.

In the name of womanhood and of humanity, I earnestly ask that a
general congress of women without limit of nationality may be
appointed and held at some place deemed most convenient and at
the earliest period consistent with its objects, to promote the
alliance of the different nationalities, the amicable settlement
of international questions, the great and general interests of
peace.

Perhaps Julia Ward Howe had actually been encouraged by the mother of the woman who eventually saw Mother’s Day become a National holiday. Prior to Julia Ward Howe’s proclamation, the mother of Mrs. Anna Jarvis (Mrs. Anna Reeves Jarvis), had been organizing Mother’s Work Days since 1858. The goal of these work days was to improve health and sanitation conditions in West Virginia communities. Her work continued through the United States Civil War when she encouraged women to care for casualties of that war. An increasing number of women and mothers became exposed to the dangers and destruction caused by modern means of warfare and soon meetings were held to attempt to bring peace back to the land.

With so much warfare continuing to be waged throughout the world today, perhaps we could set aside the materialistic side of mother’s day this year and return to the original intention. Let us remember the sacrifices of our wives and mothers and honor them by finding way to ease their suffering. Let us dedicate ourselves to opting first to find peaceful solutions rather than immediately going to war over disagreements.

Congratulations to Paul Harding who has won the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for fiction with his book, Tinkers, published by Bellevue Literary Press.

From Bellview Literary Press:

“An old man lies dying. Confined to bed in his living room, he sees the walls around him begin to collapse, the windows come loose from their sashes, and the ceiling plaster fall off in great chunks, showering him with a lifetime of debris: newspaper clippings, old photographs, wool jackets, rusty tools, and the mangled brass works of antique clocks. Soon, the clouds from the sky above plummet down on top of him, followed by the stars, till the black night covers him like a shroud. He is hallucinating, in death throes from cancer and kidney failure.

A methodical repairer of clocks, he is now finally released from the usual constraints of time and memory to rejoin his father, an epileptic, itinerant peddler, whom he had lost 7 decades before. In his return to the wonder and pain of his impoverished childhood in the backwoods of Maine, he recovers a natural world that is at once indifferent to man and inseparable from him, menacing and awe inspiring.

Tinkers is about the legacy of consciousness and the porousness of identity from one generation the next. At once heartbreaking and life affirming, it is an elegiac meditation on love, loss, and the fierce beauty of nature.”

The golden age of radio was an unprecedented era that was the dawn of broadcast news and entertainment. In its preserved form, “old time radio” presents history through they eyes of time. Not all history presented may be completely accurate, but it is a snapshot of how history was viewed at that time.

Understanding history through this medium presents a glimpse into the past and its interpretation. Enjoy this episode of Uncommon History’s series, History Through Radio.

Series Name: Cavalcade of America
Episode, Date: The Declaration Of Independence / January 1, 1936
Uncommon History Rating: ***
Review: It seemed appropriate to start off this series with the birth of the United States. This program was the thirteenth episode for Cavalcade of America and was aired on New Years Day, 1936. One of the interesting aspects of the earlier episodes of Cavalcade was the amount of time spent on broadcasting popular classical music of the time. To my knowledge, there are no commercially broadcast shows that dedicate such a vast amount of time to simple and pure entertainment.

When you consider when this program was produced, towards the end of the Great Depression, it can be imagined just how many people gathered around their small radio sets to get any bit of entertainment or news. Patriotism was an important aspect to be nurtured and this program was one means with which to promote such positive attitudes. When unemployment ranged between 15-20%, people needed to remember their heroes and their past in order to maintain hope for the future.

The producers of Cavalcade created an entertaining backdrop with which to educate their listeners rather than to simply provide a lecture. Bringing history to life over the airwaves in such quality was a bold and noteworthy effort. The series itself was sponsored by Dupont, but the only mention of the company in this episode came at the very beginning and the end of the program. The message was not diluted with a multitude of commercials or product placements. However, you will notice the social value placed upon the American “housewife” and the history of cellophane, a substance invented by the program sponsor, Dupont.

Take 30 minutes from your busy day to enjoy the listening environment of Cavalcade of America’s “The Declaration of Independence.”

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Ambrose Bierce was among the great many combatants during the US Civil War and it was that experience that led this prolific writer to expose his readers to a deeper and darker side. So much so that he became known as “Bitter Bierce.” His disdain for corruption and first-hand experience with the atrocities and maladies of warfare were a constant source of material and insight.

One of my favorite short-stories of all times has been Ambros Bierce’s “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge.” It has been some time since I last read the story, but this week it was required reading in one of my college courses. Having now returned to that story, it refreshes my memory as to why I like the story so much.

Bierce has a way with imagery, point of view and the English language that few writers, myself included, could ever dream of achieving. I have not read all of his works, but those that I have read pull you directly into the story and don’t let you go. Bierce has a message and he wants you to read it.

While we discussed the story in class, I found myself half in agreement and half in disagreement with the interpretation of the man and the story. Perhaps Bierce was bitter, who could blame him. I am certain there were many people who held onto bitterness following the end of the Civil War in 1865. While there was indeed much to be thankful for and to look forward to, there remained much to be bitter about.

I personally find a deeper, more thoughtful man in Bierce than most people I have spoken about him with. He had an adventurous spirit that propelled him way beyond simple bitterness. A bitter man would most likely sequester himself into a dark corner and never escape. Ambrose Bierce explored his bitterness and searched for more meaning. Perhaps the search is what led him towards bitterness. Regardless, his travels, exploits and written record of American History give us a picture of our land that was not seen through rose-colored glasses.

Perhaps that in itself is why I have so much respect for a man that many hold much disdain for. He sought out truth and exposed mankind for what it was. Biased, of course. Objective, perhaps not. Regardless, he did find and report about things that most people either glossed over or simply ignored. For all he lacked in fragrant prose he made up for with courageous and gritty tenacity. I find in Ambrose Bierce a kindred spirit, to a point.

To read more of Ambrose Bierce’s writing and to learn more about the man, visit:

http://www.ambrosebierce.org/

Confederate Month took an 8-year hiatus under the helm of Democratic governors, Mark Warner and Tim Kaine, but in a bold new decision, the Governor of Virgina, Bob McDonnell has announced that April will be designated as Confederate Month. A month long celebration and commemoration of the Confederate forces and soldiers that defended the Virginia homeland during the American war that took place from 1861-1865.

Such a decision will no doubt bring about a measure of controversy, but there truly is a treasure of historic value in remembering the men and women who fought and died for the Confederate cause. Without a doubt there will be those in number who will try to use the time to resurrect old memories or conflicts and try to fan the flames of hatred or denial.

However, with the approach of the 150th anniversary of the United States Civil War, or War-Between-The-States, the timing is right to shed light on a treasure-trove of historic sights and memorials that are certain to draw in travelers and much needed economic stimulus to the State of Virgina.

Let us hope that the value of civil discussion of the past rises above the rhetoric of racial bigotry and hatred that is still so prevalent in many parts of society. Causes and effects are worth debating and educating, but memories of sacrifice on all sides is also an important part of our nation’s history.