🌟 Editor's Note
Good morning — it’s Monday, March 30. Today we're checking out some cool history stuff, like the first time Halley's Comet passed, the U.S. taking Alaska from Russia, Batman's debut, the opening of the first Starbucks, the attempt on Ronald Reagan's life, and a bunch of other interesting bits — all in a quick and sharp way!
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🚀 Time Machine
-240 BC
The first recorded perihelion passage of Halley's Comet.
-1814
Allied European forces march into Paris, ending a decade of Napoleon’s French domination.
-1856
The Treaty of Paris, signed by Russia, the Ottoman Empire, Great Britain, France, and Sardinia, ended the Crimean War.
-1867
The U.S. buys Alaska from Russia for $7,200,000 (about 158 million in today's dollars), roughly 2 cents per acre.
-1870
The 15th Amendment to the US Constitution was adopted, guaranteeing the right to vote regardless of race.
-1939
Detective Comics #27 hits newsstands, introducing the world to a new superhero, Batman.
-1959
The Dalai Lama flees China and gets political asylum in India.
-1971
Starbucks opens its first store in Seattle's iconic Pike Place Market with just one employee.
-1972
The British government dissolved Northern Ireland's government and parliament, and direct rule from Westminster was introduced.
-1981
President Ronald Reagan was shot in the chest by John Hinckley Jr. outside a hotel in Washington, D.C.
-1981
"Chariots of Fire," directed by Hugh Hudson, starring Ben Cross and Ian Charleson, premieres at the Royal Film Performance.
-1987
Vincent Van Gogh's "Sunflowers" sells for a record $22.5 million. ($65 million today)
-2023
Key figures in AI, including Elon Musk and Steve Wozniak, sign an open letter warning that the race to develop AI is out of control and calling for a six-month pause.
📸 Snapshot
Check for $7.2 million that the US sent to Russia to buy Alaska, 1868
🗨️ Last Words
“I did not think that they would put a young gentleman to death for such a trifle.”