On September 1, 1985 wreckage of the Titanic was found. Seventy-three years after it sunk to the North Atlantic ocean floor, a joint U.S.-French expedition located the wreck of the RMS Titanic. The sunken liner was about 400 miles west of Newfoundland in the North Atlantic. American Robert D. Ballard headed the expedition, which used an experimental, unmanned submersible developed by the U.S. Navy to search for the ocean liner. The Argo traveled just above the ocean floor, sending photographs up to the research vessel Knorr. In the early morning of September 1, Argo was investigating debris on the ocean floor when it suddenly passed over one of the Titanic's massive boilers, lying at a depth of about 13,000 feet. The wreck was then explored by manned and unmanned submersibles, which gave historians details on the ship's 1912 sinking.
On September 2, 1666 an inferno known as the Great Fire of London began. In the early morning hours, the Great Fire of London broke out in the house of King Charles II's baker on Pudding Lane near London Bridge. The baker did not succeeding in putting the fire in his oven all the way out, and sparks from the smoldering embers ignited firewood lying nearby. The fire soon spread to Thames Street, where warehouses filled with combustibles and a strong easterly wind transformed the blaze into an inferno. When the Great Fire finally was extinguished on September 6, more than four-fifths of London was destroyed. Miraculously, only 16 people were known to have died. In that time, houses were made mostly of oak timber. Some of the poorer houses had walls covered with tar, which kept out the rain but made the structures more vulnerable to fire. Streets were narrow, houses were crowded together, and the firefighting methods of the day consisted of neighborhood bucket brigades using pails of water and primitive hand pumps.
On September 3, 1777 the American flag was flown in battle for the first time. The Revolutionary War had begun, and a battle was underway at Cooch's Bridge in Maryland. Patriot General William Maxwell ordered that the stars and strips banner should be raised. Three months before, on June 14, the Continental Congress adopted a resolution stating that "the flag of the United States be thirteen alternate stripes red and white" and that "the Union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new Constellation." The national flag, which became known as the "Stars and Stripes," was based on the "Grand Union" flag, a banner carried by the Continental Army in 1776 that also consisted of 13 red and white stripes. According to legend, Philadelphia seamstress Betsy Ross designed the new look for the Stars and Stripes, which consisted of a circle of 13 stars and a blue background, at the request of General George Washington. Historians have been unable to conclusively prove or disprove this legend.
THIS WEEK IN HISTORY
On September 2, 1666 an inferno known as the Great Fire of London began. In the early morning hours, the Great Fire of London broke out in the house of King Charles II's baker on Pudding Lane near London Bridge. The baker did not succeeding in putting the fire in his oven all the way out, and sparks from the smoldering embers ignited firewood lying nearby. The fire soon spread to Thames Street, where warehouses filled with combustibles and a strong easterly wind transformed the blaze into an inferno. When the Great Fire finally was extinguished on September 6, more than four-fifths of London was destroyed. Miraculously, only 16 people were known to have died. In that time, houses were made mostly of oak timber. Some of the poorer houses had walls covered with tar, which kept out the rain but made the structures more vulnerable to fire. Streets were narrow, houses were crowded together, and the firefighting methods of the day consisted of neighborhood bucket brigades using pails of water and primitive hand pumps.
On September 3, 1777 the American flag was flown in battle for the first time. The Revolutionary War had begun, and a battle was underway at Cooch's Bridge in Maryland. Patriot General William Maxwell ordered that the stars and strips banner should be raised. Three months before, on June 14, the Continental Congress adopted a resolution stating that "the flag of the United States be thirteen alternate stripes red and white" and that "the Union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new Constellation." The national flag, which became known as the "Stars and Stripes," was based on the "Grand Union" flag, a banner carried by the Continental Army in 1776 that also consisted of 13 red and white stripes. According to legend, Philadelphia seamstress Betsy Ross designed the new look for the Stars and Stripes, which consisted of a circle of 13 stars and a blue background, at the request of General George Washington. Historians have been unable to conclusively prove or disprove this legend.