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Shocking Secrets of American History: 115 Surprising and Amusing Tales
Shocking Secrets of American History 115 Surprising and Amusing Tales Author:Bill Coate "No harm's done to history by making it something someone should want to read." -David McCullough, American historian and best-selling author — History can be more than valiant battle heroes, countries at war, and political upheavals. Sometimes it's about tales of intrigue, outrageous behavior, unbelievable blunders,and oddball ... more »politicos! Shocking Secrets of American History hands you the whole story, not just the bits and pieces you learned in school.
Each page offers a fascinating story of an event from our nation's past, from early American obscurities and Civil War oddities, to bizarre occurrences in the White House and the Wild West. For example, you'll read about how:
Hitler's last name could have been Schicklgruber. How would the masses have reacted to a call for "Heil Schicklgruber"?
On the day of daredevil pilot Amelia Earhart's wedding, she handed the groom-to-be an "anti-love letter" that contained the cruel condition, "You must let me go in a year if we find no happiness together."
The financial fate of the newly independent United States and the site of the seat of government were decided at a simple dinner party in 1790. The evening was set up to serve as a place where Madison and Hamilton could met and discuss their differences under "the benign influences of wine."
The real villain of the 1919 Black Sox Scandal, owner Charles Comisky, was in part responsible for the scandal, yet didn't not receive any sort of reprimand. While the eight players involved were banned from baseball for life and their names became synonymous with ill-gotten gains and wrong-doing, Comisky maintained his post and his reputation was untarnished.« less