1868 – John Willis Menard was the first African American elected to the United States Congress. Because of an electoral challenge, he was never seated.
John Willis Menard was a federal government employee, poet, newspaper publisher and politician born in Illinois to parents who were Louisiana Creoles from New Orleans. After moving to New Orleans, on November 3, 1868, Menard was the first black man ever elected to the United States House of Representatives.[1] His opponent contested his election, and opposition to his election prevented him from being seated in Congress.
1954 – The first Godzilla film is released and marks the first appearance of the character of the same name.
Godzilla (ゴジラ Gojira?) is a 1954 Japanese science fiction kaiju film directed by Ishirō Honda. The film stars Akira Takarada, Momoko Kōchi, Akihiko Hirata, Takashi Shimura and Haruo Nakajima, who portrayed the titular character until his retirement in 1972. The film is produced by Toho and features special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya.
The film focuses on Godzilla, a prehistoric monster resurrected by repeated nuclear tests in the Pacific, who ravages Japan and reignites the horrors of nuclear devastation to the very nation that experienced it first-hand. It was the first of many kaiju films released in Japan, paving the way and setting the standard for future kaiju films, many of which feature Godzilla.
1957 – Sputnik program: The Soviet Union launches Sputnik 2. On board is the first animal to enter orbit, a dog named Laika.
Sputnik 2, or Prosteyshiy Sputnik 2 was the second spacecraft launched into Earth orbit, on 3 November 1957, and the first to carry a living animal, a dog named Laika. Sputnik 2 was a 4-metre (13 foot) high cone-shaped capsule with a base diameter of 2 meters (6.6 feet) that weighed around 500 kg, though it was not designed to separate from the rocket core that brought it to orbit, bringing the total mass in orbit to 7.79 tons. It contained several compartments for radio transmitters, a telemetry system, a programming unit, a regeneration and temperature-control system for the cabin, and scientific instruments. A separate sealed cabin contained the dog Laika.
1973 – Mariner program: NASA launches the Mariner 10 toward Mercury. On March 29, 1974, it becomes the first space probe to reach that planet.
Mariner 10 was an American robotic space probe launched by NASA on November 3, 1973, to fly by the planets Mercury and Venus.
Mariner 10 was launched approximately two years after Mariner 9 and was the last spacecraft in the Mariner program (Mariner 11 and 12 were allocated to the Voyager program and redesignated Voyager 1 and Voyager 2).
The mission objectives were to measure Mercury’s environment, atmosphere, surface, and body characteristics and to make similar investigations of Venus. Secondary objectives were to perform experiments in the interplanetary medium and to obtain experience with a dual-planet gravity assist mission. Mariner 10’s science team was led by Bruce C. Murray at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
2012 – Adafruit re-opens after Sandy.
As we re-boot and get back to business after being without power, net, heat, etc for the last week. We’ll do a series of posts about what we’re doing to not only help our employees displaced by Sandy but what we’re doing in the local area and NYC to help people and businesses. One employee is going to stay at another place for a bit, their apartment might not be habitable for awhile, we’re going to cover the rent for them while they get back on their feet with a new place – all employees, hourly and part time are getting paid for the week we were out as well. We had one new person who was going to start on Monday of last week but could not, we’re going to give them a week’s pay so they don’t need to worry about any bills piling up.
On a more tasty note – One of the hardest hit types of business around here in NYC were the restaurants, we’re trying to see which ones could use a boost as we work some late hours and get delivery or stop in. We’ll try and see who needs some business in our area and post about them here too.
More updates coming soon.
-Ladyada and Adafruit team
2014 – One World Trade Center officially opens
One World Trade Center (also known as 1 World Trade Center, One WTC and 1 WTC; the current building was dubbed the “Freedom Tower” during initial basework) refers to the main building of the new World Trade Center complex in Lower Manhattan, New York City. It is the tallest skyscraper in the Western Hemisphere, and the fifth-tallest in the world. The 104-story supertall structure shares a numeric name with the North Tower of the original World Trade Center, which was destroyed in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. The new skyscraper stands on the northwest corner of the 16-acre (6.5 ha) World Trade Center site, on the site of the original 6 World Trade Center. The building is bounded by West Street to the west, Vesey Street to the north, Fulton Street to the south, and Washington Street to the east.
Construction of below-ground utility relocations, footings, and foundations for the new building began on April 27, 2006. One World Trade Center became the tallest structure in New York City on April 30, 2012, when it surpassed the height of the Empire State Building. The tower’s steel structure was topped out on August 30, 2012. On May 10, 2013, the final component of the skyscraper’s spire was installed, making the building, including its spire, reach a total height of 1,776 feet (541 m). Its height in feet is a deliberate reference to the year when the United States Declaration of Independence was signed. The building opened on November 3, 2014.
