Woodbury Historical Tours

01/19/2025

It's Edgar Allan Poe's birthday.

He was born in Boston, raised in Richmond, Virginia, & is buried in Baltimore. Poe created or heavily influenced our notions of the detective story, science fiction, & tales of horror.

—Bronze relief medal by Edith Woodman Burroughs, National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution.

01/19/2025

An oft-repeated (almost certainly apocryphal) anecdote has Abe Lincoln being advised that General Grant was a drunkard. But Grant won battles, so Lincoln suggested they find out his brand of whiskey and send it to all the generals.

This concoction didn't appear until the 1930s. Bourbon label: Majestic Distilling Co., Los Angeles, California Historical Society

01/19/2025

Deceased watched over by derricks

Oil wells and Sunnyside Cemetery, south of 27th Street, North Long Beach, Los Angeles: 1932-33 by Anton Wagner, PC 017, California Historical Society. December 7, 1932

01/19/2025

On January 10, 1982 (43 years ago), a dynasty in the making. January 18 issue of Sports Illustrated.

01/17/2025

3 May Days
in Monterey

01/16/2025

We will continue to protect and share President Carter's legacy by making the papers of his administration available to the public and by creating exhibits to teach and entertain. Even presidents have to do their own research sometimes. Image: Staff

01/15/2025

King was arrested 29 times

Did you know that Martin Luther King Jr’s famous, “I Have a Dream” speech was partially improvised and that the iconic phrase was left out of the original draft?

01/15/2025

Located in downtown Washington, DC, the memorial honors Martin Luther King, Jr.'s legacy and the struggle for freedom, equality, and justice. A prominent leader in the modern civil rights movement, Dr. King was a tireless advocate for racial equality, working class, and the oppressed around the worl...

01/15/2025

On January 15, 1929, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was born in Atlanta. The house is now part of the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historical Park.
. . the Kings would have three children born in the home, Willie Christine, Michael Jr. (later known as Martin Luther King, Jr.), and Alfred Daniel.

In 1895 a two-story frame Queen Anne Victorian style house was built for a white family at 501 Auburn Avenue. The home was purchased in 1909 by Rev. Adam Daniel Williams, pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church, for $3,500. Rev. Williams moved into the house with his wife Jennie Celeste and their 6 year o...

01/15/2025

OTD 160 years ago
"On the 15th of January Fort Fisher had fallen, news of which Sherman had received before starting out on his march [through the Carolinas]. We already had New Bern and had soon Wilmington, whose fall followed that of Fort Fisher; as did other points on the sea coast, where the National troops were now in readiness to co-operate with Sherman's advance when he had passed Fayetteville. [Memoirs of U.S. Grant].

01/14/2025

Easy Prey
by Harry Townsend
War Department. Historical Branch of the General Staff
National Museum of American History

01/14/2025

Zouave fez

"This fez belonged to the uniform of the 114th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Regiment. Assembled in Philadelphia, the regiment was under the command of Charles H.T. Collis and was referred to as the Zouaves d' Afrique and, later as the Collis Zouaves. The 114th participated in numerous battles including the Battles of Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, and the Wilderness. Throughout the war the Collis Zouaves were known for their gallantry in action. This distinction was prominently noted when Collis received the Medal of Honor for his brave leadership during the Battle of Fredericksburg. The Collis Zouaves mustered out of service on May 29, 1865."

[Museum description, National Museum of American History]

01/13/2025

"The biggest disaster in college football history happened in San Francisco, and almost no one knows about it."

125 years ago, on Thanksgiving Day in 1900, fans descended on San Francisco's Mission District for Stanford and Cal's rivalry showdown, when disaster struck.

01/13/2025

Cool detail from not only one of the best photos of the Civil War but one that summarizes its outcome better than most any other--recently freed men posing for a Northern cameraman in front of the ruins of the Confederate Capital of Richmond. 1865. Probably August. More to see in the whole plate: https://www.loc.gov/pictures/collection/civwar/item/2018671686/

01/10/2025

—coming this spring—

SELDOM HEARD HISTORY of the Civil War Era
— the 2nd Central Coast Conference —
MAY 2-4, 2025 • MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA

Join us for a full weekend of intriguing presentations on “seldom heard” aspects of the American Civil War, with particular attention paid to the experience of free and enslaved black Americans during the conflict and after.

A distinguished roster of authors and historians will deliver twelve talks in the comfortable Stanton Center Theater, located on Monterey’s historic Custom House Plaza. Books sales and signing on Saturday afternoon in the theater lobby.

Visit the conference webpage for the complete event schedule and registration information. https://whtours.org/seldom-heard-history-2025.html

01/09/2025

Founding Day of Pacific Palisades, January 14, 1922 (Zola Clearwater Collection). Pacific Palisades Historical Society. https://www.pacificpalisadeshistory.org/early-pacific-palisades

01/08/2025

“Will Rogers owned about 359 acres in what is now known as Pacific Palisades, overlooking the Pacific Ocean”

California State Parks

01/03/2025

Atlanta History Center mourns the loss of former President Jimmy Carter and First Lady Rosalynn Carter. During their 75 year marriage, they supported each other through a governorship, presidency, and more than forty years of humanitarian work.