Bethnal Green Disaster – 1943
The eastern extension to London’s Central Line was under construction in the 1930s, but was incomplete when World War II…
Introduction to Australia of the Cane Toad – 1935-1936
It was Puerto Rico’s fault. The Caribbean island introduced the Giant Neotropical Toad (officially Bufo marinus) from nearby Central America…
Assassination of Franz Ferdinand – 1914
Life looked sweet for 49-year-old Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Este in 1914. He had married for love and the starchy…
The 1913 Massacre
Michigan’s Copper Country was in turmoil from July 1913, as miners struck for union recognition, shorter hours, extra pay and…
Captain Scott’s Polar Assault – 1912
He was famous following the Discovery Expedition, but Robert Falcon Scott’s burning ambition - to be first at the South…
Barnsley Public Hall Disaster – 1908
New-fangled cinematography was still a great novelty in 1908, so the youngsters who trooped towards Barnsley Public Hall one Saturday…
Khodynka Tragedy – 1896
There was nothing grander than a Russian Imperial coronation, and great festivities had been planned to accompany the accession of…
Victoria Hall Crush – 1883
There’s nothing that causes greater grief than the death of a child, which made events at Sunderland’s Victoria Hall on…
Deaths of Burke and Wills – 1861
One riding accident and a minor oversight led to the demise of two pioneering Australian explorers - Robert O’Hara Burke…
The Donner Party – 1846-1847
The lure of a better life on America’s West Coast saw thousands of mid-19th-century pioneers pack their lives into covered…