Heroes & Trailblazers

Cranberries and Thanksgiving: The Origin

Cranberries are one of only a handful of commercially-farmed fruits that are native to North America. But the sweet relish we enjoy at Thanksgiving is... continue »

Johnny Appleseed Debunked

The Johnny Appleseed story we usually hear is a folk legend. However, his story is based on the life of John Chapman, a man who... continue »

Ida Rosenthal: Pioneered Bra Industry with Maidenform

Ida Rosenthal emigrated from Russia in the early 1900s and supported her family as a dressmaker. As she responded to the marketplace, she and a... continue »

Helen Keller’s Dogs

Helen Keller’s life was filled with dogs. Though she was born before dogs were being trained as guide dogs for the blind, Keller knew what... continue »

Miniature Golf: Its Beginning

Miniature golf was first patented by Garnet Carter (1883-1954) in 1931. Carter owned a hotel called the Fairyland Inn on Lookout Mountain (Georgia) near Chattanooga,... continue »

Collie Travels 2500 Miles to Return to Oregon Home

In the 1920s, a collie mix was separated from his family in Wolcott, Indiana, where the family vacationed the summer of 1923. Frank and Elizabeth... continue »

Frank Lloyd Wright’s Inspiration for a Doghouse

Frank Lloyd Wright is among the best-known architects in the world, but few... continue »

Deaf Lifeguard Saved Almost 1000 From Drowning

Leroy Colombo became deaf when he suffered spinal meningitis when he was seven years old (1912). He grew up to be a remarkably good lifeguard.... continue »

Cracker Jack: Ever-Popular Baseball Snack

Cracker Jack holds the spot as “most famous of baseball snacks.” Remarkably, it has held that honor for over 100 years. The snack itself began... continue »

Sybil Ludington, 16, Helped Patriots in Revolutionary War

Sybil Ludington is known for her 40-mile night ride through parts of New York and Connecticut to alert American Patriots that the British military had... continue »

Mary Ellen Pleasant, Entrepreneur and Abolitionist

Abolitionist and successful Gold Rush entrepreneur Mary Ellen Pleasant was a free woman of mixed-race who dedicated her life to equality for African Americans. From... continue »

Jack Abernathy: Catching Live Wolves Bare-Handed

Jack Abernathy was a rough-and-tumble Texas cowboy who feared nothing. He achieved fame for devising a method to capture live wolves bare-handed. He then sold... continue »

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