Did You Know?

You Are Visitor Number

QUOTE OF THE DAY

Hate caused a lot of problems in this world but it has not solved one yet.
https://nowyouknowthis2.blogspot.com

Proper Storage For Avocados

 Avocados Fare Better On The Counter

If you have any unripe avocados that you want to ripen up, don't put them in the refrigerator.  The cold air causes avocados to ripen more slowly. Leave your avocados in a cool, dry place or on your counter in the open air.


Proper Storage For Avocados
Avocados enjoy room temperature, not cold temperatures


But make sure to eat them before they get too ripe. If you feel like your avocados are starting to get too ripe, you can pop them in the refrigerator to slow down the process. Otherwise, leave them out at room temperature.

Please share our posts with your friends so they can enjoy our websites too.  Here is the link to this post. Thank you.

https://nowyouknowthis2.blogspot.com/2017/01/proper-storage-for-avocados.html

QUOTE OF THE DAY

https://nowyouknowthis2.blogspot.com

30 Interesting Facts About The Pony Express

Contrary to the common belief, there were NO ponies used on the Pony Express.


James Buchanan was the 15th American President, serving in office from March 4, 1857 to March 4, 1861. One of the important events to happen during his Presidency was the Pony Express.



This placard is called a Broadside.  




Broadsides were used to bring awareness to a cause, a job, new startup businesses, offering a bounty for wanted criminals, and listing of items for sale.




The Pony Express mail-delivery system was spread over 200 relief stations that used horse-and-rider relay teams to deliver mail along a 2,000-mile route. It started in St. Joseph, Missouri and continued through Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, Nevada to end up in Sacramento, California. 



Pony Express Routes
Pony Express Route


The company began in April 1860, and it soon got a reputation for fast mail delivery in 10 days or less. The other mail delivery systems were by stagecoach which could take up to 50 days or by ship which could take months.



Facts including salary about the Pony Express
Fast Facts About The Pony Express



A single horseman would ride between stations at breakneck speed, handing mail cargo off to a new horseman after 75-100 miles. To maintain fast speeds, loads were kept light. Most riders were small thin men who weighed between 100 and 125 pounds. Their average age was around 20, but teenagers as young as 14 were also hired. The handsome salary was $100 to $150 per month.


A postmark was placed on outgoing mail on day 1
Outgoing mail got a postmark like this one



 Each of the riders had their own starting point and finishing point. The Pony Express rider would race, changing his horse every 10-20 miles to ride his 100 miles per day, then hand the mail over to the rider from the opposite direction at the next Home station. 





After the exchange of mail bags, the Pony Express rider would then take his mail, and return to his starting point. The actual mail carried by the Pony Express riders, therefore, covered about 250 miles every day, by working in relay shifts who raced all through the day and the night. 









The Pony Express was one of the first US businesses to offer a  24/7 service which meant 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. 


To put the speed of the Pony Express into perspective, a stagecoach would take 50 days to cover 2000 miles compared to just 10 days via the Pony Express.




Stagecoaches traveled 2000 miles in 50 days compared to Pony Express which took 10 days
Stagecoaches took over 50 days to cover 2000 miles
Pony Express Riders made the trip in about 10 days


Despite the stories of Old West legends that say the Pony Express was around for years and years, the company was only in business for a year and a half. However, it never made a profit. Possibly failure was due to the sky-high cost: the minimum cost was $2.00 for a one or two-page letter and ranged up to $5.00 to mail a half-ounce letter, which is equal to about $130 in today's currency. 



Even after a price reduction to $1 dollar, regular folks just couldn't afford the Pony Express so it was mainly used to deliver newspaper reports, government dispatches and business documents.



Western Union completed the transcontinental telegraph line at Salt Lake City in 1861 and began offering mail delivery. The Pony Express ceased service just two days later on October 24, 1861.




FAST FACTS 


 1 - Riders were given a uniform of red shirts and blue pants but these were often discarded and replaced with buckskins.


2 - Riders were given a kit that had a pistol, a bugle, a rifle, gloves, boots, and a Bible. As a rider approached a station he would blow his bugle to sound the alert to prepare a fresh horse. 



3 - Every rider had to take utmost care of the mochila (lightweight saddlebag) that contained the mail, making it a quick and efficient way of transferring from one horse to another.





A mochila with padlocks on each pocket

4 - The mail pockets of the mochila were called "cantinas", which were locked with a type of small padlock. The mochila had four locked compartments for the mail.


5 - Security was tight. The only keys for the mail pockets of the mochila were at St. Joseph and Sacramento, so only the agents at each end could open the mochila.


6 - The rider had to swear an oath on the Bible promising honesty and devotion to duty.



7 - Each station employed two men called 'tenders' who attended the horses.



8 - A rider could change horses as fast as 2 minutes.



9 - The route had 200 relay stations, 80 riders and between 400-500 horses.




Help Wanted for Pony Express

10 - The wages of the riders were $25 per week. The job paid well but there were many dangers.




11 - Dangers: The hazards and dangers included attacks from hostile Native Americans, road robbers, extreme weather conditions, and hazardous terrains.


12 - The name of the first rider was John Upson.



13 - During the 18 months it was in business, Pony Express riders had covered 650,000 miles and carried 34,753 pieces of mail. Only one mail delivery was ever lost.



14  - The mail service was under the direction of Central Overland California and Pike's Peak Express Company.




15 - Important items of news were spread by the service including the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860 and the outbreak of the American Civil War in 1861 reached California via the Pony Express.







Letters mailed on Pony Express cost $2.50 in 1860
It cost $2.50 in 1860 dollars to mail this letter
16  - The mail service was very expensive (e.g., $1-$5 per half an ounce)








17 - William F. Cody, "Buffalo Bill",  who later became famous for his Wild West Show, is the most well-known of all the riders and was said to have covered 384 miles without any rest periods.


18 - Wild Bill Hickok was a friend of "Buffalo Bill" and worked as a stock tender for the Rock Creek Pony Express station.




19 - On May 9, 1860, Bob Haslam made a historic run of 380 miles between Friday’s station and Smith’s Creek station. It was a brave run because the Paiutes were attacking his part of the route, due to the Paiute uprising which erupted in May 1860.



20 - The only rider to refuse to do a run was Johnson Richardson, because of the danger of the Paiutes.



21 - Wells Fargo became the temporary agent for the western route until the Overland Mail Company took over.



22 - Mail was first covered with oiled silk before being placed in the mail pockets "cantinas" so they wouldn’t be damaged by water or sweat.



23 - It was important to keep the weight on the horse down.  The specially-designed saddle with its mochila weighed less than 13 pounds



24 - Riders had to weigh 100 to 125 lbs and their ages ranged up to the mid-40s.



25 - According to legend Bronco Charlie Miller was the youngest rider. He was eleven years old when he first rode for the mail service.



26 - The Fastest Run was made in 7 days and 17 hours carrying news of President Lincoln's Inaugural Address.



27 - The founders of the service, William H. Russell, William B. Waddell, and Alexander Important went bankrupt.



28 - The government contract had stipulated the service would be discontinued after the Overland Telegraph Company completed its construction of the telegraph line.




29 - Their company was sold at auction for $100,000 to Ben Holladay in March 1862. Four years later, Holladay sold it to Wells Fargo for $2,000,000.






30 - The regular service was discontinued in October 1861, when the Pacific Telegraph Company completed its telegraph line to San Francisco.




Thanks for stopping by.  Here's our link. Please share it with your friends so they can enjoy our websites too.   Thanks!

https://nowyouknowthis2.blogspot.com/2017/01/30-interesting-facts-about-pony-express.html


QUOTE OF THE DAY


Pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everyone off is a piece of cake
https://nowyouknowthis2.blogspot.com 

Proper Storage For Bananas

Keep Bananas Out In The Open

Bananas retain their nutrients better when they are kept out of the refrigerator. Cold temperatures actually slow down the ripening process. But there is also a lot of moisture in most refrigerators which can cause bananas to turn brown or even black.

Proper storage for bananas
Bananas should stay at room temperature


If you really want to keep bananas around for a long time, slice them into small pieces and store them in plastic bags in the freezer. Frozen bananas are perfect for smoothies.


Please share our posts with your friends so they can enjoy our websites too.  Here is the link to this post. Thank you.

https://nowyouknowthis2.blogspot.com/2017/01/proper-storage-for-bananas.html

The Shortest Pregnancy

Shortest term of pregnancy
Shortest Pregnancy 

Please share our posts on your Facebook so your friends can enjoy our websites too.  Here is the link to this post. Thanks!


https://nowyouknowthis2.blogspot.com/2017/01/the-shortest-pregnancy.html



Quote of the Day

Friendship Quote
You Only Need One Supportive Friend


Please tell your friends about our blog. Thanks!

Titanic: The Legend Lives On


Frank Goldsmith, Jr. (born 1902) was a young third-class passenger of the RMS Titanic ... and one of the survivors. He wrote a photographic memoir documenting his experience.



Echoes in the Night by Titanic survivor Frank Goldsmith Jr
Echoes In The Night: Memories of a Titanic Survivor
by Frank Goldsmith Jr

Nine-year-old Frank and his parents, Frank Sr and Emily, boarded the RMS Titanic in Southampton as third-class passengers, en route to Detroit, Michigan. They shared their cabin with Frank Sr's friend Thomas Theobold and a young 15-year-old boy in his charge named Albert Rush who would be celebrating his 16th birthday on April 14th.


Titanic survivor Frank Goldsmith Jr with his mother
Frankie and his mother

Frank Jr spent his time on the ship playing with a group of English-speaking boys also from third-class who were about his age. They were: cabin buddy 16-year-old Albert Rush, new friends Willie Coutts, Harold Goodwin, William Johnston, George Rice, and brothers James and Walter van Billiard. They climbed the baggage cranes and wandered down to the boiler rooms to watch the stokers and firemen at work. Of these boys, only Frank Goldsmith Jr and Willie Coutts would survive
.


When the ship struck the iceberg late in the evening of April 14, 1912, Frank Sr woke up his cabin companions. He took his wife and son to the forward end of the boat deck to board Collapsible Lifeboat C, but found that they were letting only women and children board the lifeboats. Since he was now 16 years old, Albert Rush fancied himself a grown man and stayed behind with Thomas Theobold and Frank Sr. When the women and children were boarding the lifeboats, Thomas Theobold gave Emily Goldsmith his wedding ring and asked her to give it to his wife if he did not survive.





Iceberg that Titanic hit
Titanic's iceberg



In his memoir, Frank Goldsmith Jr recalled: "My dad reached down and patted me on the shoulder and said, 'So long, Frankie, I’ll see you later.'   I think at the time, he may have known that he wouldn’t."




Lifeboats with Titanic survivors
Lifeboats with Titanic survivors



Frank Goldsmith Sr., Thomas Theobold, and Albert Rush all died in the sinking. Of the three men, only Thomas Theobold's body was recovered and shipped to his wife for a funeral.



Frank Jr and his mother were rescued by the RMS Carpathia. Traveling to New York City, in order to get Frank's mind off the sinking, Mrs. Goldsmith entrusted him into the care of a surviving Titanic fireman named Samuel Collins who kept comforting the young lad by saying "Don’t worry Frankie, your dad will probably be in New York before you are."


Titanic's survivors in lifeboats in the sea
Titanic's survivors floating in lifeboats





Arriving in New York, Frank Jr and his mother were housed by the Salvation Army and given train fare to reach their relatives in Detroit. Their new home was near the newly opened Navin Field (later renamed Tiger Stadium), home of the Detroit Tigers baseball team. Every time the crowd cheered during a home run, Frank Jr said he could hear it at his house down the street. He said the sound reminded him of the screams of the dying crew and passengers as they were dying in the water just after the ship sank. As a result, when Frank Jr later married and had 3 sons of his own, he never took his children to baseball games.


Tiger Stadium
Tiger Stadium


Growing up, Frank Goldsmith still held on to the hope of his father's survival. It took him a long time to understand that his father was really dead. For years afterward, he used to tell himself, "I think another ship must have picked him up and one day he will come walking right through that door and say, 'Hello, Frankie.'" He never did.

Photograph of Frank Goldsmith Jr
Photograph of Frank J Goldsmith Jr.


During World War II, Frank Goldsmith was a civilian photographer for the U.S. Army Air Corps. After the war, he moved his family to Ashland, Ohio and opened a photography supply store. He died January 27, 1982 at the age of 79.
Death Certificate for Frank Goldsmith Jr
Frank's death certificate (1982)


Frank Goldsmith wrote a photographic memoir titled Titanic Eyewitness: My Story which was published in 1991 after his death by the Titanic Historical Society. Many of the photographs were taken by Frank himself. His photographs were featured in the 1994 documentary, Titanic: The Legend Lives On.



Book by Frank Goldsmith Jr, Titanic Eyewitness
Titanic Eyewitness, My Story by Frank J Goldsmith Jr


 To date, Frank Goldsmith's memoir is the only book about the sinking that was written by a third-class passenger.

Frank Goldsmith couldn't take his children to baseball games
About Frank J Goldsmith Jr.




Do you like reading about the Titanic?  Visit our Titanic-dedicated website - The History Buff- Titanic at:




Thanks for stopping by.  Here's our link. Please share it with your friends so they can enjoy our websites too.   Thanks!