There is perhaps no greater symbol of the emerging twentieth century than the humble automobile. Bicycle mechanics J. Frank and Charles Duryea of Springfield, Massachusetts, designed the first successful American gasoline automobile in 1893, then won the first American car race in 1895, capturing the public's imagination. They then went on to make the first … Continue reading Birth of A Rite of Passage

"And so we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past." One of the most beautiful sentences in American literature, ending one of the most beautiful books in all of American literature. And not just according to me, although I've made secret of my love for Fitzgerald's masterpiece, published on this … Continue reading Happy Birthday, Old Sport

The story, at first glance, seems harmless, at least by today's standards. It opens on the Arthur Shelby plantation in Kentucky as two enslaved people, Tom and 4-year old Harry, are sold to pay Shelby family debts. We then shift focus onto two protagonists; Tom, a strong, religious man living with his wife and three … Continue reading A Book and A War

In 1835, big changes started happening in Mexico. The country, which had won its independence from Spain in 1821 after more than a decade of fighting, The first constitution, known as the Federal Constitution of the United Mexican States of 1824 which inaugurated the First Mexican Republic, was repealed. A new constitution, Las Siete Leyes, … Continue reading Remember the Alamo!