Finding the unexpected in the everyday.
August 15, 1896 Operations began for a tram line in the town (now city) of Douglas on the Isle of Man, a British Crown Dependency in the Irish Sea. (Douglas has been the capital of the Isle of Man since 1869.) The tram line in Douglas was among the first cable-powered systems of its kind... Continue Reading →
August 14, 1957 The Administration Committee of AASHO (now known as AASHTO) approved the now-familiar shield used on the Interstate Highway System. The committee made this decision in the wake of several months during which the association’s U.S. Route Numbering Committee sifted through and evaluated dozens of shapes and sizes for a possible route marker... Continue Reading →
August 12, 1971 Walter Owen “W.O.” Bentley, who achieved renown for the automobiles that he designed and built, died in a nursing home in northwestern England’s town and borough of Woking. He was 83. Bentley was born on September 16, 1888, in the Hampstead area of London. He attended Clifton College in Bristol from 1902... Continue Reading →
August 12, 1911 The Chicago International Aviation Meet was formally launched. This eight-day air show, which was characterized by the Indiana-based Logansport Journal as “the greatest aggregation of human birds ever assembled,” took place in the section of Grant Park that is along Lake Michigan. The event was held under the aegis of the International Aviation... Continue Reading →
August 11, 1861 Montague Alfred Holbein, who achieved considerable fame for his competitive cycling achievements, was born in what is now the London-area suburban district of Twickenham. He proved himself to be a gifted athlete with an enviable abundance of both skill and stamina. Holbein first drew widespread attention when he readily demonstrated those qualities... Continue Reading →
August 8, 1929 An airport built about two miles (1.6 kilometers) southeast of the downtown area of Salem, Oregon, was officially dedicated. As the 1920s was fast approaching its end, the development of facilities to support airborne transportation had become a top priority for numerous municipalities throughout the United States -- including the capital of the... Continue Reading →
August 7, 1943 With World War II being waged across the globe, the U.S. Navy ship USS Chattanooga (PF-65) was launched at the shipyard of the Leathem B. Smith Shipbuilding Company in the city of Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin. This ship was named after one of Tennessee’s largest cities, and the christening duties at the vessel’s... Continue Reading →
August 6, 1927 In downtown Toronto, the present-day version of the major railway station known as Union Station was formally opened. The original Union Station had been built in that part of Toronto in 1858 and was torn down in 1871. Its successor was a larger building that opened there two years later and remained... Continue Reading →
August 5, 2010 A major bus station in Taipei, the capital city of Taiwan, first went into service. Those taking part in the inauguration of this station included Hau Lung-pin (born in 1952), who was mayor of Taipei from 2006 to 2014. The Taipei City Hall Bus Station is located in a mixed-use skyscraper complex... Continue Reading →
August 4, 1911 Operations began for a tram system in the city of Launceston in Australia’s state of Tasmania. “The three tram cars in commission commenced to earn something towards their upkeep today,” reported the Tasmania-based North West Post. “It is estimated that between 3000 and 4000 passengers were carried.” A dozen days later, the... Continue Reading →
Transportation History 