
TODAY IN HISTORY | August 17th
Welcome to another edition of Today In History, where we explore the history, conspiracies, and the mysteries that have shaped our world.
Let’s dive into some history!🌎

TODAY’S TOPICS
1877 - Billy The Kid Kills His First Man
1957 - Foul Ball Hits The Same Lady Twice
Extras
The Star of David✡️
Wheelbarrow Economy🥖
Olympic Art🖼️
The First Sport🤼

1877
Billy The Kid Kills His First Man
Henry McCarty, not yet known as Billy the Kid, was just 17 years old when he walked into a saloon in Bonita, Arizona Territory on this fateful summer evening. The young man had been working as a ranch hand and occasional gambler, trying to make his way in the rough frontier towns of the Southwest. He was small for his age, standing barely 5'6" with a boyish face that made him look even younger than his years.

Billy The Kid
Francis "Windy" Cahill, a burly Irish blacksmith and local bully, had been picking on the teenager for weeks. Cahill was known around town for his mean temper and excessive drinking, and he seemed to enjoy tormenting the young McCarty whenever their paths crossed. On this particular evening, the harassment escalated from verbal insults to physical violence when Cahill grabbed McCarty and threw him to the ground in front of the other saloon patrons.

The confrontation turned deadly when McCarty managed to draw his Colt .45 revolver and fire a single shot into Cahill's stomach. The blacksmith stumbled backward, mortally wounded, and collapsed near the bar. Local witnesses later testified that McCarty had acted in self-defense, but the teenager didn't wait around to explain his actions to the territorial authorities. He fled into the desert that same night, beginning his life as a fugitive.

Original WANTED poster
This killing transformed Henry McCarty into William "Billy the Kid" Bonney, one of the American West's most notorious outlaws. Over the next four years, he would be credited with killing 21 men before Sheriff Pat Garrett gunned him down in 1881. What started as a young man defending himself against a bully became the first step on a path that would make him a legend of frontier violence and lawlessness.
🤖 Ai Depiction of Event

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1957
Foul Ball Hits Same Lady Twice
Alice Roth settled into her seat behind first base at Yankee Stadium for what she thought would be a routine baseball game between New York and the Philadelphia Athletics. The 68-year-old woman from the Bronx was a regular at Yankees games, having attended dozens of contests over the years without incident. She had chosen her Box 94, Seat 1 location specifically because it offered great views of the infield action, never imagining that proximity would soon make her a baseball legend.

1950’s Yankee Stadium
During the sixth inning, Athletics batter Richie Ashburn fouled off a fastball that screamed directly toward the first base stands. The ball struck Mrs. Roth in the nose, breaking it and causing considerable bleeding. Stadium medical personnel rushed to help her, and she was being treated by team doctors when play resumed. Ashburn, genuinely concerned about the injured fan, stepped back into the batter's box to continue his at-bat.

Richie Ashburn
Incredibly, Ashburn's very next swing sent another foul ball sailing into the same section of seats. This second ball struck Alice Roth again, this time hitting her while she was on a stretcher being carried to the stadium's first aid station. The odds of such an occurrence were astronomical - baseball statisticians later calculated the chances at roughly one in several million. Even Ashburn couldn't believe what had happened, later calling it the most bizarre incident of his entire career.

(Possibly Alice Roth)
The double-hit made national headlines and turned Mrs. Roth into an unlikely celebrity. Richie Ashburn visited her in the hospital the next day, bringing flowers and signing a baseball for her. She recovered fully from her injuries and, remarkably, continued attending Yankees games for years afterward. The incident became one of baseball's most famous oddities, proving that sometimes truth really is stranger than fiction in America's pastime.
🤖 Ai Depiction of Event


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Star of David✡️
The Star of David wasn't exclusively Jewish until the 19th century - it was used by many cultures as a general symbol. Christians, Muslims, and various other groups used the six-pointed star for centuries before it became specifically associated with Judaism during the Jewish emancipation movement. It appeared on medieval Christian churches, Islamic architecture, and alchemical texts as a protective or mystical symbol.

Wheelbarrow Economy💰
Germany experienced hyperinflation in the 1920s so severe that people used wheelbarrows to carry money for basic purchases. By 1923, a loaf of bread cost 200 billion marks, and children played with stacks of worthless banknotes like building blocks because the paper was worth more than the currency. Workers received wages twice daily as prices doubled hourly during peak inflation.

Olympic Art🖼️
The Olympics used to award medals for art competitions including architecture, literature, and music. From 1912 to 1948, artists competed alongside athletes for Olympic gold in categories like sculpture, painting, and town planning - the art had to be sports-themed to qualify. Famous winners included American architect John Russell Pope and Finnish composer Aarre Merikanto for their sports-inspired creations.

The First Sport🤼
Wrestling is one of the oldest combat sports, with cave drawings showing wrestling from 15,000 years ago. These ancient cave paintings in France show humans grappling in organized wrestling matches, making it possibly the oldest competitive sport in human history. Similar wrestling depictions appear in Egyptian tombs from 3000 BCE and Mesopotamian artifacts, proving wrestling's universal appeal across ancient civilizations.

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Pop Quiz 📝
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Would You Rather?🧐
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