Join the History Uncovered podcast for a look at the most fascinating history news stories and historical anniversaries from February 2024.
It’s the end of February 2024, and we’ve picked a few of our favorite history news stories from this month as well as a handful of significant anniversaries from decades past.
Over the past month, we’ve uncovered a number of exciting news stories, including how Amelia Earhart’s plane may have been located in the Pacific Ocean, the discovery of a warrior’s grave in Hungary, how archaeologists in London found the city’s first fully intact Roman funerary bed, the recovery of the “Titanic of the Alps” in Switzerland, and the discovery of another shipwreck in Lake Superior that sank mysteriously 80 years ago.
Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical SocietyThe S.S. Arlington not long before it went down.
This ship, the S.S. Arlington, sank under bizarre circumstances on May 1, 1940. It was captained by Captain Frederick “Tatey Bug” Burke, an experienced sailor who’d crossed the lake before. But this would prove to be his final voyage.
During the crossing, the ship got caught in a bad storm and started to take on water. Though first mate Junis Macksey ordered the crew to move the ship closer to shore, Burke demanded that they stay on their original course.
A few hours later, at around 4:30 a.m., the ship began to sink. However, Burke gave no orders. So the crew abandoned the ship. They managed to make it safely to another vessel nearby, but Burke refused to abandon his post. His crew watched as he sank with the vessel, and some even claim that he waved at them as the ship went down.
To date, no one knows exactly what he was thinking that night.
We also covered a number of historical anniversaries from February, including the death of Philip Seymour Hoffman on February 2, 2014, the kidnapping of Patty Hearst on February 4, 1974, the launch of Facebook on February 4, 2004, the arrival of Beatles in New York City on February 7, 1964, the foundation of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People on February 12, 1909, and the anniversary of the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre on February 14, 1929.
Chicago History MuseumSome of the victims of the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre.
The massacre, one of the most notorious gang killings in American history, took place when seven members of George “Bugs” Moran’s North Side Gang were murdered in Chicago. The hit was thought to have been orchestrated by Moran’s rival, Al Capone, even though Capone was in Florida at the time.
But Capone was never definitively linked to the hit. And even one of Moran’s men who initially survived the massacre — despite being shot 14 times — refused to name names. Before he died, he told police, “No one shot me.”
Learn more about the music used in our podcast. History Uncovered is part of the Airwave Media network. Learn more about your ad choices by visiting megaphone.fm/adchoices.
