Charles Robert Darwin ( February 12, 1809 – April 19, 1832)
On this day in 1831, English naturlist Charles Darwin set out on a voyage to the Pacific aboard the HMS Beagle. His discoveries during the voyage helped him form the basis of his theories on evolution.
HMS Beagle, a 10-gun, Cherokee-class brig sloop of the Royal Navy’s survey service, sets sail from Plymouth, England on its second voyage as a survey vessel. On board, at the invitation of Beagle captain Robert FitzRoy, is a young biologist called Charles Darwin.
On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, a groundbreaking scientific work by British naturalist Charles Darwin, was published in England. Darwin’s theory argued that organisms gradually evolve through a process he called “natural selection.” In natural selection, organisms with genetic variations that suit their environment tend to propagate more descendants than organisms of the same species that lack the variation, thus influencing the overall genetic makeup of the species.
Darwin, who was influenced by the work of French naturalist Jean-Baptiste de Lamarck and the English economist Thomas Mathus, acquired most of the evidence for his theory during a five-year surveying expedition aboard the HMS Beagle in the 1830s. Visiting such diverse places as the Galapagos Islands and New Zealand, Darwin acquired an intimate knowledge of the flora, fauna, and geology of many lands. This information, along with his studies in variation and interbreeding after returning to England, proved invaluable in the development of his theory of organic evolution.
Charles Robert Darwin (February 12, 1809 – April 19, 1882)
The New York "Lantern" newspaper published the first "Uncle Sam cartoon" on this day in 1852 and quickly became the symbol of the United States. The editorial cartoon, “Raising the Wind; or, Both Sides of the Story,” was drawn by Frank Henry Bellew (below). It was used in criticizing U.S. policies on shipping.
Frank Henry Temple Bellew (April 18, 1828 – June 29, 1888)
The Dunblane school massacre took place at Dunblane Primary School (above) near Stirling, Stirlingshire, Scotland, on 13 March 1996, when Thomas Hamilton shot 16 children and one teacher dead before killing himself. It remains the deadliest mass shooting in British history
Public debate about the killings centered on gun control laws, including public petitions calling for a ban on private ownership of handguns and an official inquiry, which produced the 1996 Cullen Reports. In response to this debate, two new Firearms Acts were passed, which outlawed private ownership of most handguns in Great Britain.
Thomas Watt Hamilton (May 10, 1952 – March 13, 1996)
A memorial at the Dunblane primary school in Scotland, where a 43- year-old former shopkeeper with four handguns stormed the school gymnasium.
On this day in 1831, Charles Darwin (above) set out on a voyage to the Pacific aboard the HMS Beagle. Darwin’s discoveries during the voyage helped him form the basis of his theories on evolution.
The British naval vessel HMS Beagle.
James Barrie’s play "Peter Pan" premiered in London on this day in 1904.
Sir James Matthew Barrie, 1st Baronet (May 9, 1860 – June 19, 1937)
On this day in 1963, Dallas nightclub owner Jack Ruby (below) shot and killed Lee Harvey Oswald live on national television.
The pistol that Jack Ruby used to kill Lee Harvey Oswald.
It was on November 22, two days before the shooting of Oswald.
On this day in 1971, hijacker Dan Cooper, known as D.B. Cooper, parachuted from a Northwest Airlines 727 over Washington state with $200,000 in ransom money.
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