On May 11, 1969, Hamburger Hill became the scene of an
intense and controversial battle during the Vietnam War.

Known to military planners as Hill 937 (a reference to its
height in meters), the solitary peak is located in the dense
jungles of the A Shau Valley of Vietnam, about a mile from
the border with Laos.

The Vietnamese referred to the hill as “the mountain of the
crouching beast.”

The purpose of the operation was to cut off North Vietnamese
infiltration from Laos and enemy threats to the cities of Hue
and Da Nang.

On May 10, 1785, a hot air balloon crashed in Tullamore,
Ireland, triggering what is considered by many to be the
world’s first aviation disaster.

The blaze, later known as the Great Fire of Tullamore,
exposed the unexpected dangers of early ballooning
experiments.

A Dublin newspaper reported that the stunt had been
devised by two English gentlemen, who persuaded an
“English adventurer” to construct and launch a Montgolfier
hot air balloon “for the amusement of their friends.”

There, it caught fire, scattering embers and flames across
town and setting buildings alight along Barrack Street.

On May 10, 1869, the presidents of the Union Pacific and Central
Pacific railroads met in Promontory, Utah, and drive a ceremonial
last spike into a rail line that connected their railroads.

This made transcontinental railroad travel possible for the first
time in U.S. history. No longer would western-bound travelers
need to take the long and dangerous journey by wagon train.

Thomas Hill’s famous painting “Driving the Last Spike”
features Leland Stanford at the place of honor. The
painting was commissioned by Stanford, who later
refused to pay for it. (California State Railroad Museum)

On May 9, 1914, President Woodrow Wilson issued a
presidential proclamation that officially established
the first national Mother’s Day holiday to celebrate
America’s mothers.

The idea for a “Mother’s Day” is credited by some to
Julia Ward Howe (1872) and by others to Anna Jarvis
(1907), who both suggested a holiday dedicated to a
day of peace.

In his first Mother’s Day proclamation, Wilson stated that
the holiday offered a chance to “[publicly express] our
love and reverence for the mothers of our country.”

The film "Dr. No", based on Ian Fleming’s novel, marked the
debut of James Bond on the big screen, starring Sean
Connery as 007 and Ursula Andress as the first Bond girl,
Honey Ryder.

This release introduced audiences to the iconic elements
of the franchise, including the suave spy persona, exotic
locations, and the signature gun barrel opening sequence.