Tuesday, August 23, 2011

TODAY IN HISTORY

AUGUST 23
1913:Carl Jacobsen unveils his gift to the city of Copenhagen, Denmark — a statue of the Little Mermaid to immortalize the character from Hans Christian Andersen's famous fairy tale. Sculptor Edvard Eriksen used his wife, Eline, and the ballerina Ellen Prince as the models for the bronze sculpture, which still overlooks Langelinie Pier.

1861: Socialite Rose O'Neal Greenhow is placed under house arrest in Washington, D.C., by Secret Service head Allen Pinkerton. Among other acts of espionage, Greenhow passed along information to Gen. P.T. Beauregard that Confederate President Jefferson Davis attributes with helping the Confederates win the First Battle of Bull Run. Greenhow will continue her role as spy from the Old Capitol Prison but will be released in May 1862, becoming a successful Confederate envoy to Europe.

1979: The Gossamer Condor, created by Paul MacCready and Peter Lissaman, wins the Kremer prize for human-powered flight, when amateur cyclist Bryan Allen completes the required figure-eight course, flying more than a mile in Shafter, Calif.

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