When we think of Oktoberfest we consider it to be this grand celebration of all that is German beer and brewing. This year they celebrate its 200th Anniversary but you'd be interested to know that the event did not start at involving beer at all.
The original event took place October 12, 1810 and was a public commemoration of the wedding between Crown Prince Ludwig (eventually becoming King Ludwig I) and his bride Princess Therese (today the grounds which hold Oktoberfest are named Theresienwiese which means field or meadow of Therese). The royal family organized a horse race to celebrate their wedding and bring the people of the Bavaria together. The people enjoyed the festivities so much they made the decision to renew the event the following year. That year the people decided to add an agricultural show to help boost the Bavarian agriculture. The agricultural aspect is still apart of the event however only done every third year. In addition the horse show remained a staple element of Oktoberfest all the up until 1960. The evolution of the event continues even to this day with different traditions coming and going throughout the last 200 years. One of the key traditions is the parade which came about first in 1835 and had been done every year since 1850. The parade is meant to honor the marriage of King Ludwig I and Therese of Bavaria. Nearly 8,000 Bavarians take part in the parade, dressing in traditional costume and walk through the streets of Munich to the Oktoberfest celebration. Near the end of the nineteenth century a complete change occurred giving us more of what we see as Oktoberfest today. Originally there were booths everywhere involving games, dance floors, drinking, and much more. In order to allow more room for people to move around they built the beer halls that can be seen today.
Various years Oktoberfest was cancelled, either because of war or pandemic. However despite various small set backs, Oktoberfest has lived on and become much more then just a Munich event. Similar to how on Saint Patrick's Day everyone drinks and celebrates everything that is Irish, people from around the world celebrate Oktoberfest and everything that is German. One of the largest Oktoberfest celebrations outside of Munich is found in Cincinnati, Ohio called Oktoberfest-Zinzinnati. So large the event is that the mayor of Munich annually decrees the celebrations as the largest outside their own.
http://www.oktoberfestzinzinnati.com/
Few people over the age of 25 wouldn't be able to most if not all of the theme song. It brought the notion of cartoons in prime time to the forefront, allowing for shows today such as the Simpsons and Family Guy to exist. The Flintstones truly is an American staple in television history and today it celebrates its 50th anniversary. Airing on ABC from 1960 to 1966, it used the Stone Age setting for modern-day issues. They cleverly incorporated real places and real people in the show however would simply reword it to fit the rock like world they lived in. Name changed such as Cary Grant to Cary Granite and Hollywood became Hollyrock.
One of my favorite aspects of the Flintstones that few people realize is that it was sponsored by Winston cigarettes for the first two years it was on the air. In fact, the characters were the subject of many advertisements for the brand during that time period. However by the 3rd season the network pushed the show toward more family friendly material and the main sponsor became Welch's. Despite only running for six seasons the cultural impact of the Flintstones has been felt for these last 50 years. Various animation programs and series have attempted to duplicate the success that the Flintstones have enjoyed since 1960. Despite being a copy of a successful television show itself, the Honeymooners, The Flintstones have had many shows try to mimic their success. It's simplicity, humor, and character contrasts are a foundation for American television which is used even today.
Great Link to the 10 Best Bedrock Inventions... Must See
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/8034759/The-Flintstones-50th-anniversary-10-wackiest-Bedrock-inventions.html
The Southwest regions of the early republic of the United States were hotly contested between the French, English, Spanish, and settlers coming from the newly formed United States. With English and United States settlers living in the lands of Western Florida, controlled by the Spanish, their desire to rid themselves of Spanish Catholic rule grew steadily throughout the beginning years of the nineteenth century. The area of West Florida today consists of land south of the 31st parallel which is portions of Louisiana and the southern tips of Mississippi and Alabama. It was a small region which inhabited about 4,000 people in 1810. Despite attempting to negotiate with Spanish for several years over the authority and control of the territory. Seventy-five rebels overcame the Spanish garrison at Baton Rouge on September 23, 1810. Once overtaken they raised the Bonnie Blue Flag, a blue field with a single star in the center, which commemorated the birth of a new nation, West Florida.
Within a week a Declaration of Independence was drafted and eventually a Constitution, written much in the same fashion as the United States Constitution. Although claiming independence and developing a sovereign nation, it did not take long for West Florida to be annexed by the United States. On October 27, 1810, President Madison annexed portions of the West Florida territory. The governor of West Florida, Fulwar Skipwith, disputed the United States claim to the region because they refused to recognize the legitimacy of West Florida as a nation. Skipwith was so upset he claimed he was ready to "die in defense of the Long Star flag." Skipwith and the West Florida legislature eventually backed down on the issue. By December 1810, the United States had basically claimed all territory that was the nation of West Florida. This year the independence of West Florida was celebrated in Louisiana. A commemorative flag was raised in St. Tammany Parish. In addition a historical marker will be placed in the area to memorialize the short lived life of West Florida.
http://www.nola.com/politics/index.ssf/2010/09/st_tammany_holds_bicentennial.html
That's right. When I first read this story from the Telegraph, I was surprised to say the least. I had no idea the German government was still being asked to pay reparations which were agreed upon in the Treaty of Versailles from the first World War. A final payment of $80.8 million will be paid on October 3rd, completing the debt owed by the country since 1919. During the Paris Peace Conference the allied powers demanded a steep charge of the German government for entering them into a large scale and bloody war. Originally the demand was for 226 billion Reichsmarks, however it was later reduced to 132 billion. In U.S. dollars that is the 2010 equivalent of $400 billion, a little excessive to say the least. The initial payments after the war crippled the economy, which caused high unemployment and low morale. These circumstances gave rise to Adolf Hitler taking power. According to the report the majority of the money goes to individuals, pension funds, and corporations holding onto debenture bonds given out as a result of the treaty.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/germany/8029948/First-World-War-officially-ends.html
As Union soldiers from the Civil War proceeded to head home in 1865 after fighting to preserve the United States Government they found themselves in a totally different and at some times equally desperate situation. Many of these men were unemployed and broke, seeking jobs and waiting on promises that the government would take care of them without any idea on how and when it was coming. Equally troubling was the loneliness in which these men experienced. Near the end of the war units from various states and towns were forced to combine giving men the opportunity to fight along side others from different regions of the country. Organizations of veterans began to join together to satisfy these needs. The most powerful of these groups which formed became known as the Grand Army of the Republic, founded on the principle of "Fraternity, Charity, and Loyalty."
Founded by Benjamin F Stevenson on April 6, 1866, the GAR grew at first as an arm of the Republican Party during the period of Reconstruction. As trouble with the Republican Party increased in the late 1860s, early 1870s the GAR slowly fell apart and nearly vanished. However, under new leadership and a recommitment to its own values as well as a new organizational structure the membership and power of the GAR increased greatly by the 1880s. By 1890 the GAR saw its largest membership reaching nearly 500,000 and their power at its highest having helped elect five U.S. Presidents after the Civil War who were all members of the Grand Army of the Republic. The final encampment, or ruling body meeting, of the Grand Army of the Republic was held in Indianapolis, Indiana in 1949 with only six surviving members left. The final member of the GAR died in 1956 and there by the organization died with him.
During its existence the Grand Army was a powerful organization, especially in the 1880s through the 1900s. In some areas it was near impossible to get elected to a political office unless you were a member of the organization. Being a veteran of the Civil War meant a lot and to prove that you were you basically had to be a member of the GAR. In addition they worked diligently in getting quality pensions for all veterans of the Civil War. With a strong membership it allowed them to apply large amounts of pressure on local, state, federal governments. The Grand Army of the Republic is also known for establishing General Orders No. 11 which established Memorial Day. In 1868, John A Logan who was leading the GAR at the time put forth the idea which came in a letter from a member in Cincinnati, Ohio. The notion was that every May 30 flowers would be strewn on the graves of soldiers who died in the defense of their country during the Civil War. This was eventually adopted by the United States Government and turned into the last Monday of May in which we remember all soldiers who have died in the line of duty.
Little is usually said about the Grand Army of the Republic and everything they did for the veterans of this country. Memorials have been placed throughout the country in honor of this organization and of the men who died in the war. One of these memorials is U.S. Highway 6, which stretches nearly completely across the country is named after this organization. In fact if you drive down this highway today you will find signs that identify it as a memorial highway to the Grand Army of the Republic. Visit the memorial highway by finding this geocache which I hid for everyone to find.
Geocache Link: http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?guid=aaac041d-47cb-4d02-9e43-247ebdc32c19
