History Channel's 10 Most Important Days in American History (Unexpected Days)

[Aramazd]

I say McKinley's assassanation, the California gold rush, and the Homestead Strike.

What about the sinking of the Lusitania? That put us further out of isolationism than did the Roosevelt Corollary

Actually, I would place the Zimmerman Telegram ahead of the Lusitania, as the telegram brought us into WWI. However, we were still isolationist after the war and during WWII, so I don't think that it is very important.

 

[7ronin]

What about the sinking of the Lusitania? That put us further out of isolationism than did the Roosevelt Corollary

That's a good one.

 

[Irish Caesar]

I can't see why they chose Antietam. Unless of course it's because Gettysburg has been done to death. Why not the firing on Fort Sumter?

Because of the CSA's not-win at Antietam, UK and France decided not to back CSA. Furthermore, it gave Lincoln the opportunity to introduce the Emancipation Proclamation, which was a nail in the coffin for international support for CSA.

 

[El Justo]

i think that this question regarding whether historians should remain "above politics" is really just a matter of remaining unbiased.

while i agree that it is wholely natural for all human beings to have some sort of political belief, i feel that it is not good to intertwine a political agenda when reporting the facts. i mean, i was banged over the head while in college to not sprinkle my papers and senior thesis with political views...and in most cases i didn't nor did i have any inclination to do so. however, my professors (both history & poli sci) were quite clear that they did not want any work submitted that may have an 'agenda'.

now, don't get me wrong...the pundits ought to be able to critique whatever political analysis is in front of them. however, it seems to me that it is absolutely crucial that a historian remain as unbiased as possible in order to make a clear-headed and rational estimation.

in the immortal words of Brian Bosworth, Hulk Hogan, and Sir Charles Barkley..."anything less would be uncivilized!"

 

[Tank_Guy#3]

Where's the day we entered the nuclear age by turning Hiroshima to beaded glass?

I didn't watch many of them, but I caught a couple of minutes some of them.

 

[Irish Caesar]

That was covered by "Einstein's Letter," in which the physicist signs a letter to FDR encouraging a nuclear weapons program lest the Nazis build a Bomb first.

 

[greekguy]

7 December 1941?

4 July 1776?

remember, it is "unexpected" days the changed America. both those days obviously affected the US for years to come, but everyone knows about Pearl Harbor and the signing of the Dec. of Independence. this series was aiming to show the more obscure moments in our history that changed our country.

 

[El Justo]

remember, it is "unexpected" days the changed America. both those days obviously affected the US for years to come, but everyone knows about Pearl Harbor and the signing of the Dec. of Independence. this series was aiming to show the more obscure moments in our history that changed our country.

a select few knew of pearl harbor (or at least that the japanese were planning something) but the rest knew nothing...

and i would even venture to say that the declaration of independence was indeed "unexpected"...at least as far as the British were concerned. also, it should be noted that many, many colonial revolts through the 19th and 20th century used the American model of rebellion as their template.

 

[Dreadnought]

He means everyone knows of them NOW. Not when they happened, Justo.

 

[El Justo]

He means everyone knows of them NOW. Not when they happened, Justo.

sure we all know of them now...however, gauging the significance of an event's impact upon the development/evolution/devolution/etc of the US is what i think the programme is intended to uncover; not the little known facts. all of those on the history channel list are very, very well known imo.

and 'whats w/ all of these Jersey people?

 

[Warman17]

They're not well known if you go talk to the average american. I bet half of Americans wouldn't even know why we celebrate July 4

 

[Cheezy the Wiz]

its sad warman, but true. I saw a survery recently, and this is really hard to believe, but about a third of hte peopl they intervewed said the sun went around the earth, and a quarter didnt know either way!

 

[ChrTh]

I watched all the episodes, and each was interesting in their own way.

I think the criteria they ultimate chose was: events whose repercussions were not immediate but ultimately significant. Thus Shay's Rebellion leads to the Constitution, McKinley's assassination leads to TR's transformative Presidency, Antietam leads to Emancipation in the rebel states and ends any real hope of European recognition (this last one was only realized in hindsight).

Things like Pearl Harbor, Lusitania, DoI, etc., were more immediately obvious in their effects and thus not as Unexpected. And, of course, only Hancock signed on the 4th

The Elvis one was actually very well-argued as to its cultural effect.

There's always arguments for such a series like this, but I think they provided a nice mix of angles (Science, Culture, War, Politics) and were largely successful. The only misstep imo was the Scopes Trial insomuch that it's the weakest in terms of meeting the criteria.

 

[Serutan]

I would have replaced Elvis with the day the integrated circuit was invented
in 1959. Without that, no home computers, no Internet as we know it. And
it remains obscure to most poeple to this day.

 

[ChrTh]

I would have replaced Elvis with the day the integrated circuit was invented
in 1959. Without that, no home computers, no Internet as we know it. And
it remains obscure to most poeple to this day.

You make it sound like that's a bad thing!

I think with Scopes and Einstein being in there, the circuit would've been scientific overkill. I would've replaced Scopes instead of Elvis.

 

[Serutan]

I agree with replacing Scopes; perhaps with day Prohibition was passed.

As to my point about the chip : It was not intended to be judgemental,
just noting without ICs, none of this stuff would be here. It's a matter
of individual opinion on good thing/bad thing.

 

[Mano3]

I’d have to say that it seems the History Channel is attempting to bring to light some of the ‘not so famous, but important’ days in US history.

IMHO:

- Pequot Indian massacre of 1637
More of a tragic day…

- Shay's Rebellion
Not the first (or last) time the citizens protested government authority…

- California Gold Rush
I’d put the Louisiana Purchase here instead…

- Battle of Antietam
This battle ‘brought the war home to America’, but the Gettysburg / Vicksburg combo sealed the Confederacy’s fate…

- The Homestead Strike
More protest, geez…

- Murder at the Fair; President McKinley is assassinated & Teddy Roosevelt takes over and re-shapes American foreign policy
Good one here. Teddy’s involvement in the Treaty of Portsmouth let the US emerge as a player in world diplomacy…

- Scopes; landmark court case which paved the way for the argument for and against the role of science and religion in govt.
And the country’s been going down the toilet morally ever since…

- Einstein's Letter; letter written to FDR in 1939 declaring that Hitler was seeking 'The Bomb'
Scary, yes, but wouldn’t Pearl Harbor fit better in this era?

- When America Was Rocked; Elvis Presley on the Ed Sullivan Show in 1956
Cool, but important and history changing? Not to me. I love the King and rock n’ roll, but compared to the rest of the list…

- Freedom Summer; the 3 murdered civil rights activists in Mississippi
Another tragic day, but there’s many more prominent events in civil rights history that weigh-in more heavily.

 

[Dreadnought]

I didn't see the episode with Elvis....what was the point of it?

 

[ChrTh]

@mano: Again, the idea is "unexpectedly" ... FDR told us that December 7th, 1941 would live in infamy. It was immediate and obvious. Freedom Summer was significant because it was White people killed -- that was significant because it woke up a lot of closet racists. Scopes I disagree with its inclusion because it was obvious to everyone involved that it was significant (it was pretty much the trial of the century at the time). Homestead strike was significant because it changed utterly the relationship between Labor and Mgmt in the US. Antietam was significant because it allowed Lincoln to issue the Emancipation Proclamation and pretty much ended the hope of Southern recognition by the European powers. The Pequot was included simply because it changed the relationship (at least in New England) between White Man and the Indian. Gold Rush was better suited to the special than Louisiana Purchase for two reasons: one, everyone knew the LP was pretty significant when it happened; two, its results took a long time to be fully realized. The Gold Rush happened overnight and the rapid population explosion in California was a contributing factor to the Civil War. Shay's Rebellion was significant because it revealed the flaws of the Articles of Confederation thus leading to the Constitution. I think I covered all your concerns.

@Dreadnought: Why Elvis? Ok, here's the argument they presented as best as I can remember. Elvis had incorporated African-American (among others) elements into his music and dancing on stage, so it started to bridge the divide between White Culture and Black Culture. Also, Elvis thrust his pelvis, and since no sex was happening in the 1950s until Elvis showed up, this is significant (ok, I'm exaggerating, but they do attribute the forthcoming sexual revolution to Elvis). Finally, and most importantly, he was mainstream counterculture (for the reasons listed above), as opposed to fringe counterculture (Kerouac, etc.). Ed Sullivan, being the highest-rated etc. show of the time, legitimized Elvis to mainsteam America like no other avenue could have. That's why it's included.

EDIT: @mano: The creationists won Scopes, not the evolutionists, so unless you think creationism leads to moral decay, your comment needs changing.

 

[Dreadnought]

@ChrTh: Thanks!