Wikipedia:Main Page history/2018 August 5

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The Huguenot-Walloon half dollar is a commemorative coin issued by the United States Bureau of the Mint in 1924. It marks the 300th anniversary of the voyage of the Nieuw Nederland. Many of the passengers were Protestants, Huguenots from France or Walloons from Belgium; they became early settlers of New York State and the surrounding areas. A bill to authorize the coin passed through Congress without opposition in 1923 and was signed by President Warren G. Harding. Sketches were prepared by Rev. John Baer Stoudt and converted to plaster models by the Mint's chief engraver, George T. Morgan. Of the 300,000 coins authorized by Congress, fewer than half were actually struck, and of these, 55,000 were returned to the Mint and released into circulation. The coin excited some controversy because of its sponsorship by a religious group. The coins are currently valued in the hundreds of dollars, depending on condition. (Full article...)

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Did you know...

Flag of Sioux Falls, South Dakota

... that the pinkish-red portion of the flag of Sioux Falls (pictured) represents the Sioux Quartzite stone which was quarried nearby and used to build early Sioux Falls buildings?
... that when Gaius Hospes wore his award for valour at public gatherings, it was expected that he be applauded by every person present?
... that verses 2 to 6 of Psalm 97 in Czech were set to music by Antonín Dvořák in his Biblical Songs?
... that despite being portrayed favorably in a Soviet propaganda film, Konstantin Petrovich Nechaev was later accused by Leon Trotsky of supporting Chinese monarchism?
... that the pharmacist-to-pharmacy technician ratio has generally increased as pharmacy technicians have become less like retail clerks and taken on more responsibilities?
... that Scott Smith's management and marketing of international events was cited by the Stanford Graduate School of Business as a reason for the growth of Hockey Canada?
... that the announcement of Steel Division 2 came after half the team at Eugen Systems, the video game's developers, went on strike?
... that after Isaac Stevens, the governor of Washington Territory, was found guilty of contempt over his conduct during martial law in Pierce County, he pardoned himself?

In the news

Lombok earthquake damage

A 6.4 magnitude earthquake (damage pictured) strikes Lombok, Indonesia, killing at least 17 people.
In cycling, Geraint Thomas wins the Tour de France.
Following allegations of sexual misconduct, American Archbishop Theodore McCarrick becomes the first cleric to resign from the College of Cardinals since 1927.
The longest total lunar eclipse in the 21st century occurs.
21st Century Fox shareholders approve the $71.3 billion acquisition by The Walt Disney Company.

On this day

August 5: Victory and Homeland Thanksgiving Day and the Day of Croatian Defenders in Croatia

Marilyn Monroe

1278 – King Alfonso X of Castile was forced to abandon the Siege of Algeciras, the first of many on the city during the Spanish Reconquista.
1600 – Scottish nobleman John Ruthven, 3rd Earl of Gowrie, was killed during what was most likely a failed attempt to kidnap King James VI.
1888 – Bertha Benz made the first long-distance automobile trip, driving 106 km (66 mi) from Mannheim to Pforzheim, Germany, in a Benz Patent-Motorwagen.
1916 – First World War: The British Empire's Sinai and Palestine Campaign began with a victory in the Battle of Romani.
1962 – Actress and model Marilyn Monroe (pictured) was found dead in her home in Brentwood, Los Angeles, an event that has become the center of one of the most debated conspiracy theories.

Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe (d. 1799) · Ivar Aasen (b. 1813) · Soichiro Honda (d. 1991)

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Today's featured picture

Ambroise Thomas (1811–1896) was a French composer best known for his operas Mignon (1866) and Hamlet (1868, after Shakespeare). The son of two music teachers, Thomas was playing the piano and violin by age ten. He completed his first opera, La double échelle, in 1837, and wrote 23 further operas over the next decades. In 1871, he was appointed director of the Conservatoire de Paris, holding this position until his death.

Photograph: Wilhelm Benque; restoration: Adam Cuerden

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