Friday Funnies

We like signs and, not surprisingly, we have a number of these within our apartment. Many are on the walls, others are atop door entryways, some are on bookcases among family photos. There's at least one (usually more) in every room. Here's a look at some of our home decor.

As we also enjoy wine these signs combine both of these likes. These are displayed on the wall near our wine bottle shelves. The one sign is rather misleading as we have enjoyed many cheap inexpensive wines, more often than not.

This sign hangs in the opening between the kitchen and dining area. Since we have a galley-style kitchen, no one has actually dined there.

And this one is displayed in the kitchen.

There are hanging signs and photos on the bedroom walls. Of course, there are frogs and penguins in this grouping.

These signs are on the bedroom walls as part of this ↓ larger collection.

The bedroom also has this wall collection. The framed penguin images are greeting cards.

These long signs are over doorways and the headboard. They bring a smile every time we see one of them, which is daily. As to a favorite, we don't have any specific one. 

The penguins and snowmen that share a living room bookcase share a sign as well.

This is the newest sign bought at a local thrift store a few weeks ago, which is also where others were purchased. We especially enjoy all of the positive wording on this one.  

Our bookshelves contain photos of both family and signs. This one is a favorite. 

FYI (as some may recall) a popular 1970s song, Signs was performed by a The Five Man Electrical Band, a previously unknown Canadian rock group. The tune which popularized the band was written by Les Emmerson, the band's frontman, who on a CA road trip on Route 66  noticed that scenery was obscured by billboards. Signs was a 1970 B-side to an unsuccessful single. Re-released in 1971, it reached No. 4 in Canada, No. 3 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and became a gold record ranked as the No. 24 song that year. The band disbanded by 1975. 

And, now you know, the rest of the story.

Your turn — Any signs, artwork or other wall displays in your home ?

Enjoy Your Weekend, Everyone

We're going to Field of Dreams, a British auto show in Hudson, NH

Did You Indulge?

We enjoyed a favorite treat yesterday, not for the first time on our recent road trip to RI.

Many long-time readers of this blog already know that this favorite is ice cream.

We're very huge fans who never really need a reason to enjoy this cold treat. 

Does anyone?

Actually, it was to celebrate the day. In case you missed it, Sunday, July 21, was the 40th anniversary of National Ice Cream Day in the U.S. That's reason enough to celebrate.

In July 1984, under Presidential Proclamation 5219, President Ronald Reagan named July as National Ice Cream Month and designated the third Sunday in July as National Ice Cream Day and this year that third Sunday was yesterday. 

True, the proclamation only indicated a single 1984 day and year, but since then July ice cream month has become widely publicized by ice cream makers and sellers. So now, ice cream fans, like us celebrate more often, not just in July. 

We're not alone. The average American eats some 20 pounds of ice cream each year. Sunday is the most popular day to enjoy it. Vanilla is the most popular flavor worldwide (a surprise), followed by chocolate. California leads the U.S. in ice cream eating with over 4,200 ice cream shops. Minnesota folks eat the least. Statistically, men eat less ice cream than women; folks aged 55 and over consume the most.

Eskimo King in Bristol, RI

The origin of ice cream isn't really known, but according to popular urban legends, ice cream was invented by the ancient Chinese, brought to Italy by Marco Polo, then to France by Catherine de Medici, then by Thomas Jefferson to America. There's no proof supporting any of these legends. 

It's known that George Washington served ice cream and, in 1784, had a mechanical ice cream maker at his Mount Vernon estate. That's thought to be the same year that Jefferson developed a taste for ice cream when serving as a diplomat in Paris. Later, as president, he served ice cream in the executive mansion and wrote out a recipe for vanilla ice cream.

By the late 19th century, the U.S. had a lot of ice cream innovations. In 1874, the first ice cream soda was mixed by a Philadelphia pharmacist. The ice cream sundae dates to 1881, several Midwestern towns claim to be home to its creation. Historians suggest that ice cream sundae originated as a workaround for Blue Laws that prohibited the sale of ice cream sodas on Sunday.  Strange as it seems, religious groups opposed what they called “sucking sodas” and felt it should be banned on the Sabbath. 

Ice Cream sign in Warren, RI

Edible ice cream cups were patented in the 1880s. Milkshakes promoted as a health drink (why not?) became popular. The waffle cone was introduced at the 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair. Dairy Queen and the Carvel company claim to have developed the first soft-serve ice cream in the mid-1930s. Frozen yogurt, was introduced in the 1970s.

In 1920, ice cream's popularity soared after Congress passed the 18th amendment outlawing the sale, manufacture, and transport of alcoholic beverages. American breweries like Anheuser-Busch and Yuengling partially switched to ice cream and soda production to survive. In 1926, Clarence Vogt, a refrigeration engineer and inventor in Louisville, KY, created the first commercially successful continuous process freezer, the Vogt Instant Freezer. Ingredients would be poured in at one end and ice cream came out the other end, which eventually lead to mass marketing of ice cream.

If anyone needs a reason to celebrate ice cream, how about hot weather as a really good one? Most everyone has had some in recent weeks. But then, ice cream is good in cooler weather too.

Go ahead and indulge, even if you missed the anniversary date. It's never too late, besides we won't tell anyone 😋🍦.

The Eskimo King fiberglass statue shows a grinning boy holding an ice cream cone. These statues were originally produced for A&W Root Beer by International Fiberglass and known as the Teen Burger statue. The design was modified by the manufacturer to its present form with overalls and a lip-licking tongue. Years ago, Eskimo King held a contest to name its statue and the winning name was "Manny Flavors." The company's motto is "Where Ice Cream Rules."

Friday Funnies

Who stole the walkway?

That's the same question we've had all these years of living at Clocktower Place apartments formerly the Nashua Manufacturing Company. The nest we can figure out is that these brick columns once supported walkways used by mill workers. At one point, the textile company had around 1,000 employees working in a total of 7 buildings. The mill consumed some 10,000 bales of cotton per year producing around 13 million yards of cloth a year.

Enjoy Your Weekend, Everyone

Hope the weather has improved for everyone

Dalvay-by-the-Sea

If the walls of Dalvay-by-the-Sea could talk, the tales they could tell of the Scotsman turned oil baron, two girls who grew and married into royalty, a father who cheated them of their inheritance, a caretaker and prohibition rum-runner who owned it and much more.

Now, this is an ideal summer home, which is exactly what this house was for many years on Prince Edward Island, Canada. It was an unexpected site we "discovered" when day-tripping on our May road trip to Maine and Canada. It may look familiar to some since Dalvay-by-the-Sea was featured in a film, Anne of Green Gables (1985) as the White Sands Hotel.

Alexander McDonald at Dalvay

While it's still known by its original name and is now a Canadian National Historic Site. This house was originally constructed by Alexander McDonald as a summer home. He was a very wealthy businessman (millionaire status) in the late 19th century. As President of the Standard Oil Company of Kentucky, he worked with John D. Rockefeller. McDonald was also the director of the Big Four Railroad, the Third National Bank, and the Carnegie Trust Company. Today, Dalvey is a summer resort open May to October with 25 guest rooms in the Main Inn and eight 3-bedroom cottages for larger groups were added in recent years.

On the day of our visit, the entire building was reserved as a retreat for female cancer survivors. The management graciously allowed us to walk around the main floor and tour the outer grounds as the events had not yet started. We learned much about the house; however, this post is about the original family that owned Dalvay-by-the-Sea than about the house, as their lives proved quite interesting.

Main reception desk for guest check-in

Exploring Dalvay, we learned about its original owner, a native of Scotland, who immigrated to the U.S. in 1833 and settled in Cincinnati, OH. By 1863, McDonald entered the oil business and became president of Standard Oil of Kentucky and also a very wealthy man. He wed Laura Palmer in 1862. Their daughter, also named Laura, married Edmund Stallo, a Cincinnati lawyer, and they had two daughters, Helena and Laura (third Laura). The McDonald's daughter Laura died of cancer at age 25 in 1895. She left her young daughter's care to her parents who later adopted the two girls. (There was no reason given as to why it wasn't her husband, but more on him later.)

The original entry doors still remain at Dalvay

The family vacationed on Prince Edward Island the summer after their daughter's death. McDonald bought 120 acres of land on the north shore to build a home. The plan was to spend summer vacations there in memory of their daughter. Years ago, it was common for the very wealthy to construct an elaborate seaside retreat because at the turn of the 19th century, it was how those who could afford it escaped summer heat of the city. One of their favorite locales was the U.S. East coast (Newport, RI and the White Mountains of NH) and Atlantic Canada for the cooler summer temps. Another fellow Scotsman, Alexander Graham Bell, had a summer home in Nova Scotia. It was built by Rhodes, Curry and Company, a Canadian construction firm which later built Dalvay.

The original Dalvay-by-the-Sea after completion

In late 1895, construction costs were close to $50,000 (imagine getting a house like this built for that now). Local building materials were used exclusively. The lower half of the house was built with Island Sandstone in natural boulder form, fireplaces were built with quarried blocks of the same. Most of the furniture was oak and mahogany. The extensive use of wood reflected a long-time Maritime building tradition. 

This is the main lobby that we came into from the front doors shown above. These furnishings are not original to the house. The McDonalds had traveled extensively and items they included in the house were sold in later years.

Home of Alexander McDonald in OH

The McDonald's Cincinnati, OH, home was called Delvay after McDonald's boyhood Scottish home. When the summer PEI house was built, it became Dalvay-by-the-Sea. The difference in spelling between the two homes is a mystery. The OH home, which sat on six acres, was demolished in the 1960s. The site is home to a Cincinnati Public School. 

Annual operating costs for Dalvay ran about $10,000, a huge sum even now. There was a large number of servants, caretaker and men to look after the horses and stable.  There was a covered bowling alley, a billiards room on the third floor and a sailboat for use on Dalvay Lake. The summer house was usually filled with guests as the family entertained often. Every season before leaving, McDonald hosted a dance for the local residents.

This main stairway leads to guest rooms on the upper floors

McDonald Mausoleum, OH

Laura McDonald died in 1903 and after that Alexander McDonald was reported to visit less often. In 1909, on his last visit to Dalvay, McDonald was unwell and reportedly bid the house goodbye. He never returned and died in 1910 in Long Beach, CA, at age 82. 

They are interred in the McDonald private mausoleum in Cincinnati, OH. 

McDonald's vast fortune was left to be shared between his two granddaughters, 16 and 17 years old at his death. The estate was worth roughly $15 million dollars making the young women two of the wealthiest women of their day. Their father oversaw the estate and was entrusted to keep it until they reached legal age.

Two Rich Young Women Marry

Laura & Helena

Both women planned to marry successful young men from the society roster. But, family members were convinced that they could make better matches by striking out for European royalty, and so they did. Laura married an Italian nobleman and Helena wed a French prince. Their futures looked great. 

But is wasn't as by 1930, their inheritance was as good as gone. Their father, Edmund Stallo, apparently not as financially savvy as his father-in-law, had invested in several sketchy schemes. His bad investing was really bad. 

The young women were unaware that as soon as Stallo was put in charge of their inheritance, he began to loot it. Eventually, they learned that their own father had spent nearly their entire inheritance; the large fortune Alexander McDonald left had dwindled to almost nothing. (Stallo not only ruined his daughter's finances, but also lost fortunes inherited by two successive wives. He died penniless in 1945 after being committed to a CA hospital for the insane by his third wife.)

Edmund Stallo and his daughters

Laura and Helena's lives changed since when the sister's money ran out, so did the husbands. Both marriages ended in divorce. Helena died of cancer in her 40s, nearly destitute. Laura moved to NYC and worked to support her family. (Helena’s grandson is NY born actor Rene Murat Auberjonois who played Father Mulcahy in the 1970 film version of MASH.)

What happened to Dalvay-by-the-Sea?

William Hughes, Dalvay's caretaker after McDonald's death, continued to look after the house until the family couldn't afford to keep it. Laura told Hughes that he could have the house for what was owed in back taxes. Hughes purchased it for just over $486 (what a deal) but had zero interest in keeping up the huge mansion, so it was sold for an undisclosed amount.

Lounge room at Dalvay-by-the-Sea

Its next owner, William O’Leary of Charlottetown was the brother of the Bishop of Charlottetown, who used Dalvay as a summer retreat. During this ownership many of the finer furnishing were removed from the house and sold.

It next went to a notorious rum runner during PEIs prohibition years. In 1932, Edward Dicks bought the property to operate as a summer resort. He spent so much money in upgrades that there was little left to market it. No marketing meant no clients and Dicks went bankrupt. In 1936, its new owner was George Delois, one of his creditors, and former PEI Lieutenant Governor. 

In 1938, ownership of Dalvay-by-the-Sea was transferred to the government when Prince Edward National Park was created. DeBlois bargained to retain a large, white family cottage on a piece of land across Dalvay lake; it remains private to this day.

Dalvay has an extensive and comfortable front porch seating area

In 1994 Dalvay became a National Historic Site of Canada. It's operated as a summer hotel and dining room in a lease agreement with Parks Canada. Major renovations started in 1995 are ongoing. A full dining room expansion was done off the main house to offer views of Dalvay Lake.

Patrick at Dalvay's main entrance

Original materials were used to retain the full Heritage Standard of the original house, including pine wood panelling for the ceiling to the maple hardwood floor. Exterior field sandstone was quarried locally and hand-built by local masons.

Beach views at Prince Edward National Park

If we are ever revisit this part of Canada, this is where we would consider staying. Dalvay-by-the-Sea not only offers beautiful views, but is within Prince Edward National Park.

Caught Up Today

Patrick on Prince Edward Island

🎉 Happy Birthday 🎂

Today is the day that my significant other (Patrick aka Grenville) has caught up with me in age. We're now both 3/4s of a century. 

That's a lot of years.

We're both part of the Baby Boomer generation. This term refers to a people in the generation that was born between the end of WW II and the mid-1960s, from 1946 to 1964. 

In 1949, the U.S. population was at 149,188,130. By comparison, the current U.S. population is 341,879,132 (and counting) per an online source. 

I was curious as to how much of the U.S. population is currently our age. The closest online estimates were that of those who are 75 years of age, 38% are male and 45% are female. And that the number of people aged 75+ years has been growing at an average annual rate of 2.13%. 

If this is your birthday as well, here are some of Patrick's and your birthday facts: July 15, 1949 was a Friday. It was the 196th day of that year and the 28th Friday of that year. A fun fact is that the next time, those born in July 1949 can reuse an old 1949 calendar will be in 2033 when both calendars will be the same. His Chinese zodiac sign is the Ox and his star sign is Cancer.

Here's some things about 1949:

• 

  In younger days

  The 33rd U.S. President was Harry S. Truman (1945-1953). 
• No. 1 song was (Ghost) Riders in the Sky sung by Vaughn Monroe.
• The modem was invented letting computers "talk" over phone lines.
• A new car was about $1,700, gas was 26 cents/gallon 
• Buying a new home would be $14,500. 
• U.S. first-class postage was 3 cents.
• A loaf of bread cost 13 cents,  milk was 84 cents a gallon, a pound of bacon was 50 cents. 
• A box of Kellogg’s Corn Flakes was 19 cents, Campbell’s Tomato Soup was 10 cents.
• Coca-Cola cost 5 cents per bottle, 25 cents per 6-bottle carton, and $1 per 24-bottle carton. 
• The minimum hourly wage was 70 cents per hour. The average 1949 annual salary was between $2,950 and $3,600.

Things have certainly changed since then.

This is one of the favorite signs in our apartment

We're traveling this week on yes, a(nother) road trip. We'll be in  Newport, RI, to visit areas we missed on our previous visit, including at least one mansion. The end of the week we'll celebrate the oldest granddaughter's 13th birthday also in RI.

Not So Funny (Again)

Usually, Friday posts contain humor in the form of a funny photo, but there's nothing fun about this post — keeping in touch by mail will cost more.

By Monday it will cost you more to mail a first-class letter in the U.S. and even more to mail internationally, including Canada.

So if you want to get Forever stamps at the current rate to use after the increase, you need to do it today, Friday, or tomorrow, Saturday. 

Because the latest United States Postal System (USPS) rate increase takes effect on Sunday, July 14, raising first-class (Forever stamp) postage. It's a  7.8% increase, the second one this year, the first was in January. 

What are the new prices?

The current price of a 1 ounce letter is 68 cents, which will jump 5 cents to 73 cents. The additional-ounce price for single-piece letters goes from 24 cents to 28 cents.  Domestic postcards will be up from 53 cents to 56 cents. The biggest increase is for international letters with a 10-cent hike from $1.55 to $1.65. (You can buy Forever stamps at the current $1.55 rate before Sunday.)

Current and Higher USPS costs as of July 14, 2024

That's not all — special services products like Certified Mail and money order fees will also cost more. But, there's some good news for postal box holders with no price increase in  rental fees, and there's also a 10 percent price reduction in postal insurance when mailing an item.

As someone who enjoys sending cards for birthdays, special occasions and holidays and also still writes and mails old-fashioned snail-mail letters, I wanted to learn more.

Why do stamp prices keep going up?

Stamp prices have increased more often and by greater amounts. This is the sixth price hike since Jan 2021. Sure, inflation is a factor, but not the only reason, other expenses play a bigger part. I learned that the rate hike includes the obligation to pay retirees' pension and health benefits, responsible for more of the increase than inflation.

According to the USPS, as changes in the mailing and shipping marketplace continue, price adjustments are needed to reach the financial stability it seeks in a 10-year, Delivering for America plan announced in March 2021 aimed at making its services more efficient. However, this apparently will increase mailing costs too.

First-Class Mail (FCM) is the highest revenue generating class of mail. It alone accounts for $24.5 billion (over 30 percent) of the $78.2 billion in total operating revenue for the USPS fiscal year. That's why setting the optimal price for FCM is considered to be integral to its overall financial standing. 

Unfortunately, that's meant price increases have come more often for letter writers.

How often I wondered?

The USPS has increased the price of first-class postage 18 times since January 2000 and raised prices more often in recent years, five times between January 2021 and January 2024.

By comparison, from the 1970s to the 2000s, the USPS increased rates 3 to 4 times per decade. But, since July 2007, a first-class stamp has increased 54 percent, from $0.41 to $0.63 in June 2023. In 2020, the USPS increased prices three times from January 2021 to June 2023, and five times between January 2021 and January 2024.

This does seem excessive, yet I read that despite a 54 percent price increase since July 2007, the USPS is among postal systems that have raised prices the least amount between June 2018 and June 2023. 

The famous mail scene from Miracle on 34th Street

Also, the U.S. has the largest domestic mail market worldwide, delivering more mail than any other postal system. The next largest domestic markets, Japan and Germany, each represent 6 percent of domestic mail volume. The UK and France collectively handled 7 percent of the world’s domestic volume. 

Are U.S. stamps still a good buy?

According to a ranking by the USPS Office of the Inspector General (OIG), the price of a U.S. first-class stamp is cheaper than in many other developed countries.

The OIG compared the U.S. to 30 other nations selected by country size and postal service revenue, and the ability to source reliable data. The list included much of the European Union, along with other countries including Canada, Japan, Brazil and Russia.

Four countries had cheaper postal rates than the U.S. And, while other postal services raised prices in recent years, the U.S. increases were considered moderate compared to these.

While learning this information was somewhat helpful, I'm still dissatisfied with constant hikes. However, they won't deter me from sending cards and letters, perhaps a few less. In this age of emails and texts, there's still nothing like receiving a piece of personal mail.

This past week, I bought stocked up on Forever stamps which are available for domestic and international mailings at the current rates of 68 cents and $1.55. These stamps never expire and can be used indefinitely. While my supply won't last forever, it will lessen the need to pay the higher prices — at least for a while.

How about you — If you're a card/letter writer will the increases mean less mailings? 

The weather has been a major news topic this week. It's been 🥵  in Nashua, NH, but not as awful as in so many U.S. states where folks have been affected, not only by unrelenting heat, but natural disasters and power failures. We hope relief comes soon.

Enjoy Your Weekend, Everyone

Stay as cool & hydrated as possible

The 4th in Nashua

Our holiday was spent at home in Nashua, NH, but we didn't stay home in the sense of being indoors for the entire long weekend. We attended several events all within walking distance of the mill apartments, no need to be on the roadways in traffic or spending $. Read on to learn how we did that.

As in many other parts of the country, while it wasn't nearly as 🥵, it was a very warm weekend. Temps were in the low 90s with some rainstorms followed by higher humidity. We're in for more of the same this week along with rain forecast on at least 4 days.

July 4 celebration at City Hall, nashua, NH

Our July 4 Independence Day holiday observance was celebrated downtown on Main St in front of City Hall. The inaugural event  included a high school junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (JROTC) color guard, members of Veterans of Foreign Wars of the U.S. (VFW) the Mayor of Nashua and members of the public. The event included a reading of the Declaration of Independence, a mayoral speech and the singing of several well-known songs. The half hour observance concluded with the raising of the Betsy Ross Flag, an early design of the U.S. flag in which 13 stripes and 13 stars signify the original colonies. 

July 4 fireworks viewed from our apartment

Friday night we watched several fireworks displays from our living room windows, which offered a great view. We were watching the PBS broadcast from Washington, DC, but found these local displays were more of a draw. We missed that televised display, but watched some of the earlier performances. (Taking fireworks displays is not my forte. A shout-out to fellow blogger John (AC) who always has great fireworks images. You can check out his early July posts of July 1 Canada Day fireworks on his blog, The AC is On.)

Saturday evening we attended a performance by the Soldiers’ Chorus at the downtown Nashua Arts Center. This 26-member mixed choral ensemble is the vocal complement of the United States Army Field Band of Washington, D.C. performing as a separate component and in joint concerts with the Concert Band of the “Musical Ambassadors of the Army.” 

The concert theme was America the Beautiful and vocalists performed songs related to that theme and patriotic tunes, God Bless America and The Star-Spangled Banner plus popular songs including Moonlight in Vermont, Chattanooga Choo Choo, This Land is Your Land. The nearly 90-minute performance included a multimedia presentation. This Free event was a sell-out in terms of attendance in the 750-seat arts center, unlike at many concerts, the audience was encouraged to take photos.

The Soldiers' Chorus at the Nashua Center for the Arts

The Soldiers' Chorus had its origins in the early days of the Concert Band, when members would gather in front of the band during shows and sing. In 1957, the unit began to audition vocalists specifically for the Chorus. The unit's first full-time female soldier-musicians joined the ranks of the Soldiers' Chorus in 1974.

Sunday, we ended our stay-at-home holiday weekend with a film showing at the Nashua Public Library, which presents Cinema Classics weekly. Perfect for a holiday weekend, this week it was 1955 American musical Oklahoma! based on the 1943 musical of the same name by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II. Actors included Gordon MacRae, Shirley Jones (in her film debut), Rod Steiger, James Whitmore and Eddie Albert. The film wasn't shot in the title state as producers thought that oil wells would be a distraction for exterior scenes, so location shooting actually was done in AZ and on sound stages (dream ballet sequences). 

Movie poster for 1955 film, Oklahoma! (Internet source)

The film's setting is the Oklahoma Territory shortly after the turn of the 20th century. It's a love story of farm girl Laurey Williams and her courtship by rival suitors, cowboy Curly McLain and sinister farmhand Jud Fry. A secondary romance involves Laurey's friend, Ado Annie and cowboy Will Parker. A background theme is the territory's aspiration for statehood and the local conflict between cattlemen and farmers. Oklahoma!  won Academy Awards in musical scoring and sound recording. It's truly a classic, the likes of which are not made these days. In 2007, the Library of Congress selected it for preservation in the United States National Film Registry for its historical, cultural and aesthetic contributions. 

This wasn't our first viewing, afterwards we found ourselves humming to many of its tunes (there's 15) including, Oh, What A Beautiful Mornin, The Surrey with the Fringe on Top, Kansas City, People Will Say We're in Love, All er Nothin' and, of course, the title song Oklahoma. (You will thank me for not including a link to any of these, ear worms can be very annoyingly persistent.)

Your Turn — Did you celebrate July 4 in any special way(s) this year?

Odd Things on the 4th

Today, July 4, is Independence Day, a U.S. federal holiday celebrating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. Ironically, though the holiday is referred to as "The Fourth of July” this date has NO historic significance. 

WHY? because Congress approved a declaration of independence on July 2, 1776. Founding Father, and later second President, John Adams had anticipated this would be the most important date in U.S. history

After the official Declaration was approved, the first printed copies were displayed on broadsheets (newspapers printed on large sheets of paper) put up in cities throughout the nation that read: “In Congress, July 4, 1776” and that date stuck.

However, Adams didn't recognize July 4 as Independence Day. His belief was that it should be celebrated on July 2, when the resolution for independence was passed by the Continental Congress.

Thomas Jefferson & John Adams

Years later, another twist of fate became connected with July 4. when it became the same date that three U.S. Presidents, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson and James Monroe died on — two in the same year. 

Not only did Jefferson (83) and Adams (90) die in 1825 on July 4, but this date also marked the 50th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Now, that was really a very odd coincidence.

At their deaths, they were described as "frenemies" — friends early on, then in 1800, differing views led them to not speak to one other for over a decade. In 1812, the two started writing and eventually sent over 185 letters to each other. At best, the renewed friendship remained tense.

While both men had been ill. Adams was thought to be in better health until a few months before. Whereas, Jefferson had been ill for several months. He's also said to have refused a dose of laudanum (a painkiller of opium and high-proof alcohol) the night before he died. Jefferson died shortly after noon in Monticello, VA. Several hours later Adams died in Quincy, MA. The nation’s second and third presidents were friends; however news did not travel fast back then, so they were unaware of each other’s passing.

Over the years, whether the deaths of Jefferson and Adams was coincidence or divine intervention has been the subject of scholarly debate. Scholars have tried to pinpoint the odds of a statistically unlikely event happening. Jefferson and Adams didn’t only die on the same day, with an already low probability of 1 in 365. but on the same significant date and historic anniversary. 

Among the explanations is one that proposes that proposed both men purposely hung on for the 50th anniversary, which isn't such an unusual phenomenon. It's been documented that people have been kept themselves alive until they’ve said final goodbyes to loved ones or experienced a significant event. So, it's not impossible that Adams and Jefferson’s "will to live" kept them alive before July 4th, then gave out afterwards.

James Monroe & Calvin Coolidge

Five years after Jefferson and Adams died, the fifth U.S. President James Monroe died at age 73 on July 4, 1831 from tuberculosis. 

Although three U.S. Presidents died on July 4, only one was born on this date. Calvin Coolidge, the 30th President was born on July 4, 1872 in VT.

Other presidents born in the month of July, besides Coolidge, included John Quincy Adams, Gerald R. Ford and George W. Bush. (Adams, the eldest son of former President John Adams, served as the sixth U.S. President, 1825 to 1829.)

Nashua, NH,  fireworks

We're staying home on the holiday and will be walking downtown to City Hall for a veterans flag-raising event. In years past, we joined other mill apartment residents in gathering at the pocket park along the Nashua River to watch a fireworks display from Holman Stadium, the local ball field. That won't happen this year because of ongoing construction at the park.

We won't miss a fireworks display and instead we'll watch the Washington, DC, display on PBS.

On Saturday, we'll attend a performance, "America the Beautiful," by the Soldiers Chorus of the United States Army Field Band at the Nashua Center for the Arts in downtown Nashua, NH. Since being formed in March 1946, this military touring musical organization has performed over 400 concerts annually, including performances in all 50 states and in over 30 countries on 4 continents. 

Soldiers Chorus of the United States Army Field Band (Internet source)

In previous years, we've attended similar performances by other military bands, including The President's Own United States Marine Band, United States Navy Band and the United States Air Force Band. In addition to these concerts being performed by skilled musicians and vocalists, they are always NO Charge to the public. This is a must-see event that's highly recommended if you ever have the opportunity to attend one of these performances.