Birth Locations – Page 138 – The Exasperated Historian

107) Betty Ford

107) Betty Ford

Former First Lady of the United States During Her Husband Gerald Ford’s Administration

Born: 8 April 1918, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America

Died: 8 July 2011, Rancho Mirage, California, United States of America

Original Name: Elizabeth Anne (Bloomer) Ford

She was also the founder of the Betty Ford Center—a center designed to help people battle their addictions to alcohol and drugs.

Betty was a modern dancer and modeled on the side to pad her income after graduating high school.

Her first marriage lasted five years; and before she and Gerald had even married, she was helping campaign for him in his run for the House of Representatives.

They married in October and he won the election in November sending them to DC where they would live the thirty years. They had four children together.

Her husband became the first president who was never elected Vice President or President after the resignations of Spiro Agnew and Richard Nixon.

Betty became addicted to pain medication after suffering from a pinched nerve and arthritis of the spine.

She had a mastectomy performed on her right breast weeks after moving into the White House; she would also do rounds of chemotherapy but decided to be honest about her illness inspiring women across the country to get mammograms and examinations from doctors.

In 1978 after leaving the White House she agreed to enter a prescription treatment program in California—founding the Betty Ford Center in 1982.

She was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1991 from President George HW Bush for her work in addiction counseling.

Betty would write two books about her life experiences.

Badges Earned:

Find a Grave Marked

Located In My Personal Library:

First Ladies: Presidential Historians on the Lives of 45 Iconic American Women by Susan Swain and C-SPAN

The Smithsonian First Ladies Collection by Lisa Kathleen Graddy and Amy Pastan

Time Magazine's 100 Women of the Year (Betty appears in the 1975 article, "American Women”)

Sources:

https://www.biography.com/us-first-lady/betty-ford

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Betty-Ford

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/7748438/betty-ford

106) Thích Quảng Đức

106) Thích Quảng Đức

Buddhist monk who famously committed self-immolation

Born: 1897, Hội Khánh, Khánh Hòa Province, Vietnam

Died: 11 June 1963, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

The photograph of his burning body is considered by Time Magazine to be one of their “100 Most Influential Photographs.”

He lit himself on fire to protest the cruelty of the South Vietnamese Regime under the leadership of Ngô Đình Diệm and the Vietnam War in general. Three monks and one nun, including Thích Quảng Đức, would self-immolate in 1963. Finally, in November of that same year, the United States dropped their support of Ngô and he was assassinated by his generals. Thích Quảng Đức had not died in vain.

After he died the Vietnamese police took his body but after protests, he was returned to the Buddhist Monks who burned his body again in a final act of cremation.

All that remained was his heart which had turned to stone (or crystal, depending on the source) and has been placed in a special vault in Ho Chi Minh City.

Sources:

https://www.lionsroar.com/thich-quang-duc-bodhisattva/

http://www.buddhistinformation.com/self_immolation.htm

https://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2015/02/13/relics-of-buddhist-monk-who-shocked-world-with-self-immolation-on-exhibit-at-rosemead-temple/

106) Indira Gandhi

106) Indira Ghandi

India’s First (And Only as of 2022) Female Prime Minister

Born: 19 November 1917, Prayagraj, India

Died: 31 October 1984, New Delhi, India

Indira was the only child of the man who served as Indian’s first Independent Prime Minister and was essential in the struggle for independence from Britain.

Her grandfather was a friend of The Gandhi and an independence advocate.

Indira married in 1942 and had two children with her husband but they spent much of their time apart, both very involved in politics.

In 1954 she was named President of the Congress Party.

In 1964 Indira also became a member of the Rajya Sabha (The Upper Chamber of Indian Parliament).

She was also named Minister of Information and Broadcasting under Prime Minister Shastri.

Indira became Prime Minister after Shastri’s sudden death while in office.

In 1969 she was expelled from the Congress Party due to political infighting so instead of just taking it she made a new faction—The New Congress Party and managed to hang onto power.

She was a strong supporter of East Pakistan gaining independence—which occurred with the creation of Bangladesh (she was also the first government leader to recognize Bangladesh as an independent country).

In 1975 Indira was found guilty of tampering with elections and lost her seat in parliament and had to stay out of politics for six years. After losing her appeal she declared the country into a state of emergency taking emergency powers and throwing political opponents into prison (because, despite losing her seat in Parliament, she was still Prime Minister—confusing I know).

Among her more radical moves during this time was to begin sterilizing large swaths of people as a form of birth control.

After dropping the emergency state after two years she was quickly ousted from the office of Prime Minister.

Her first son, who had been chosen to be the political successor to his mother, was killed in an airplane crash so she turned to her younger son (who would eventually marry Sonia Gandhi), to take the place instead.

Tensions escalated once she returned to the office of Prime Minister between the Indian Government and Sikhs. The Sikhs were seeking their own country and both sides were growing violent, however the violence was nothing compared to what was about to happen.

In 1982, many Sikhs occupied an extremely holy temple complex (Harmandir Sahib or Golden Temple). Indira ordered they be removed by force and at least 450 Sikhs were killed in the onslaught.

In 1984, she was assassinated by two of her own Sikh bodyguards in an act of revenge for the deaths. Her second Son Rajiv succeeded her as Prime Minister.

Badges Earned:

Find a Grave Marked

Located in My Personal Library:

The Warrior Queens by Antonia Fraser

Who Knew? Women in History: Questions That Will Make You Think Again by Sarah Herman

The Oxford Encyclopedia of Women in World History Edited By Bonnie G Smith

The Book of Awesome Women: Boundary Breakers, Freedom Fighters, Sheroes, and Female Firsts by Becca Anderson

Time Magazine's 100 Women of the Year (Indira appears in the 1976 article, "Indira Gandhi”)

Sources:

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Indira-Gandhi

https://www.history.com/topics/india/indira-gandhi

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/6000976/indira-priyadarshini-gandhi

105) Philo Farnsworth

Inventor of the All-Electronic Television

Born: 19 August 1906, Beaver, Utah, United States of America

Died: 11 March 1971, Salt Lake City, Utah, United States of America

Its important to note that the Nipkow-disc Television had already been invented, but the TV that’s sitting in your living room right now? That is all thanks to Philo.

He came up with the Idea when he was fifteen or sixteen years old and, oddly enough, he reportedly first saw the idea in his mind while working a potato field.

Philo was enrolled at Brigham Young University when he was sixteen as a special student, working simultaneously on college and high school credits, but left during his sophomore year after his father’s death.

He proved once and for all that television was possible in 1927 and made his first public demonstration in 1928. Soon after, his financially backers tried to turn him over to the Radio Corporation of America, but Philo turned them down.

Philo formed his own manufacturing company, but RCA sued him because they tried to claim someone else within their company had invented the concept that makes television work first. Luckily, Philo won the case after his high school science teacher produced a drawing he had made when he was sixteen.

Despite winning, RCA stopped paying Philo royalties after two years, and the US government halted television manufacturing for the duration of World War II.

Philo suffered a nervous breakdown in 1939 and moved to Maine to try and recover his mental health. By 1947, he had moved back down to civilization, and his company created their first television set. However, they were in deep financial trouble, and after a restructuring of shorts Philo was named vice president of research. The company quit producing televisions in 1965, never acquiring the same prestige of RCA.

Throughout his career he patented over 300 different devices for a variety of fields including of course, television, but also nuclear fusion.

Badges Earned:

Find a Grave Marked

Located In My Personal Library:

Here is Where: Discovering America’s Great Forgotten History by Andrew Carroll

Sources:

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Philo-Farnsworth

https://lemelson.mit.edu/resources/philo-farnsworth

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/3661/philo-taylor-farnsworth

A Fun Update...(June 2021):

In late June of 2021, my mother and I took a road trip around some of the closer states to where we live. Along that journey, we were able to stop at the Provo City Cemetery, where Philo and his wife are laid to rest for all eternity, and I was able to snap this photo while we were there.

105) Pat Nixon

Former First Lady of the United States During Her Husband Richard Nixon’s Administration

Born: 16 March 1912, Ely, Nevada, United States of America

Died: 22 June 1993, Park Ridge, New Jersey, United States of America

Original Name: Thelma Catherine Nixon

Her mother died from cancer when she was fourteen and her father from lung disease at eighteen—all on the Eve of the Great Depression.

Despite that, Pat earned her college degree in 1937.

She began teaching business classes and joined a theatre troupe where she met Richard.

Pat participated in his run for Congress in 1946 by writing and printing campaign literature but after the birth of their two daughters she worked to try and separate their personal and private lives.

Pat began to detest politics after a smear campaign in 1952 made Richard show the family finances to the entire country—his speech would make the American Public love Pat, but she was none too happy.

While serving as the Second Lady she would visit fifty-three countries with her husband including Venezuela where their motorcade was attacked by angry crowds.

As First Lady she advocated volunteerism—whether it be in schools or hospitals. Any volunteering counted.

She also opened the White House to a wider audience including the deaf, visually impaired, and physically handicapped alongside non-English speakers for the first time.

Pat also opened the White House to evening tours for those who worked during the day.

She continued to make foreign visits as First Lady and received more donations of furniture and art to the White House then Jackie Kennedy.

She passed away from lung cancer.

Badges Earned:

Find a Grave Marked

Located In My Personal Library:

Confronting the Presidents: No Spin Assessments from Washington to Biden by Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard

Dead Presidents by Brady Carlson

First Ladies: Presidential Historians on the Lives of 45 Iconic American Women by Susan Swain and C-SPAN

The Smithsonian First Ladies Collection by Lisa Kathleen Graddy and Amy Pastan

The Who, the What, and the When: 65 Artists Illustrate the Secret Sidekicks of History by Jenny Volvovski, Julia Rothman, and Matt LaMothe

Sources:

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Pat-Nixon

https://www.whitehouse.gov/about-the-white-house/first-ladies/patricia-ryan-nixon/

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/1281/pat-nixon

104) John Jacob “Jack” Van Arsdale

104) Jack Van Arsdale

When he was seventeen years old, he climbed the flagpole in New York’s Battery Park to tear down the English Flag and replace it with the United States’ Stars and Stripes once the Revolution War came to an end.

Born: c1766

Died: Unknown

His name might have been John.

Jack swapped out the flags before the English Army was out of sight as a final “Ha Ha.”

Afterwards, the anniversary became known as Evacuation Day.

According to the New York Times, Evacuation Day celebrations included a descendant of Jack climbing the pole in remembrance. The final Evacuation Day celebration was held in 1916.

Sources:

https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-17-year-old-jack-van-arsdale-climbed-flagpole-in-battery-park-in-1783-26283120.html

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/24/nyregion/evacuation-day-greased-flagpole.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evacuation_Day_(New_York)

104) Eleanor Roosevelt

Former First Lady of the United States During Her Husband Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s Administration

Born: 11 October 1884, New York City, New York, United States of America

Died: 7 November 1962, New York City, New York, United States of America

Original Name: Anna Eleanor Roosevelt

She was a niece of President Theodore Roosevelt and a distant cousin to her husband (her maiden name was also Roosevelt, meaning she never had to change her name after getting married).

Eleanor was orphaned and suffered the loss of one of her brothers before the age of ten, so she and her remaining brother were sent to live with relatives. She spent three years in a boarding school outside London under the direction of an influential French headmistress.

Eleanor returned to New York the summer she turned eighteen for her coming out into society.

She and her husband would have six children (one of whom died in infancy) but she often commented that her own serious nature didn’t fit well with her husband’s and he often had to find pleasure elsewhere (for example see Lucy Mercer Rutherfurd).

Her husband became assistant secretary to the Navy in 1913 prompting the family’s move to DC.

During World War One, Eleanor volunteered with wounded soldiers and the Red Cross.

In 1918 Eleanor discovered the affair her personal secretary Lucy and her husband had taken up—and while Franklin promised to end it history shows that is not the case as Lucy was present with Franklin when he died in 1945.

History shows that the Roosevelts would remain married and dedicated to one another but were never intimate again.

In the 1920’s Eleanor’s interest in politics increased (partly due to helping Franklin’s career after he was struck with polio in 1921). She joined the Women’s Trade Union League and the Democrat Party of New York State after returning there to live.
During her twelve years as First Lady of the United States she achieved many firsts including hosting female only journalist press conferences (thanks to her good friend Lorena Hickok--see note).

She had various interests during her tenure including child welfare, equal rights for women and minorities, and housing reform.

Eleanor resigned her membership in the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution in 1939 after the DAR refused to let African American singer Marian Anderson perform in Constitution Hall.

Eleanor was appointed as a delegate to the United Nations after her husband’s death. She played a major role in drafting and the eventual adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948.

In 1961, President John Fitzgerald Kennedy appointed her to chair the Commission on the Status of Women.

She died from a rare strain of tuberculosis.

Note:

Lorena Hickok and Eleanor were friends, best friends, and perhaps more. Though never definitely proven one way or the other, it seems more than likely that when Franklin reached out to Lucy Rutherford, Eleanor turned to Lorena.

Badges Earned:

Find a Grave Marked

Located In My Personal Library:

Affairs of State: The Untold History of Presidential Love, Sex, and Scandal (1789-1900) by Robert Watson

America's Women: 400 Years of Dolls, Drudges, Helpmates, and Heroines by Gail Collins

Ask Not: The Kennedys and the Women They Destroyed by Maureen Callahan

Bad Days in History by Michael Farquhar

The Book of Awesome Women: Boundary Breakers, Freedom Fighters, Sheroes, and Female Firsts by Becca Anderson

Confronting the Presidents: No Spin Assessments from Washington to Biden by Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard

Don't Know Much About History: Everything You Need to Know About American History but Never Learned by Kenneth C Davis

Eleanor and Hick by Susan Quinn

Eunice: The Kennedy Who Changed the World by Eileen McNamara

First Ladies: Presidential Historians on the Lives of 45 Iconic American Women by Susan Swain and C-SPAN

The Roosevelts and the Royals: Franklin & Eleanor, the King & Queen of England, and the Friendship That Changed History by Will Swift

Sex With Presidents: The Ins and Outs of Love and Lust in the White House by Eleanor Herman

The Smithsonian First Ladies Collection by Lisa Kathleen Graddy and Amy Pastan

Time Magazine's 100 Women of the Year (Eleanor appears in the 1948 article, "Eleanor Roosevelt")

The Who, the What, and the When: 65 Artists Illustrate the Secret Sidekicks of History by Jenny Volvovski, Julia Rothman, and Matt LaMothe

Sources:

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Eleanor-Roosevelt

https://www.whitehouse.gov/about-the-white-house/first-ladies/anna-eleanor-roosevelt/

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/896/eleanor-roosevelt

103) John Walsh

103) John Walsh

Creator and Host of America’s Most Wanted

Born: 26 December 1945, Auburn, New York, United States of America

His other shows include The Hunt with John Walsh and In Pursuit with John Walsh. In Pursuit also showcases his son Callahan, who assists in helping catch the worst humanity has to offer.

John is a victim’s Rights Advocate and member of the board of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, which he and his wife assisted in creating.

John began his work as a tracker of heinous people after his six-year-old son was kidnapped and murdered. Adam’s case was finally solved thirty years after his death, in 2008.

America’s Most Wanted had caught its first fugitive within four days of the show’s premiere. In total, America’s Most Wanted led to the capture of seventeen of the FBI’s most wanted criminals and overall—over 1,200 fugitives were captured. According to CNN, The Hunt with John Walsh led to eighteen captures or closing of cases. The first season of In Pursuit led to the capture of three wanted criminals; so, I am eagerly awaiting the return of In Pursuit in early 2020.

Sources:
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0909696/bio?ref_=nm_ov_bio_sm
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/pursuit-john-walsh-returns-second-season-1226080

https://www.cnn.com/shows/the-hunt-with-john-walsh

103) Alice Sanger

The first female staffer to serve in the White House

Birth and Death Dates Unknown, as is place of Origin

She was hired by the Harrison Administration in 1890.

It is believed today that her appointment into the White House was Harrison’s way of acknowledging the women’s suffrage movement gaining momentum in the United States.

Alice was hired to work as a stenographer.

It is also believed she was hired at the urging of Harrison’s wife Caroline.

That’s literally the only information known about her.

Sources:

https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/harrison-welcomes-alice-sanger-as-first-female-staffer

https://www.almanac.com/fact/alice-sanger-became-the-first-female-staffer

https://www.freedomreconnection.com/2017/01/02/alice-sanger-first-female-white-house-staffer/

http://www.historyswomen.com/1stWomen/carolineharrison.html