Good morning, Whitewater.

We’ll have a sunny Monday today with a high of seventy-three. Sunrise today in 5:42 AM and sunset 8:20 PM. The moon is a waxing crescent with just three percent of its visible disk illuminated.

On this day in 1914, Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia (sometimes written then in English as Servia). Here’s how the New York Times reported the events that were the beginning of a world war:

Austria Formally Declares War on Servia; Russia Threatens, Already Moving Troops; Peace of Europe Now In Kaiser’s Hands

VIENNA, July 28– Upon the issue of the formal declaration of war against Servia today Emperor Franz Josef gave orders for the removal of the Summer Court from Ischl to the capital. His entourage tried to persuade him that Vienna air would not suit him, but the aged Emperor replied:

“I do not want the air of Vienna. I want the atmosphere of headquarters.” The opening of the war has caused the imposition of all kinds of restrictions upon public business. All the railways, of course, are under military control, and the telegraphs are being reserved entirely for the service of the State. The hope is still entertained here that the war will be confined to Austria-Hungary and Servia. The report that Russia and France have intervened in Vienna is incorrect. In official circles here it is maintained that any action by those powers must be supported by the third party to the Triple Entente, namely, Great Britain. It is known that Great Britain and France do not want a European war. Peace among the great powers or war among the great powers must depend on the action of St. Petersburg.

At the Foreign Office here it is freely stated that now that war has begun Austria-Hungary will be bound to no more conditions such as she propounded prior to the outbreak of hostilities.

On this day in 1934, a so-called model village is a model only of industrial strife:

1934 – Two killed, 40 hurt in Kohler riot; National Guard occupies town

On this day, the “model industrial village” of Kohler became an armed camp of National Guard cavalrymen after deadly strike-related rioting. The July 27th violence, which killed two Sheboygan men and injured 40 others, prompted the summoning of 250 Guardsmen to join the 200 special deputy village marshals already present. After striking workers became agitated and began to destroy company property, deputies turned to tear gas, rifles, and shotguns to quell the stone-throwing crowd, resulting in the deaths and injuries. Owner Walter Kohler blamed Communists and outside agitators for the violence, while union leaders blamed Kohler exclusively. Workers at the Kohler plant were demanding better hours, higher wages, and recognition of the American Federation of Labor as their collective bargaining agent. Not settled until 1941, the strike marked the beginning of what was to become a prolonged struggle between the Kohler Company and organized labor in Wisconsin; a second Kohler strike lasted from 1954 to 1965. [Source: Capital Times 7/28/1934, p.1]

Google-a-Day asks a pop culture question:

In the Ke$ha hit song in which she uses the word “love” twelve times in the refrain, what does she say she likes in the very last line?

Good morning, Whitewater.

We’ll have a Sunday with a high of seventy-seven and a likelihood of showers.

Meanwhile, in Phoenix, it’s a forecast of dust storms:

On this day in 1832, soldiers pursue the Sauk:

On this date American troops resumed their pursuit of Sauk Indians in the Black Hawk War following the battle of Wisconsin Heights. After constructing rafts, the troops led by General Atkinson, now numbering roughly 1,300 men, a third the number of soldiers which began the campaign, crossed the Wisconsin, near Spring Green, and began again the search for the Sauk. The date of the crossing is somewhat contentious, some placing it as early as July 26th and as late as July 28th. [Source: Along the

Black Hawk Trail by William F. Stark, p. 130-131]

Good morning, Whitewater.

Saturday in town will be mostly cloudy, with a high of eighty-three and west winds of five to ten mph.

On this day in 1931, grasshoppers torment the Midwest:

…a swarm of grasshoppers descends on crops throughout the American heartland, devastating millions of acres. Iowa, Nebraska and South Dakota, already in the midst of a bad drought, suffered tremendously from this disaster.

Since the very beginning of agriculture, people have struggled to prevent insects from eating their crops. Locusts and grasshoppers, insect cousins, are among the most feared pests. A plague of these insects can occur when conditions cause their populations to suddenly explode. Usually this happens under drought or very dry conditions, since their egg pods are vulnerable to fungus in wet soil. When the soil is very dry, swarms can develop.

Professor Jeff Lockwood of Wyoming describes being in a swarm as follows, They explode from beneath your feet. There’s sort of a rolling wave that forms out it front of you. They hit up against your body and cling against your clothes. It’s almost like being immersed in a gigantic living being. Locusts and grasshoppers undergo a significant transformation when they become part of a swarm. Their wings and jaws grow, enabling them to travel greater distances and increasing their appetite.

The July 1931 swarm was said to be so thick that it blocked out the sun and one could shovel the grasshoppers with a scoop. Cornstalks were eaten to the ground and fields left completely bare. Since the early 1930s, swarms have not been seen in the United States. However, North Africa and parts of the Middle East continue to experience problems with insect swarms, which sometimes includes as many as 1 billion bugs.

On 7.26.1865, regiments from Wisconsin muster out:

The 37th and 38th Wisconsin Infantry regiments mustered out. The 37th had spent its 14-month-long term of service in and around Washington D.C. It participated in the Siege of Petersburg and the Appomattox Campaign in pursuit of General Lee’s army. It lost 247 men during service. The 38th served in the same campaigns as the 37th but was also on duty at Arsenal, Washington, during trial and execution of President Lincoln’s assassins. It lost 113 men during service.

Good morning, Whitewater.

Friday presents to us a forty-percent chance of thunderstorms with a high of seventy-eight.

On this day in 1897, Jack London takes a trip:

Jack London leaves for the Klondike to join the gold rush, where he will write his first successful stories.

London was born in San Francisco in 1876. His father, an astrologer named Chaney, abandoned the family, and his mother, a spiritualist and music teacher, remarried. Jack assumed his stepfather’s last name, London.

From an early age, London struggled to make a living, working in a cannery and as a sailor, oyster pirate, and fish patroller. During the national economic crisis of 1893, he joined a march of unemployed workers. He was jailed for vagrancy for a month, during which time he decided to go to college. The 17-year-old London completed a high school equivalency course and enrolled at the University of California at Berkeley, where he read voraciously for a year. However, he dropped out to join the 1897 gold rush.

While in the Klondike, London began submitting stories to magazines. In 1900, his first collection of stories, The Son of the Wolf, was published. Three years later, his story The Call of the Wild made him famous around the country. London continued to write stories of adventure amid the harsh natural elements. During his 17-year career, he wrote 50 fiction and nonfiction books. He settled in northern California about 1911, having already written most of his best work. London, a heavy drinker, died in 1916.

Google-a-Day asks a sports question:

The famous defensive tackle who died during a game against the New York Dragons, played in how many games for the Panthers during his career?

Good morning, Whitewater.

Thursday in the city will be sunny with a high of seventy-five.

On this day in 1911, Hiram Bingham discovers Machu Picchu:

Machu Picchu (in hispanicized spelling, Spanish pronunciation: … or Machu Pikchu (Quechua machu old, old person, pikchu peak; mountain or prominence with a broad base which ends in sharp peaks,^[1] “old peak”, pronunciation … is a 15th-century Inca site located 2,430 metres (7,970 ft) above sea level.^[2][3] It is located in the Cusco Region, Urubamba Province, Machupicchu District in Peru.^[4] It is situated on a mountain ridge above the Sacred Valley which is 80 kilometres (50 mi) northwest of Cusco and through which the Urubamba Riverflows. Most archaeologists believe that Machu Picchu was built as an estate for the Inca emperor Pachacuti (1438–1472). Often mistakenly referred to as the “Lost City of the Incas”, it is perhaps the most familiar icon of Inca civilization.

The Incas built the estate around 1450, but abandoned it a century later at the time of the Spanish Conquest. Although known locally, it was unknown to the outside world before being brought to international attention in 1911 by the American historian Hiram Bingham. Since then, Machu Picchu has become an important tourist attraction. Most of the outlying buildings have been reconstructed in order to give tourists a better idea of what the structures originally looked like.^[5] By 1976, thirty percent of Machu Picchu had been restored.^[5] The restoration work continues to this day.^[6]

Since the site was not known to the Spanish during their conquest, it is highly significant as a relatively intact cultural site. Machu Picchu was declared a Peruvian Historical Sanctuary in 1981 and a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983.^[3] In 2007, Machu Picchu was voted one of the New Seven Wonders of the World in a worldwide Internet poll.

On this day in 1892, fire levels most of a Wisconsin town:

1892 – Fire Destroys Iron River

On this date a major fire destroyed most of Iron River, Wisconsin. After the fire was extinguished, the town resembled a “tent city” during the rebuilding. [Source: “B” Book I, Beer Bottles, Brawls, Boards, Brothels, Bibles, Battles & Brownstone by Tony Woiak, p.18]

Google-a-Day presents a question about the Second World War:

What was the name of the Allied operation against which German forces launched a counteroffensive in Anzio in 1944?