Good morning, Whitewater.
We’ll have a mild Saturday with mostly sunny skies and a high of fifty-four. Sunrise is 6:32 and sunset 5:41 for 11h 09m 05s of daytime. The moon is a waning gibbous with 80.3% of its visible disk illuminated.
On this day in 1782, the British House of Commons votes against further war in America. Esmond Wright, in Franklin of Philadelphia, describes Britain’s position:
The surrender at Yorktown on October 17, 1781, and the loss of Cornwallis’s army, ended any remaining British hopes of victory on the American mainland. Defeats at the hands of the French in the West Indies in 1781 and early 1782 drove home to Britain the need for an end to hostilities. On February 27, 1782, the House of Commons voted against continuing the American war and authorized the government to make peace with the former colonies. The king threatened to abdicate. On March 20, North resigned and was succeeded by Rockingham, with Shelburne as the secretary of state responsible for colonial affairs, charged to open negotiations with the American peace commissioners.
On this day in 1904, Wisconsin loses her second state capitol building:
1904 – Second State Capitol Burns
On this date fire destroyed the second State Capitol building in Madison. On the evening of the 26th, the generator was turned off for the night. The only lights visible were two gas jets serving the night watchman. At approximately 2 a.m., night watchman Nat Crampton smelled smoke and followed the odor to a recently varnished ceiling, already in flames. A second watchman arrived to assist, but there was no water pressure with which to operate a hose. The fire department encountered a similar situation upon arrival. Governor Robert M. La Follette telegraphed fire departments in Janesville and Milwaukee for assistance. La Follette was at the capitol, directing efforts to douse the fire and entering the burning building to retrieve valuable papers. The fire was completely extinguished by 10 p.m. the next day. Losses were estimated to be close to $1 million.