Good morning.

We’ve a certainty of rain today (as it’s raining now), and a predicted high of forty-five (a good bet, as it’s thirty-nine now).

The Parks & Rec Board meets today at 5 PM, and at the same time there’s also an informational meeting about street reconstruction along East Main Street.

On this day in 1865, Robert E. Lee surrenders his army to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House.

U.S. Sec. of War Stanton sent the following message to Gen. Grant that evening:

War Department, Washington, D. C., April 9, 1865- 9:30 P.M.
Lieut.-Gen. Grant:

Thanks be to almighty God for the great victory with which he has this day crowned you and the gallant armies under your command.
The thanks of this Department and of the Government, and of the People of the United States- their reverence and honor have been deserved- will be rendered to you and the brave and gallant officers and soldiers of your army for all time.

Edwin M. Stanton, Secretary of War.

On 4.9.1898, a famous Wisconsin athlete and team founder is born:

1898 – Curly Lambeau Born
On this date Earl “Curly” Lambeau, founder, player, coach, and vice president of the Green Bay Packers, was born in Green Bay. He founded the Packers in 1919 and served as the team’s only coach through the 1949 season. Lambeau led the Packers to six world championships and is one of only five coaches to record more than 200 coaching victories in the NFL (others are Don Shula, George Halas, Tom Landry and Chuck Noll). Curly Lambeau died on June 1, 1965, at the age of 67. [Source: Packers history pages]

Google-a-Day asks a question about the American Revolution: “Who is generally regarded as one of the very first Americans to die in the struggle for liberty from British Rule?”

Good morning.

Monday brings showers and a high of fifty-nine.

Whitewater’s Planning Commission meets tonight at 6 PM.

Yesterday began the Washington Post‘s third annual Squirrel Week. Like politicians facing a change of view, my own opinion of squirrels has been evolving: I’m starting to like them more than I once did. John Kelly of the Post talks about his paper’s upcoming coverage:

Google-a-Day asks a sports reporting question: “What sportscaster, known for his catch phrase, “Oh my!” joined CBS in 2000 as a play-by-play announcer for the NFL?”

Good morning.

A sunny Sunday’s ahead, with a high of fifty-six, northwest winds at 5 to 10 MPH, and a waning crescent moon.

Here’s a quick review of recent readers’ responses to Friday FW polls:

NCAA D1 Basketball Champion: 53.33% said Louisville, and you’ve a good chance to be right, as it’s Louisville v. Michigan, Monday night at 8:23 CT in the Georgia Dome. I thought there’d be a Syracuse upset in the Final Four, but it’s Michigan (right you were, Phantom Stranger).

Favorite Easter Candy: Chocolate Rabbits win again, with 32.69% of the responses. That’s about the same as 2012 – another year and a dynasty’s confirmed.

Punxsutawney Phil, Innocent or Guilty: he’s cooked, with 81.25% declaring his guilt.

Guerrilla Gardening: most people say bold (not bad), with 71.43% in favor.

Last Snowfall Over One Inch: March 16-31 is the overwhelming choice, at 57.89%, and that seems right: I think the last accumulation greater than one inch was March 18th, using available NWS data.

On 4.7.1776, an American naval victory over England:

…Navy Captain John Barry, commander of the American warship Lexington, makes the first American naval capture of a British vessel when he takes command of the British warship HMS Edward off the coast of Virginia. The capture of the Edward and its cargo turned Captain Barry into a national hero and boosted the morale of the Continental forces….

Barry’s outstanding career has been memorialized on both sides of the Atlantic. A bridge bearing his name crosses the Delaware River, and Brooklyn, New York, is home to a park named for him. In addition, four U.S. Navy ships and a building at Villanova University carry his name, and statues in his honor stand in Washington, D.C., Philadelphia and his birthplace, Wexford, Ireland. On September 13, 1981, President Ronald Reagan declared Commodore John Barry Day to honor a man he called one of the earliest and greatest American patriots, a man of great insight who perceived very early the need for American power on the sea.

4.7.1970 marks a first:

1970 – The Milwaukee Brewers’ First Game
On this date the Milwaukee Brewers, one of the many organized sports teams in Wisconsin, played their first game against the California Angels in front of 37,237 enthusiastic fans at County Stadium. [Source: Brewers’ History page]

Google-a-Day asks a very particular basketball question: “In the 2011/2012 Official Rules of the NBA you will learn the definition of what term on page 21?”

Good morning.

Saturday brings a chance of rain with a high of sixty-four.

So you’re paddling along in a kayak, and a possum swims by – what to do?

Here’s Eric Markt’s answer:

On this day in 1909, “explorers Robert E. Peary and Matthew A. Henson became the first men to reach the North Pole. The claim, disputed by skeptics, was upheld in 1989 by the Navigation Foundation.”

On 4.6.1831, an exodus:

1831 – Sauk Indians Leave Illinois & Wisconsin
On this date, in the spring of 1831, the Sauk Indians led by Chief Keokuk left their ancestral home near the mouth of the Rock River and moved across the Mississippi River to Iowa to fulfill the terms of a treaty signed in 1804. Many of the tribe, however, believed the treaty to be invalid and the following spring, when the U.S. government failed to provide them with promised supplies, this dissatisfied faction led by Black Hawk returned to their homeland on the Rock River, precipitating the Black Hawk War. [Source: History Just Ahead: A Guide to Wisconsin’s Historical Markers, edited by Sarah Davis McBride]

Google-a-Day asks a history question: “What kind of wood is the 200-pound yoke that holds the 2080 pound bell that is on display at 520 Chestnut Street in Philadelphia?”