Anniversaries and commemorations come and go daily. Most of us, even the best historians, miss most occasions. If we think of history as events then we are faced with a continually showering in the grains of sand. Nevertheless, we do pick out certain patterns in the remembrance of historical dates. The blog here reminds us of some dates where the local, state, national, and global perspectives entwine.
What Time is It? It is flow of a sandstorm that will on each day compress somewhere into a structure – sandstone, selected and only remembered in the longue durée.
On 2 August 1870, The Tower Subway beneath the River Thames in London, the world’s first underground passenger “tube” railway, officially opens. Although this lasts as a railway operation only until November, it demonstrates the technologically successful first use of the cylindrical wrought iron tunnelling shield, devised by Peter W. Barlow and James Henry Greathead,] and of a permanent tunnel lining of cast iron segments.
On Saturday, 2 August 1980, Strage di Bologna: A terrorist bombing at the Bologna Centrale railway station in Italy kills 85 people and wounds more than 200.
On Thursday, 2 August 1990, Former South Australian Premier Don Dunstan attacks Prime Minister Bob Hawke over his apparent reversal in Government policy on Fiji’s new constitution.
On Thursday, 2 August 1990, Gulf War: Iraq invades Kuwait, eventually leading to the Gulf War.
On Thursday, 2 August 1990, The first ban of smoking in bars in the US (and possibly the world) is passed in San Luis Obispo, California.
On Wednesday, 2 August 1995, died Fred Daly, 82, ALP politician
On Wednesday, 2 August 1995, A combined Queensland Opposition Coalition frontbench is announced, with Joan Sheldon as Deputy Leader and Shadow Treasurer.
On Wednesday, 2 August 2000, Essendon becomes the first team to finish with a 21–1 record; a feat subsequently equalled by Geelong in 2008.
Images Citations in Composite: ID 17208541 © Anhong | Dreamstime.com; ID 35001957 © DiversityStudio1 | Dreamstime.com; ID 156394527 © Gerd Zahn | Dreamstime.com
Neville Buch
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