› added 7 years ago

195

TIL people used to throw mortgage burning parties to celebrate when they paid off their homes.

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L8jQ TIL that in 1943, The U.S. banned sliced bread.
R7Rw6 TIL that in 1799 Aaron Burr raised $2mil to provide drinking water to Manhattan. He used $1.9mil of that to found a bank instead, and the water he did provide was often contaminated. NYC did not have a clean water source until 1842. The bank he founded is now known as JPMorgan Chase
0wpON TIL the September 11 terror attacks on the WTC released a dust cloud of toxic asbestos fibers across Manhattan, with an estimated 410,000 people exposed. It is believed lung cancer and mesothelioma cases in the city will reach a peak in the year 2041 (four decades after 9/11)
QnbX TIL in 1941 Henry Ford made a car from hemp and soybean plastic which ran on ethanol
ZRrG TIL that in 1967 Vladimir Komarov became the first to die during a space mission. Reportedly he knew the mission would fail but went up anyway to save anyone else from dying. A final recording exists where he curses his commanders for ignoring his warnings as he burns up in re-entry