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TIL The origin of the term “Grandfather Clause” was first used to refer to statutes put in place after the Civil War by seven Southern states in an attempt to block African Americans from voting while exempting white voters from taking literacy tests required to vote.

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5Ln9 TIL that a man was given a 13 year sentence for armed robbery in the year 2000, but the state of Missouri forgot to put him in prison. They only noticed in 2013, 13 years later, when it came time for his ‘release’.
BgopW TIL the world's longest-reigning current monarch is also an absolute monarch. Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah has been ruling Brunei for 57 years. He's also the country's Prime Minister, Minister of Defence, Minister of Economy, Minister of Home Affairs, and Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Y7X5Z TIL Walter Johnson’s record of 3508 career strikeouts stood for nearly 50 years before 3 different pitchers (Ryan, Carlton, & Perry) each broke the record in the 1983 season.
b9wR0 TIL John Corcoran graduated from highschool and college at a reading level of 2nd grade. In spite of this, he taught high school for 17 years and did real estate for 10 years without getting caught. At 48, he received tutoring from a volunteer literacy program, and became a literacy advocate.
O1d7 TIL that in the 13th century AD a French monk compounded all human knowledge into a tome of 32 books and 3,718 chapters; ranging subjects from philosophy, biology & psychology to the minutest details of theology, such as the nature of how angels communicate.