› added 6 years ago

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TIL: That the original "Snake Oil Salesman" wasn't convicted of selling snake oil, he was convicted of selling FAKE snake oil. Oil from Chinese Water Snakes was considered a legit medicine at the time, but Clark Stanley was convicted in 1917 of selling fake snake oil.

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l7pj1 TIL The State of Virginia donated a statue of George Washington as a gift to Britain. Washington once swore he would never set foot on British soil ever again, so the statue is set on a foundation of imported Virginia soil to ensure that Washington did not tell a lie.
EV0p TIL Genghis Khan exempted the poor and clergy from taxes, encouraged literacy, and established free religion, leading many peoples to join his empire before they were even conquered.
QN0OM TIL that cat litter can be used as a cost-effective and realistic alternative to traditional ballast for model railroads. Non-clumping and unscented cat litter is recommended due to its texture and appearance closely resembling real railroad ballast.
4xNN TIL under secrecy, that the first jet powered aircraft flown in the US was piloted by Jack Woolams. Already confused by seeing a plane flying with no propeller, other pilots who spotted Woolams would then see him in the cockpit wearing a gorilla mask, a bowler hat, and smoking a cigar.
JKn8 TIL In 2007, a woman delivered twins in North Carolina. One was born at 1:32 a.m. and the second came 34 minutes later, but because the clocks switched back an hour, the second baby was technically born at 1:06 a.m.