The Flashback Chronicles - Week of July 14, 2025

Welcome to The Flashback Chronicles!!

Welcome, History Enthusiasts!

Get ready to journey through history with The Flashback Chronicles! This edition is packed with thrilling stories, legendary adventures, and surprising fun facts—because history is way too exciting to stay in the past! 🔍📖

Let’s dive in! Thank you for subscribing and I hope you enjoy this newsletter!

Legends & Laughter: The Story Behind the History 🎭

Dian Fossey at the Mic: The Supreme Gorilla Whisperer

Hello, young explorers!

I’m Dian Fossey. I am a zoologist, mountain hiker, gorilla whisperer, and fierce protector of animals that can’t speak for themselves.

I was born in 1932 in San Francisco, California. Growing up, I was always passionate about animals. I learned to ride horses before I could ride a bike. I didn’t grow up thinking I’d one day live in the mountains of Africa surrounded by giant, gentle gorillas. That dream came true later.

At first, I worked with children and studied to become an occupational therapist, but I longed for more adventure and discovery. In 1963, I finally saved up enough money to take a trip to Africa. That journey changed my life forever. I met a scientist named Dr. Louis Leakey (the same one who supported Jane Goodall) and he encouraged me to study mountain gorillas, a species that few people knew much about.

So, I packed up my whole life and my courage, I and moved to the Virunga Mountains of Rwanda.

At first, the gorillas were shy and scared of me. I didn’t blame them. Poachers had hurt their families, and humans hadn't exactly been kind. I became very patient, and I stayed quiet, low to the ground, and copied their behavior. I grunted gently, avoided eye contact, and let them get used to me. Slowly, they began to trust me.

And oh, what incredible creatures they were! I met a silverback named Digit who became my friend. I saw gorilla mothers cradle their babies, siblings wrestle in the grass, and families gather like a circle of protectors. Gorillas weren’t dangerous monsters like the movies said. They were peaceful, social, and full of emotion. I quickly learned that their lives were in danger.

Poachers were killing gorillas for trophies. Their natural habitat was being destroyed. I couldn’t just watch; it was time to speak up. I started the Karisoke Research Center and worked with local communities and the world to protect the gorillas. I even campaigned to stop poaching face-to-face. Some people called me stubborn or difficult. I just called it doing what was right.

Even now, long after my time on Earth, people continue to care for the gorillas because of the work we started together. The mountain gorillas are still here, and that means everything.

If you’ve ever loved a wild animal, or felt small in the presence of something magnificent, know this: you are part of nature and you can protect it.

So, be brave. Stand up for what matters. And remember you don’t have to be loud to be strong. Sometimes, all it takes is listening, caring, and never giving up.

Protect our beautiful animals, my little friends.

Max’s Museum Wonders 🔍

Max’s Museum Wonders: The Mystery of the Morse Code Machine

✒️ Bedtime Story Adventure

It was a rainy and dark Saturday afternoon as Max was tucked away in his grandfather’s museum, a steaming mug of cocoa by his side, and a funny comic book in front of him.

Grandpa had gone upstairs for a nap, so Max began wandering around the museum office. He loved the dusty, creaky room. It was full of old treasures and half-labeled boxes. One shelf had a typewriter with no keys, and another had a stack of yellow newspapers from the 1940s.

Then Max saw something new: a small, strange device tucked behind a globe. It had little levers and buttons, and a roll of paper peeking out. A brass plate on the front read: Western Union Telegraph – 1921.

He touched one of the levers. Click. The machine buzzed and sparked to life. The roll of paper began feeding through with a stuttering series of dots and dashes.

Then, everything around Max blurred into streaks of light, and just like that, he was standing in a busy train station, surrounded by men in suits and women in wide-brimmed hats. A gigantic board ticked with train schedules overhead. Nearby, a boy about Max’s age sat behind a telegraph desk, furiously tapping at a machine just like the one Max had touched.

“Hey!” Max said. “Where am I?”

The boy didn’t even look up. “New York City. You’re in Grand Central Station. And if you don’t know Morse code, you better learn fast. They’ve got me covering the east line and the west line, and hold on, who are you again?”

Max grinned. “I’m Max. I, uh, time traveled. Sort of.”

The boy finally looked up. “Time-traveled, huh? Sounds right. This machine’s been acting weird all morning. Messages are getting scrambled. I think someone’s trying to sneak secret messages through the wire.”

Max’s ears perked up. “Secret messages? Like spies?”

“Like bootleggers,” the boy whispered. “Smugglers. It’s 1921. Prohibition. People are moving stuff they’re not supposed to. And I think someone’s using our Morse line to do it.”

Max rubbed his hands together. “Okay. Let’s solve it.”

Together, they huddled over the machine, decoding a stream of dots and dashes. Most messages were boring stuff—train times, delivery updates. But one message stood out:

.--. ..- .-. .--. .-.. . .-.. -... . .-. .-. -.--

“Purpleberry?” Max said. “What kind of code word is that?”

The boy’s eyes widened. “It’s not a fruit. It’s the name of a secret tunnel. My uncle told me bootleggers use it to sneak crates out under the station!”

Before Max could ask more, the lights flickered, and the Morse machine buzzed again.

Zap!

Max landed with a thud, right back in his grandfather’s office. The cocoa was cold. And the Morse machine? It sat there, quiet and still except for a new line on the paper roll:

PURPLEBERRY TUNNEL MISSION COMPLETE STOP THANKS MAX STOP

Max smiled. “No problem.”

Just then, Grandpa came downstairs. “Anything interesting happen while I was napping?”

Max slid his homework back in front of him. “Not much,” he said. “Just solving a secret code, catching a few criminals, you know. The usual.”

Museum Note from Grandpa:
The Western Union telegraph machine changed the way people communicated across long distances. Instead of waiting days or weeks for letters, they could send a message across the country in minutes. During Prohibition, some people really did use Morse code for sneaky business. But remember, good guys know how to decode the truth.

Prohibition era was the period from 1920 to 1933 when the U.S. prohibited the production, importation, transportation, and sale of alcoholic beverages.

Tricky Time Trivia 🤔🕰️

What American president served as a lifeguard and saved many people from drowning?

👉 Answer: Ronald Reagan - 40th American President

Candy Factoids 🍭🍫

🍫 How much is spent on Halloween candy each year in the U.S.?

👉 Answer: 2 billion

🍭What candy was created for soldiers to carry without melting?

👉 Answer: M&Ms

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That’s a Wrap. Until Next Time…

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Have a good week!

The Flashback Chronicles