The Flashback Chronicles - Week of May 12, 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 🎭

Amelia Earhart at the Mic: The Sky is Not the Limit

Hi there, flyers of the future! I’m Amelia Earhart (born 1897), an aviation pioneer.

When I first said I wanted to fly airplanes, people laughed. “Amelia,” they said, “girls don’t do that!” And so, I thought, that sounds like exactly the kind of thing I should do.

When I was a little girl, I used to climb trees and race downhill in a wooden cart I built myself. My mom didn’t love the scraped knees, but she admired the spirit.

Now fast forward to 1932. I climbed into a little red plane, nicknamed The Friendship, and took off from Newfoundland, Canada, with nothing but some hot cocoa in a thermos, a sandwich, and lots of courage. My goal? Fly across the Atlantic Ocean—alone. No copilot. No GPS. Just me, the wind, and a sky full of possibility.

The engine roared, the clouds swirled, and I took off.

I flew through lightning storms and freezing winds. The wings iced up. My hands were numb, and I was chilled to the bone. At one point I thought I was flying upside down from lack of sleep. And then, after hours and hours of nothing but blue ocean, I saw land!

I landed in a field in Ireland. A farmer walked up and said, “Have you flown far?” And I laughed and said, “Just from America, across the ocean.” He dropped his rake and stared at me in shock.

I became the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic. And after that, I kept going and going. It became my passion. I flew from Hawaii to California, and I gave speeches to girls who wanted to be pilots, doctors, scientists, explorers, or whatever they dreamed. I always told them, “Don’t ever let someone ground you just because they can’t imagine what it’s like to fly.”

On July 2, 1937, I disappeared over the Pacific Ocean while attempting to become the first female pilot to circumnavigate the world. But that is a story for another time. Let’s keep this cheery and positive.

I lived fully, fearlessly, and high above the clouds.

So next time someone says something’s impossible, I want you to look them in the eyes and say, “Watch me.”

Because the truth is the sky is not the limit. It’s only the beginning.

Max’s Museum Wonders 🔍

Max’s Museum Wonders: The Lanterns Signal

🕰️Bedtime Story Adventure

One rainy afternoon, Max was helping Grandpa Michael dust a high shelf in the museum’s Revolutionary War wing when he spotted something unique behind a row of old books—a battered lantern. Its metal frame was rusty but the glass still intact. As Max carefully wiped away the thin layer of dust, the lantern flickered faintly with a soft yellow glow.

“That lantern,” Grandpa Michael said, peering over his glasses, “some say it once hung in the Old North Church on the night of Paul Revere’s ride. Here, help me get it down.”

As Max reached for it, the light inside pulsed, then twisted and swirled like a tiny storm. Curious, Max touched the warm glow, and in a blink, the museum vanished.

Max stumbled backward, suddenly standing on a cobbled street beneath a dark night sky. A tall steeple loomed above him.

“The Old North Church,” Max whispered. He had seen it in books, but never like this tall and grand in front of him.

He crept inside and found several men in hushed conversation, their voices tense. Max ducked behind a pew, but the floor creaked beneath his foot.

“Who’s there?” one of the men called sharply.

Max stood up slowly. “Um…I’m Max. I think I’m lost. What year is this?”

“It’s April 18, 1775,” the man said, eyeing him curiously. “You’re in Boston. And we don’t have time for questions. Come—bring your lantern!”

Without full understanding, Max followed him. The man who looked like a church officer carried a sense of urgency, and he walked alongside another man in military dress. They climbed a narrow staircase up the church’s belltower.

High above the city, the two men lit two lanterns and held them out toward the river. For only a moment, the twin lights gleamed in the steeple—bright signals flashing across the dark.

“One if by land, two if by sea,” Max murmured, remembering Grandpa Michael’s stories and what he had learned in school.

Down below, watchful eyes in Charlestown caught the signal. The British were crossing the Charles River, coming by sea.

Thanks to those few flickering seconds, Paul Revere and William Dawes would soon ride into the night, warning the countryside. Farmers and shopkeepers would grab muskets and become Minutemen.

And Max, still holding the lantern, felt it pulse once more.

Then the church, the cobbled street, and the night all faded. He was back in the museum, the soft patter of rain on the windows, the lantern still warm in his hands.

Footnote: “One if by land, and two if by sea” reads the famous poem “Paul Revere’s Ride” penned by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow in 1860.

Tricky Time Trivia 🤔🕰️

What year did Christopher Columbus first arrive in America?

👉 Answer: 1492

Candy Factoids 🍭🍫

🍫 What is the number one Halloween candy brand?

👉 Answer: Reese’s peanut butter cups earn the number one spot among Halloween candy brands. Hershey sells more than $500 million worth of Reese’s annually.

🍭What candy is produced by the billions per day?

👉 Answer: M&Ms (2 billion produced every eight hours)

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That’s a Wrap. Until Next Time…

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The Flashback Chronicles