Susan Stoderl, Asheville, NC (2025)

10/22/2025

Elizabeth A. Niles (1842-1920) served alongside her husband, Miles, in the Union Army during the American Civil War from 1861 to 1864. She served the entire time without being discovered as a “Niles,” but it is unclear which one she was on the registry. Elizabeth and Miles married in 1861, just before enlisting together in the 14th Vermont Infantry, Company K.

Life couldn’t have been easy for the couple during the almost 4 years they hid their relationship. Camp life involved poor sanitation, exposure to the elements, and limited food. They slept in tents or on the ground, went on long marches, and faced outbreaks of disease such as dysentery and typhoid. Elizabeth had no privacy, no medical care as a woman, and endured constant fear of discovery.

Elizabeth’s unit played a critical and well-documented role in the repulsion of Pickett’s Charge on July 3, 1863, during the Battle of Gettysburg. The 14th Vermont Infantry arrived on July 1 and entrenched near Cemetery Ridge. Confederate General George Pickett, under the command of General Robert E. Lee, conducted a massive infantry assault on the center of the Union lines. It proved to be a disastrous failure for the Confederacy and marked a turning point in favor of the Union. The Confederates suffered over four thousand injuries and deaths.

Elizabeth and Miles left the army on September 7, 1864. The Niles had seven children, five of whom survived their mother and father. Niles passed away in 1889, and Elizabeth died in 1920 at 78 in Raritan, New Jersey. No one recognized her service since her identity remained unknown.

10/21/2025

From 1935 through the end of 1936, Hi**er intensified control of the population, militarization, and persecution. Enforced conscription of the army began in March 1935, in violation of the Treaty of Versailles. Between 1935 and 1937, Hi**er conscripted 900,000 men. In addition, the Navy grew exponentially. On June 18, 1935, Germany and Britain signed the Anglo-German Naval Agreement. Germany could build a navy up to 35% the size of Britain’s surface ships, and 45% of its submarine tonnage. Germany, as expected, understated its ships and subs, exceeding limitations.

On September 15, 1935, Germany enacted the Nuremberg Laws. Jews lost their German citizenship, losing all legal rights. They outlawed marriage and s*x between Jews and non-Jews and excluded them from many jobs and public areas. Germans boycotted Jewish businesses, with many forced to close or sell at unfair prices. All freedoms vanished when the Gestapo and local police began monitoring Jewish communities.

Another violation of the Treaty of Versailles occurred on March 7, 1936. German troops remilitarized the Rhineland, with 19,000 Wehrmacht soldiers and 3,000 armed police. This move also violated the Locarno Pact (1925). This demilitarized the Rhineland by removing the buffer between Germany and France.

Hi**er used a different tactic in the summer of 1936—the Berlin Olympics. This presented a peaceful image. Goebbels saw that Berlin’s streets were spotless, the homeless did not exist, and Olympic decorations replaced all antisemitic signage. He showed the “master race” as cultured to the world.

In October, fascist Italy and N**i Germany became allies with the Rome-Berlin Axis. In November 1936, Japan and Germany signed the Anti-Comintern Pact. The pact limited the Soviet Union’s ability to coordinate communist parties across different countries.

Each deliberate and strategic move on the N**i chessboard gradually brought Germany closer to world conquest.

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10/17/2025

Carl Friedrich Gauss (1777–1855), a child prodigy, discovered astounding theories in mathematics, physics, astronomy, and engineering. After over 200 years, they continue to shape modern science and technology, affecting our day-to-day lives.

By legend, his teacher asked the class to add the numbers from 1 to 100. Most students began adding them one by one, but Gauss realized that if he paired numbers from opposite ends (1 + 100, 2 + 99, etc.), the answer was always 101, and there were 50 pairs.

At 21, Gauss completed his landmark textbook on number theory, “Disquisitiones Arithmeticae” (Latin for “Arithmetical Investigations”), in 1798. He published it three years later. In it, he established number theory as a modern, systematic field. The full impact of what he discovered as a teenager unfolded over decades as other mathematicians built on his work.

Gaussian integers (named after Gauss) are numbers that include both real and imaginary parts but must be integers. They have applications in cryptography, digital signal processing, computer graphics, game theory, and puzzles.

Gaussian elimination is a method for solving systems of linear equations. Engineers, computer scientists, data scientists, physicists, and economists use this method. The Gaussian distribution is a cornerstone of probability and statistics, used in data fitting and regression analysis.

In 1801, when Gauss accurately predicted the orbit of the asteroid Ceres using mathematical methods, he showed how pure mathematics could solve real-world problems in astronomy.

In physics, he made significant contributions to the understanding of electromagnetism and potential theory. The latter deals with how forces acting at a distance behave in space.

Carl Friedrich Gauss’s contributions have proven essential to modern cryptography and cybersecurity, data science and AI, physics and engineering, GPS and earth measurement, astronomy and space exploration.

10/15/2025

Mary Donoho (1807–1880), along with her husband William and their nine-month-old daughter, traveled from Independence, Missouri, to Santa Fe, New Mexico, in 1833. Traveling the 900-mile Santa Fe Trail in a covered wagon involves rugged terrain, hostile territory, and extreme weather. Storms, droughts, and sudden temperature changes were common challenges. Mary became the first American woman to complete the journey. Historians discovered in the 1990s that she had completed the journey 13 years before Susan Magoffin received credit for being first.

Upon arrival, the Donohos opened an inn called La Fonda. Mary managed the business, while William traveled for trade. As if running an inn were not enough, Mary gave birth to three more children in Santa Fe. They are thought to be the first white children born in the New Mexico Territory.

When a revolt against the Mexican-appointed Governor Albino Pérez began in 1837, the Donohos fled Santa Fe for Clarksville, Texas. There, they opened the Donoho Hotel, which Mary ran for decades.

Like many other prairie women, Mary experienced many family losses. In 1845, her husband died, leaving no will and six children. Before her husband’s death, she had lost several children to childbirth complications. The estate was in debt, and Mary had to struggle to keep the hotel and property. Despite these hardships, Mary remained a respected hotelier and community figure.

Her story intrigues me because I grew up on a section of the Mountain Route. It follows the Arkansas River through western Kansas into eastern Colorado, then turns southwest to reach Santa Fe. The Arkansas River was about three blocks from my home. Highway 50, the street I lived on, runs parallel to the Trail for much of its length. Although I was not traveling in a covered wagon for six to eight weeks, I can attest to the hard life of living in an area along the Santa Fe Trail, even more than one hundred years later.

10/14/2025

On January 26, 1934, Germany and Poland signed the German–Polish Non-Aggression Pact. It remained in effect until Germany invaded Poland in 1939. The alliance was diplomatic, not ideological. Poland lay between Germany and the USSR. Poland, an ally of France, signed without France’s knowledge. They feared German aggression over disputed territories, such as Danzig and the Polish Corridor. Poland had signed a similar agreement with the USSR in 1932, which was renewed in 1934. By having agreements with both Germany and the USSR, Poland hoped to maintain neutrality and preserve independence. Hi**er needed to appear nonaggressive and to create a wedge between Poland and both France and the USSR.

Ernst Röhm, the head of the SA (Brownshirts) since the early 1930s, wanted to merge the SA with the traditional German military (Reichswehr). He would make a “people’s army,” and simultaneously gain enormous power and influence. By early 1934, Röhm was heavily pushing for the merger. This alarmed Hi**er. He needed the army’s support to solidify his rule, and the army leadership saw Röhm’s plans as a direct threat. Himmler, head of the SS, Hi**er’s personal bodyguard unit, agreed that Röhm had to be stopped. So between June 30 and July 2, 1934, Hi**er, aided by the SS, eliminated the threat through arrests and executions. The Night of the Long Knives reassured the German Army that all was well.

On July 25, 1934, the Austrian N**is stormed the Chancellery in Vienna and shot the Austrian Chancellor Engelbert Dollfuss. The coup failed to install a pro-N**i government because neither the Austrian military nor the police supported it. Mussolini, who had an alliance with Austria, mobilized troops to the Austrian border. Hi**er distanced himself from the coup and denied involvement, even though Germany had supported the coup.

On August 1, a law passed by the powerless Reichstag merged the offices of President and Chancellor into one role upon Hindenburg’s death. Hindenburg, who had been ill, died on August 2, 1934. Adolf Hi**er was now Führer und Reichskanzler (Leader and Reich Chancellor).

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10/08/2025

Rahjumari Amrit Kaur (1887–1964) became a devoted follower of Mahatma Gandhi. She joined the Indian National Congress and became a fighter for Indian independence, women’s rights, and healthcare. Born into the Kapurthala royal family, she was the only daughter among ten siblings. Her father, a Christian convert, encouraged her independence. She received a British education at a girls’ school and then attended the University of Oxford.

In 1930, Amrit took part in Mahatma Gandhi’s nonviolent Salt March against British colonial rule in India. It marked a crucial moment in India’s struggle for independence. The 240-mile march was a protest against the British prohibition on producing their own salt, a basic necessity. And on top, charging high taxes on it. The British arrested over 60,000 people, including Gandhi and Amrit Kaur, with sentences ranging in length from weeks to months.

Amrit also joined Gandhi in his Quit India Movement, which began on August 9, 1942. The mass protest demanded an immediate end to the British rule of India. Fervor for independence spread across the country, but with over 100,000 jailed by the British. During Amrit’s three-year incarceration, she endured a baton beating, which had a lasting impact on her health.

Prime Minister Nehru appointed Kaur as the first Minister of Health in India. As the founder of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, she fought for the eradication of malaria and tuberculosis, as well as maternal and child health, and nursing education. As if she were not busy enough, Amrit served as Minister of Urban Development, Minister of Sports, and helped draft the Indian Constitution.

As the first Asian woman to lead the World Health Organization’s governing body, Kaur sought to advance women’s education. She also took up arms against purdah, child marriage, and the Devadasi system, which forced lower-caste women to either be servants in temples or elsewhere.

Amrit Kaur, a devout Christian, lived a life of simplicity and service, freeing and helping everyday Indian people.

10/07/2025

Hi**er’s blitzkrieg of political moves held Germany in a stranglehold by the end of 1933. The N**is claimed Van der Lubbe, a Dutch communist, started the Reichstag fire on February 27. Hi**er used the fire to purge the communists from Parliament and imprison their leaders, which kept them out of the March elections.

Then the Parliament passed the Reichstag Decree. Censorship of newspapers, personal letters, and phone calls became legal. The N**is took complete control of the local German police. This helped the N**is and their allied party, the German National People’s Party, to win a 52% majority in the Reichstag.

Their next “legal” move came on March 13. Joseph Goebbels became Minister of the Reich Chamber of Culture. The ministry began purging Jews and political opponents from all cultural institutions. In May, the ministry burned all “un-German” books. By the summer, it controlled radio, press, film, and theater, and required journalists and artists to join N**i-controlled professional organizations.

On March 20, Hi**er opened Dachau as a concentration camp for dissidents. The Enabling Act came into effect three days later. Hi**er could now enact laws without the approval of the Reichstag or the President. Meant to expire after four years, the law remained in effect throughout the N**i regime. Hi**er now controlled the judiciary, education, and police.

The N**is reorganized and took control of local governments in April, using the Gestapo (secret police). By May 2, the N**is had dissolved the trade unions, detained their leaders, and compelled members to join the German Labor Front.

In July 1933, Hi**er and the Pope agreed to protect the Catholic Church in exchange for its refraining from involvement in political matters. This allowed Hi**er to ban the Catholic Centre Party without opposition from the Church. The N**i Party became the only party.

Hi**er withdrew Germany from the League of Nations on October 14. Hi**er now proceeded with his plans to strengthen the military and replace the views and workings of the post–World War I international world with his own.

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10/03/2025

Angelica Kauffman (1741–1807) was a Swiss child prodigy in both singing and painting. Both parents played a significant role in Angelica’s early development. Johann Joseph Kauffman, her father, specialized in painting portraits, church decoration, and castles. Her mother, Cleophea Lutz, came from a noble Swiss family and was a talented singer. Her musical background influenced Angelica, who was also a gifted soprano. Cleophea also taught Angelica German, Italian, French, and English, which was rare for a girl in the 18th century.

When Sophia was 15, her mother died in 1757. After her death, Angelica focused solely on painting, abandoning a potential career in opera—partly influenced by a priest who warned her about the dangers of the opera world. Johann Joseph, a painter of portraits, church decorations, and castle depictions, helped Angelica with her grief. He painted the church interiors in Schwarzenberg after a fire, focusing on the general decoration, while Angelica painted the Apostles.

Together, they traveled through Milan, Modena, Parma, Florence, and Rome for artistic study and commissions. Johann Joseph remained closely involved in Angelica’s life and career until his death. He supported her ambitions and helped her navigate the European art world.

Angelica moved to London in 1766, where she became a favorite of the aristocracy and intellectuals. In 1768, she was one of only two female founding members of the Royal Academy of Arts. Admirers of her work included Joshua Reynolds, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, and Antonio Canova. After marrying Italian artist Antonio Zucchi, she moved to Rome, where she continued to paint and host salons.

Angelica Kauffman’s paintings of women and allegories, within the Neoclassical style, exhibit emotional depth and storytelling.

10/01/2025

Maine Senator Margaret Chase Smith, the only female U.S. Senator, confronted Senator Joseph McCarthy over his Red Scare on June 1, 1950. She didn’t address the simultaneous Lavender Scare. The Red Scare targeted Communists, and the Lavender Scare targeted homos*xuals. Why did he do it? Besides his personal beliefs about communism and homos*xuality, his investigations and accusations also gave him national attention, political power, and media coverage.

He met his match in Margaret Chase Smith, a working-class woman from Maine who had worked as a teacher, telephone operator, and circulation manager for a newspaper. Joseph McCarthy came from a large working-class family in rural Wisconsin, finished high school in one year at the age of twenty, and earned a law degree from Marquette University before entering politics. Their personalities and values could not be more different.

For instance, McCarthy addressed the Senate in February 1950, stating:

“I have here in my hand a list of 205... names that were made known to the Secretary of State as being members of the Communist Party...”

“Our job as Americans and as Republicans is to dislodge the traitors from every place where they’ve been sent to do their traitorous work.”

— Enemies from Within speech, 1950

Margaret Chase Smith was already familiar with his attacks, but preempted his hatred with:

“The right to criticize: the right to hold unpopular beliefs; the right to protest; the right of independent thought. The exercise of these rights should not cost one single American citizen his reputation or his right to a livelihood.”

“I do not want to see the Republican Party ride to political victory on the Four Horsemen of Calumny—Fear, Ignorance, Bigotry, and Smear.”

— The Declaration of Conscience, 1950

The public deemed McCarthy’s approach during the 1954 Army-McCarthy hearings as irresponsible and extreme. The Senate censured him later that year.

Margaret Chase Smith had a lengthy career and passed away at 97.

09/30/2025

Hi**er and the N**i Party didn’t need a coup to attain power. He gained it by outsmarting Germany’s Weimar ruling class and the new business class known as the Conservative Elite. Their greed, combined with their ignorance, contributed to Hi**er’s rise to power and the Third Reich.

In 1928, President Hindenburg, an elite conservative, appointed Social Democrat Hermann Müller as Chancellor. His cabinet fell apart in March 1930 after failing to find a solution to the mass unemployment caused by the Great Depression.

Hindenburg next appointed the Centre Party’s Heinrich Brüning, who favored austerity. Under Brüning, the economy continued to spiral down, and unemployment increased. His attempt to ban the N**i SA and SS alienated right-wing elites and Hindenburg. Hindenburg dismissed Brüning in May 1932.

Hindenburg next appointed conservative aristocrat Franz von Papen as a figurehead Chancellor for a right-wing coalition. To get N**i support, he lifted the ban on the SA. This caused N**i violence to escalate. The “Cabinet of Barons” received a vote of no confidence in September 1932 from the Reichstag, forcing Papen to resign.

Chancellor Kurt von Schleicher lasted two months. Schleicher attempted to form a cross-party coalition that included trade unions and moderate N**is, but failed.

A few members of the Conservative Elite came up with a plan. Von Papen and the President’s Son Oskar, along with industrialists Hjalmar Schacht and Gustav Krupp, met secretly to outline their support of Hi**er to Hindenburg. They believed they could control Hi**er. They would use his popular support to destroy the political left and the Weimar Republic, which would remove most of their political opponents. Once Hi**er did that, it would be easy to replace him with someone of their choice.

Their plan to get Hindenburg to appoint Hi**er as Chancellor worked. Adolf Hi**er became Chancellor on January 30, 1933. However, they underestimated Hi**er. Hi**er used strategic manipulation of crises and legal tools to turn his limited chancellorship into a totalitarian dictatorship within months.

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09/26/2025

Against many harsh odds, Olaudah Equiano (c. 1745–1797) became an African writer. He used his experience as a former enslaved person to teach and encourage the British abolition movement.

In his 1789 autobiography, “The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano,” he writes about his early life. Kidnappers stole him and his sister from what is now South Nigeria. They traveled through many tribal areas with different languages to West Africa. There, he saw the first white men, whom he assumed must be spirits or evil beings. He feared he was going to be killed and eaten. The overwhelming stench of the ship warned him of its evil purpose before he was even on board. After that, the chains and the cries of other captives horrified him.

Equiano sailed from West Africa to Barbados before arriving in Virginia. A Royal Navy officer named Michael Pascal bought him. Equiano served as Pascal’s servant, sailing the oceans for eight years. During that time, he received baptism and learned to read and write in English.

Although promising freedom, Pascal then sold him to a London ship captain. The captain then sold him to Robert King, a Quaker merchant in the West Indies. Equiano worked as a deckhand, valet, and barber for the merchant. King also allowed him to earn money by trading on the side. In 1766, Equiano bought his freedom, then traveled the world for the next 20 years. His travels included trips to faraway Turkey and the Arctic.

Equiano’s autobiography became a bestseller with several printings over the years. The book and his speaking helped the British readers recognize the hideous cruelty and the emotional devastation of enslaving human beings. As a well-known author, he traveled and spoke across Britain. His life and work showed that Africans could possess the same level of intellectual and moral reasoning as Europeans. He challenged the morality of slavery under Christian principles.

Olaudah Equiano’s legacy helped achieve the passage of the Slave Trade Act of 1807. The British transatlantic slave trade ended.

09/24/2025

Virginia Hall (1906-1982) came from a wealthy and socially prominent family in Baltimore. After attending Radcliffe and Barnard College, she continued her studies in France, Germany, and Austria. Hall became fluent in French, German, and Italian, which aided her work for the U.S. Foreign Service and as a spy.

She became disabled in 1933 when she accidentally shot herself in the leg while hunting. The injury led to an amputation below the knee. “Cuthburt,” as she named her wooden prosthetic leg, became her walking companion. The Foreign Service rejected her, although she continued her diplomatic career.

When World War II broke out, Hall volunteered as an ambulance driver for the French army. After France fell to the N**is, she moved to Britain and joined the British spy agency, Special Operations Executive (SOE).

Known as the “Limping Lady,” Hall became a pioneer in the intelligence industry. She posed as a milkmaid, charwoman, and farmworker to move through rural areas unnoticed. Hall sometimes pretended to be a deaf-mute. One of her most famous disguises involved dressing as a frail older woman, complete with a hunched posture, shabby clothes, and a cane. She darkened her hair and stained her teeth to complete the look. She always evaded the Gestapo.

Hall set the stage for the Allies to invade Normandy and Provence by training resistance cells in guerrilla sabotage, such as blowing up bridges and derailing trains. By the end of the war, her team had captured 500 Germans and killed 150. The N**is called her “the enemy’s most dangerous spy.”

Susan Stoderl