In the first part of the nineteenth century, it was fashionable to dress babies in long petticoats to protect them from drafts. Voluminous clothing might also help keep a child from slipping out of its mother’s or nursemaid’s arms. According… Read More
On August 25, 1875, a 27-year-old former British naval officer named Captain Matthew Webb smeared himself with porpoise oil and became the first person to swim the English Channel. It took 22 hours to swim the 39-mile distance. On July 24, 1883, he attempted to swim the rapids below Niagra Falls and drowned.