Ruth Drew (1903 - 1980)

Refresh this page to see various historical events that occurred during Ruth's lifetime.

In 1903, in the year that Ruth Drew was born, the Harley-Davidson Motor Company was begun by two childhood friends, William Harley and Arthur Davidson - with help from Arthur's brother, Walter. Their first prototype - a "motor-bicycle" - couldn't climb hills without also pedaling, so they went back to the drawing board, and in 1904 their new version came in 4th in a race. Harley-Davidson and Indian Motorcycle Manufacturing Company were the only two major motorcycle companies to survive the Great Depression.

In 1919, at the age of 16 years old, Ruth was alive when in January, Nebraska was the 36th state to ratify the 18th Amendment, making it the law of the land. The 18th Amendment established Prohibition - a law against the production, transport, and sale of alcohol. Private consumption and possession were not prohibited. Several months later, the Volstead Act was passed, creating laws to enforce the Amendment. Bootlegging and bathtub gin followed.

In 1929, she was 26 years old when American Samoa officially became a U.S. territory. Although a part of the United States since 1900, the Ratification Act of 1929 vested "all civil, judicial, and military powers in the President of the United States of America".

In 1956, at the age of 53 years old, Ruth was alive when on May 20th, the U.S. tested the first hydrogen bomb dropped from a plane over Bikini Atoll. Previously, hydrogen bombs had only been tested on the ground. The Atomic Age moved forward.

In 1980, in the year of Ruth Drew's passing, on April 24th, a rescue attempt was begun in the Iranian Hostage Crisis. The attempt failed and 8 US servicemen were killed. Eight helicopters had been sent for the mission, but only 5 arrived in operating condition., Since the military had advised that the mission be aborted if there were fewer than 6 helicopters, President Carter stopped it. Upon leaving, a helicopter collided with a transport plane and the men were killed.