Sarah Jane (Freeman) Brock (born 1815)

In 1815, in the year that Sarah Jane (Freeman) Brock was born, between April 5th and 12th, Mount Tambora in the Dutch East Indies erupted, killing over 92,000 people and propelling volcanic ash into the upper atmosphere throughout the world. This caused what was called "The Year Without a Summer." In some places in the northern hemisphere, the eruption caused snow in June and July. There were widespread crop failures and resulting starvation in many parts of the world.

In 1949, on April 4th, NATO (the North Atlantic Treaty Organization) was established. Twelve nations originally signed the North Atlantic Treaty - the United States, Great Britain, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark, Italy, Luxembourg, Norway, Iceland, Canada, and Portugal. Greece, Turkey, and West Germany later joined. Today, there are 26 nations in NATO.

In 1953, on January 20th, Dwight D. Eisenhower became the 34th President of the United States. Formerly the 1st Supreme Allied Commander Europe in World War II, Eisenhower had never previously held a political office.

In 1963, the British Secretary of War, 46 year old John Profumo ,was forced to resign when he lied about an affair with 19 year old Christine Keeler. Keeler was also involved with the Soviet naval attaché and charges of espionage were feared. No proof of spying was ever found.

In 1993, on February 26th, a truck bomb exploded in the garage under the North Tower of the World Trade Center. While the bomb didn't do what was planned (collapse the North Tower into the South Tower), it did kill six people and injured thousands of people.