You know how people always choose lottery numbers based on birthdays, anniversaries, the day a new pet arrived, a significant other was met? What if you could take lottery bets one step further and read about all the historical events that took place on these certain special dates? Perhaps then you would have even more (or less) of a reason to take chances on your brother’s birthday or your grandparents’ fiftieth. Curious to know what happened the day your mother was born, but ten years earlier… and later? Feeling the political charge in the air as you read this and wondering what happened a hundred years ago, today… or better yet, 375 years ago? Read below about which apps are best for going back in time.
This Day in Led Zeppelin ($2.99)
Some say Led Zeppelin is the second biggest band in the world after the Beatles. Did you ever wonder what they were doing on any given day, say, two years ago, or maybe even thirty-six? For instance, on January 24, five years apart, Zeppelin took the stage in two different cities, countries even, and played at least two of the same songs—Moby Dick and Communication Breakdown—first at Leeds University in Leeds, England, in 1970; and then at Richfield Coliseum in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1975. Go through all the days of the year and find out what your favorite band Led Zep was doing on each; plus read trivia about the band, view their song notes, take the Zeppelin quiz, and more.
OnThisDay ($0.99)
For just $0.99 this app sure provides you with a lot of information. Choose a date you would like to know the history of, and then receive instant information dating back to as long as… well, way before you can remember. I arbitrarily chose March 26, 1999 and received info from as far back as 1026 when Pope John XIX crowned Conrad II as Holy Roman Emperor. The most recent fact for that date? 2006 when Naypyidaw was named the new capital of Burma. The year seems to be insignificant though because I got information on years proceeding and following ’99. Nonetheless, a major bonus of this app is that it’s automatically updated every day at midnight.
World Book – This Day in History ($0.99)
Straight and to the point, each day gets a couple of facts, to be viewed one at a time, perhaps so the reader can really soak each one in? On January 21, 1793, King Louis XVI of France was executed and, on the same date but in 1924, V.I. Lenin (as in Russian revolutionary Vladimir Lenin) died. January 22 starts off less a day for death but one of birth: Francis Bacon, English philosopher and essayist, was born in 1561; English poet Lord Byron in 1788; and Swedish dramatist August Strindberg in 1849.
This Day in Music ($2.99)
This app contains endless facts about, yup, music. But truly an infinite amount of random anecdotes about your favorite musicians, names of rock stars that share your birthday, and musical events of importance that happened on whatever day you’re wondering about. A couple of fun facts that make this app totally worth checking out: Jon Bon Jovi once worked at Burger King, and Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry once worked as an ice cream salesman. And there is plenty more where that came from. Oh, and for the guy or gal stuck dicing small onions for those Mickey D’s burgers? There is hope for you yet — let this be the proof.
ThisDay – Today In History ($2.99)
ThisDay’s best quality is by far the setup, though the information does come in a close second. All on one “page” you get a bunch of facts about what took place on whatever day you’re looking up. Historical facts, birthdays, Roman Catholic Saints (random but interesting), and phases of the moon. Plus, each month gets an “about” write-up. Did you know that January was introduced to the Roman calendar as the eleventh month of the year? And that the name February is derived from the Latin februa? For only $2.99 you can check out lots more information like this.
Download our new iPhone app!
