Pioneers, Pirates, and Paranormal Tales

American Space Travel: Milestones and Missions

In 1958, the U.S. Government formed the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to be responsible for the American space program. However, the Americans weren't the first people to fly into space. In 1961, a Russian cosmonaut, Yuri Gagarin, became the first person to fly around the Earth. His flight took 108 minutes.

In 1961, President Kennedy challenged NASA to send a man to the Moon and return him safely to Earth. In 1969, Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins started their journey to the Moon in Apollo 11. On July 20th, 1969, the entire world watched as Neil Armstrong became the first man to walk on the Moon.

In 1996, NASA sent a spacecraft to Mars, named Mars Pathfinder. The Pathfinder had a robotic vehicle inside called a rover. This robot explored Mars and sent 16,500 pictures back to Earth, along with 8.5 million measurements. NASA lost contact with the Pathfinder in September 1997.

Legendary Figures and Unexplained Phenomena

Bigfoot: The Elusive Sasquatch

In 1958, a man named Jerry Crew found an enormous footprint in California and publicized a picture of it. Crew said it was the footprint of "Old Bigfoot," so after that, people used this name for the creature. Then, in 1967, two men filmed a "Bigfoot." Later, more and more people began to see Bigfoots in different places. Of course, there were many hoaxes.

Johnny Appleseed: America's Horticultural Pioneer

John Chapman, famously known as Johnny Appleseed, was a man who walked thousands of miles to plant apple trees. He was born in Massachusetts in 1774. Johnny dreamed of a land filled with apple trees, so he walked west across the country carrying a big bag of apple seeds. Johnny lived a simple, vegetarian life. He was a friendly man and loved animals. Some say he wore a sack on his body and a pot on his head. He didn't wear shoes, even in winter.

Blackbeard's Ghost: A Pirate's Enduring Legend

Blackbeard terrorized ships along the East Coast of America for 27 months. In 1718, some British soldiers tried to capture Blackbeard because he stole money and jewelry from passengers and sometimes killed them. There was a violent battle on a ship, and the soldiers finally killed him. Lieutenant Maynard cut off Blackbeard's head and threw his body into the sea. According to legend, the head shouted, "Come on, Edward!" and the body swam three.