May 13 - Frog Jumping Day

 

Why is May 13th Frog Jumping Day? No one knows! The roots of Frog Jumping Day go back to Mark Twain's first short story, published in 1865 as "Jim Smiley and His Jumping Frog". It has since been published as "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County", and "The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County". May 13th is neither the publishing date of Twain's Jumping Frog story, nor is it his date of birth or death.

 

So, why is today Frog Jumping Day? I say, because it can be! Let's all get a little froggy!

Check out what Pet in the Pocket has to say about Frog Jumping Day: http://petinthepocket.com/news/2009/05/12/may-13-frog-jumping-day

Here are some interesting things that happened on this day in history:

- The first mine disaster occurred in Westville, Nova Scotia in 1873. An explosion ripped through the tunnels; 2 years passed before the last of 60 bodies was recovered.
- William Patterson, Premier of Saskatchewan, the first person in the province's history to hold both posts of Premier and Lieutenant-Governor, was born in Grenfell, Saskatchewan in 1886.
- Celebrated poet Earle Birney was born in Calgary in 1904.

- The Royal Flying Corps formed in England in 1912.
- Poet and storyteller Roch Carrier, who was director of the Canada Council from 1994 to 1997, was born in Beauce, Québec in 1937.

- The octagonal boxing ring was tested in 1967 to avoid corner injuries.
- Race riots, later known as the May 13 Incident, occurred in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in 1969.

- Pope John Paul II was shot and critically wounded by Turkish gunman Mehemet Ali Agca in St. Peter's Square, Vatican City in 1981.
- The final episode of "Night Court" aired on NBC-TV in 1992.

Stay tuned for our next, "On This Day in History"!