Many may not know, but the RMS Titanic sent at least two distress calls that pinged the Hatteras Island Weather Station in North Carolina. Station operators Richard Dailey and Horace Gaskins received the message “CQD: Have Struck Iceberg” at 11:25 p.m. It was an urgent message from the Titanic. They immediately forwarded the message to…
The 1940 Guthery Apartments Fire in Charlotte
In the early hours of March 15, 1940, a massive and deadly fire swept through Guthery Apartments, now known as the Tryon House Apartments, on North Tryon Street in Charlotte. The fire was attributed to a suspected boiler explosion in the basement, which turned catastrophic due to ruptured gas lines. Within minutes, the older part…
The Valentine’s Day Murders in North Carolina
On February 12, 1971, a young couple, Patricia Mann and Jesse McBane, disappeared after they left a Valentine’s Day dance at Watts Hospital in Durham, North Carolina, and would never be seen alive again. The pair had planned to return to Mann’s dorm by the 1 am curfew time, but when they failed to show,…