On this day in 1795 the explorer Mungo Park set sail from his native Scotland on a voyage to Africa. It should have been a family affair, but he fell out with his brothers, Hyde and Regents, both of whom went off in a sulk to London.
In other news ...
Ex-President of the Confederate States of America, Jefferson Davis, was caught today while on the run from the Union in 1865. He was disguised as a woman and insisted he only ever did this on Thursdays when there was a 'y' in the month and anyway, he was doing it for charity.