Famous First Facts: A Record of First Happenings, Discoveries, and Inventions in American History

by Janet Podell and Joseph Nathan Kane

Book Overview

- Chapter headings displayed at the top of right-hand pages make it easier to browse for firsts. - A main subject index, plus geographical, name, year, and day indexes, offer researchers direct access... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0824206614
• ISBN13: 9780824206611
• Release Date: January 1981
• Publisher: H. W. Wilson
• Length: 1350 Pages

Customer Reviews

Expensive, but worth it

The 6th edition of "Famous First Facts" continues the format that was used in the 5th edition. Entries are assigned a four-digit number. In the previous edition, starting with #1001, the final entry was 8155, on page 629. In the present edition, the final entry is 8549 on page 755. The five indexes (which take up 551 additional pages) use these reference numbers to guide the reader to information. A reader can look up items by subject, year, calendar date, personal names, and place names. The personal names index was changed for this edition. The 4th edition listed the subjects of the firsts attached to a person's name along with the entry numbers. Now only the entry numbers are given. I'm sure this was done to save space. The great majority of names have only one entry number listed with them. Other names have several numbers (e.g., Thomas Alva Edison has 19, and Dwight David Eisenhower has 25), which can make the task of finding a specific first a bit frustrating. The arrangement of categories has also been changed. In the 5th edition, broad categories were listed in alphabetical order from Agriculture to Writing Implements. In the new edition, categories have been reorganized into broad chapter headings. Agriculture is now included in the chapter on Business and Industry, along with, among others, Fishing and Whaling, Hospitality, and Shipping. Within chapters, the number of sections has been reduced. For example, the 5th edition's chapter had firsts associated with various religions listed (i.e., Religion-Buddhist, Religion-Catholic, Religion-Jewish, Religion-Mormon Church, etc.). Now these items are listed in a single, chronological list. The only division in the Religion chapter is Publications. Pictures have been added, and short trivia items are set off in boxes. The pictures are captioned, but there is no indication as to numbered item with which they are associated. Some of the various quibbles I had with the 5th edition have been cleared up, while others have not. I found at least one new entry that deserves inclusion, but isn't exactly correct. Anyway, here are comments on specific items, in no particular order, keyed to entry numbers in the 6th edition where appropriate: "7720. Sportscaster who was a woman to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame was Lesley Visser, who received the organization's Pete Rozelle Radio-Television Award on August 5, 2006 in Canton, OH." This was probably a case of news reports that didn't get the story correct. As the first woman to receive the Pete Rozelle Award, she was the first woman honored by the Hall of Fame, but was not "inducted" into it. In 2006 the National Baseball Hall of Fame did induct its first woman, but she is not listed. Effa Manley, a Negro Leagues executive, was one of 17 inductees last year who were associated with the Negro Leagues. Just as there has been a Sergeant Major of the Army since 1966 (5451. William O. Wooldridge was first), who serves as the enlisted ad

A solid reference especially recommended for public and school libraries

Now in an updated sixth edition with roughly 1,000 new entries and a few new black-and-white images, Famous First Facts is a massive hardcover compendium of amazing achievements, discoveries, and events in world history. More than 7,500 entries total stretch from 10,000 B.C. (earliest human artifacts found in America) through 2006 A.D. Featuring multiple entry indexes by year, subject, day, name, or geographical area, and organized into 16 sections on subjects ranging from social and scientific realms to technology, arts, sports, religion, literature, and much more, Famous First Facts remains a solid reference especially recommended for public and school libraries. A sample famous first fact: in 1658 New Amsterdam (now New York City), the first police force was employed, consisting of eight men.

An outstanding reference

This books contains thousands of firsts in American history. Note that I used the term American history. There is an international version of this book that contains firsts in world history. This book is an outstanding reference that will never go out of date. I highly recommend it.

A new look for a classic reference work.

The 5th edition of "Famous First Facts" is a virtually complete make over of a classic reference work. Joseph Nathan Kane, who published the first edition over 65 years ago, has been joined by Steven Anzovin and Janet Podell in compiling the information (Mr. Kane was born in 1898, so he's entitled). Some features in the new edition seem confusing at first, but are not a major hindrance to finding information. The first thing an experienced user will notice is that all entries are assigned a 4-digit number, beginning with the first entry on page 1, # 1001, through the last entry, # 8155, on page 629. The five indexes (which take up almost 500 additional pages) use these reference numbers to guide the reader to information. The main change involves the organization of categories, which have been rearranged to be more topical, rather than strictly alphabetical as in previous editions. Broad categories are divided into one or two subcategories. The problem is that not all the entries in the 4th edition have been retained in the current volume. In the 4th edition, for example, the first five entries under the main category FOOTBALL PLAYER list the first (a) Athlete enshrined in 2 Halls of Fame [with a cross-reference to the category Hall of Famer]; (b) Black football player to win the Heisman Memorial Trophy; (c) Football player to punt 98 yeards; (d) Football player to score 50 points in 1 game; and (e) Woman football player (professional). In the new edition, item (a) which refers to Cal Hubbard, is missing. His name is not in the index. Hubbard is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame (as a player) and the Baseball Hall of Fame (as an umpire). Item (b) is now under AWARDS-SPORTS-BASEBALL. Steve O'Neal's 98-yard punt (item (c)) has been dropped. Item (d) is under SPORTS AND RECREATION-FOOTBALL. Item (e) can be found under SPORTS AND RECREATION-FOOTBALL-GAMES, with the heading "Professional football game in which a woman participated." Some updating of language is to be expected ("African-American" has replaced "Black"), but other changes might be seen as examples of political correctness. Under WOMAN, the 4th edition lists the first "Heroine publicly rewarded was Hannah Duston." The new edition states, under POPULATION-SETTLEMENT the first "Settler heroine publicly rewarded was Hannah Duston." Two changes in the new edition detract in some measure from its usefulness. Previous editions had references to published source materials at the end of many entries. Older editions also used full personal names wherever possible, with nicknames in quotation marks. In the 4th edition, for example, the entry on Hanna Duston (see previous paragraph) referred the reader to "George Wingate Chase -- The History of Haverhill." The 4th edition tells us the first "Baseball player (major league) killed in a game was Raymond Johnson ("Ray") Chapman ... who was accidentally hit on the left side of his head by pitcher

Great reference & General Reading

I received this book as a gift about a year and a half ago & didn't look at it at all. One lazy evening,I picked it up and began leafing through it. I haven't put it down in over four months. It's a book of firsts organized by exacting categories and its utterly interesting. You'll be reading and leafing through it for many years.