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October 27, 2026
Oct 27, 2026
Word
bivouac
verb
Definition
  1. to make a temporary encampment under little or no shelter
  2. to take shelter often temporarily
  3. to provide temporary quarters for
Example
The search party bivouacked under a nearby ledge until the storm passed.
Origin
In his 1841 dictionary, Noah Webster observed bivouac to be a French borrowing having military origins. He defined the noun bivouac as "the guard or watch of a whole army, as in cases of great danger of surprise or attack" and the verb as "to watch or be on guard, as a whole army." The French word is derived from the Low German word biwacht, which translates to "by guard." Germans used the word specifically for a patrol of citizens who assisted the town watch at night. Today, bivouac has less to do with guarding and patrolling than it does with taking shelter.
Webster's Dictionary
Fun facts
  1. A pearl can be dissolved by vinegar.
  2. In the U.S. a pig has to weigh more than 180 lbs to be called a hog.
Snapple's under-the-cap 'Real Facts'
Artist
Richard Marquis
Born Sep 17, 1945

Richard "Dick" Marquis is an American studio glass artist. One of the first Americans ever to work in a Venetian glass factory, he became a master of Venetian cane and murrine techniques. He is considered a pioneer of American contemporary glass art, and is noted for his quirky, playful work that incorporates flawless technique and underlying seriousness about form and color.

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Wikipedia, Google Arts & Culture
Historical figure
Lucian Truscott
Jan 9, 1895 - Sep 12, 1965

General Lucian King Truscott Jr. was a highly decorated senior United States Army officer, who saw distinguished active service during World War II. Between 1943–45, he successively commanded the 3rd Infantry Division, VI Corps, Fifteenth Army and Fifth Army. He and Alexander Patch were the only U.S. Army officers to command a division, a corps, and a field army on active service during the war.

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Wikipedia, Google Arts & Culture
Historic event
Gettysburg campaign
Jun 9, 1863 - Jul 23, 1863

The Gettysburg campaign was a military invasion of Pennsylvania by the main Confederate army under General Robert E. Lee in summer 1863. The Union won a decisive victory at Gettysburg, July 1–3, with heavy casualties on both sides. Lee managed to escape back to Virginia with most of his army. It was a turning point in the American Civil War, with Lee increasingly pushed back toward Richmond until his surrender in April 1865. After his victory in the Battle of Chancellorsville, Lee's Army of Northern Virginia moved north for a massive raid designed to obtain desperately needed supplies, to undermine civilian morale in the North, and to encourage anti-war elements. The Union Army of the Potomac was commanded by Maj. Gen. Joseph Hooker and then by Maj. Gen. George G. Meade.

Lee's army slipped away from Federal contact at Fredericksburg, Virginia, on June 3, 1863. The largest predominantly cavalry battle of the war was fought at Brandy Station on June 9. The Confederates crossed the Blue Ridge Mountains and moved north through the Shenandoah Valley, capturing the Union garrison at Winchester, Virginia, in the Second Battle of Winchester, June 13–15.

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Wikipedia, Google Arts & Culture