3 Last-Minute Decisions That Altered History

Have you ever made a seemingly minor decision that ultimately had profound and lasting effects on your own life? Let's take a look at three such last-minute choices that impacted many lives and altered the course of history forever.

1. Teddy Roosevelt kept his speech close to his heart.

On Oc. 14, 1912, Teddy Roosevelt had prepared a rousing campaign speech to promote his presidential run as the leader of the new Progressive Party. He planned to deliver it at a political rally in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, later that day.

After studying the speech before the rally, Roosevelt decided to fold the 50-page written version over twice and put the bulky hunk of paper in his breast pocket, for safekeeping.

Moments later as Roosevelt stood to address the crowd, an assailant shot him squarely in the chest — right in the breast pocket. And that's how 50 sheets of folded paper, along with a metal glasses case, slowed the bullet and likely saved Roosevelt's life.

He went on to deliver a compelling 90-minute speech, while bleeding, with the bullet still lodged inside his chest.

Although Roosevelt didn't win the 1912 presidential election, his persistence at promoting the Progressive Party as a third voting option divided the Republican ticket, ultimately leading to the victory of Democrat Woodrow Wilson.

2. Buddy Holly wanted to wash his dirty underwear.

If you've ever heard Don McLean's 1971 hit song "American Pie," you certainly know the phrase "The Day the Music Died."

The day he's talking about is Feb. 3, 1959 — when the airplane carrying musicians Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, and The Big Bopper (J.P. Richardson Jr.) crashed in an Iowa field.

But did you know that fateful day almost turned out very differently?

The three entertainers had been touring together for a while and were running low on clean clothes. But Holly had an idea — he suggested they ditch the tour bus scheduled to transport them to their next venue and charter a private plane instead. Then, he said, they would have time to do laundry before their next concert.

Valens and Richardson thought that sounded like a good plan — and the three took off into the night sky and altered the course of rock history. The music world has never been the same since.

3. The White Star Line switched officers.

Since the shocking sinking of the Titanic on April 15, 1912, historians have speculated about what could have been, had things happened just a little differently.

One such "what-if" involves Second Officer David Blair.

Blair originally had been scheduled to serve on the Titanic's crew, but at the last minute, White Star Line management made the decision to replace Blair with a more experienced officer, Henry Wilde.

It made sense — Wilde had sailed on the Titanic's sister ship, the Olympic, so management deemed him more suited than Blair to handle a monster ship like the Titanic.

Unfortunately for everyone on board, Blair forgot to turn in his locker key that contained the lookout binoculars before the ill-fated ship sailed.

Without binoculars, the remaining crew had to watch for icebergs using only their eyes — and of course we know this proved sadly inadequate.

The Titanic struck an iceberg minutes before midnight on April 14, 1912, leading to the ship's demise, the loss of more than 1,500 lives, and one of the greatest tragedies in modern history.

Made in the heat of the moment, these pivotal decisions continue to shape our world today, proving that sometimes even the smallest flap of a butterfly's wing can indeed leave an indelible mark on human history.

References: 13 Last-Minute Decisions That Changed World History | The President That Kept Reading a Speech After Being Shot | The choice that doomed the Titanic | 10 Seemingly Insignificant Choices That Changed The World Forever