Today in History Monday June 24
451 – 10th recorded perihelion passage of Halley’s Comet 843 – Vikings destroy Nantes 1441 – Eton College founded by Henry VI 1497 – John Cabot claims eastern Canada for England, believed he found Asia in Nova Scotia) 1664 – The colony of New Jersey is founded. 1794 – Bowdoin College is founded in Maine 1813 – Battle of Beaver Dam – British and Indian forces defeat US forces 1853 – Gadsden Purchase 29,670-square-mile (76,800 square km) from Mexico (now southern Arizona and New Mexico) for $10 million signed by President Franklin Pierce 1863 – Planning an invasion of Pennsylvania, Lee’s army crosses Potomac 1901 – First exhibition by Pablo Picasso, 19, opens in Paris
1916 – Mary Pickford becomes the first female film star to get a million dollar contract. 1931 – USSR and Afghanistan sign neutrality treaty 1932 – Coup ends absolute monarchy in Thailand 1939 – Pan Am’s first US to England flight 1947 – Flying saucers sighted over Mount Rainier by pilot Ken Arnold 1951 – Persian army takes over nationalized oil installations 1961 – Iraq demands dominion over Kuwait 1964 – FTC rules health warnings must appear on all cigarette packages 1975 – Eastern 727 crashes at JFK airport killing 113 1976 – 1975 movie “Rocky Horror Picture Show” released in Germany 1982 – Supreme Court rules president can’t be sued for actions in office 1992 – John Gotti begins life sentence in jail 1993 – Arab terrorist group planning bombing of Holland and Lincoln Tunnels caught 1993 – Yale computer science professor Dr. David Gelernter loses the sight in one eye, the hearing in one ear, and part of his right hand after receiving a mailbomb from the Unabomber. 2004 – Capital punishment is declared unconstitutional in New York 2012 – Mohamed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood becomes President of Egypt Birthdays 1771 – E I Du Pont, France, chemist/scientist (Du Pont) 1797 – John Hughes, archbishop, founded Fordham University in the Bronx 1895 – Jack Dempsey, “Manassa Mauler”, heavyweight boxing champion (1919-26) 1911 – Juan Manuel Fangio, racing driver 1935 – Pete Hamill, Brooklyn, NY, journalist (NY Post) 1944 – Jeff Beck, Surrey England, singer/guitarist (Jeff Beck Group) 1945 – George E Pataki, Peekskill NY, (Gov-R-NY, 1995- ) Deaths 1908 – Grover Cleveland, 22nd & 24th US President (1885-89, 93-97), dies at 71 1987 – Jackie Gleason, comedian (Honeymooners), dies at 71 1991 – Rufino Tamayo, Mexican painter, dies at 91 Edited from various internet sources |
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