1845 – Florida becomes 27th state of the Union
1893 – US Congress authorizes 1st federal road agency, in Department of Agriculture
1931 – “The Star-Spangled Banner” officially becomes US national anthem by congressional resolution; lyrics by Francis Scott Key in 1814, set to John Stafford Smith’s 18th century tune “The Anacreontic Song”
1943 – Bethnal Green Tube disaster: 173 die in a stampede sheltering in an air raid, UK’s greatest loss of civilian life in WWII (details censored till January 20 1945)
1943 – Battle of the Bismarck Sea: Australian and American air forces devastate Japanese navy convoy
1950 – National-American Football League reverts to calling itself the NFL after 3 months
1959 – British government arrests Hastings Banda of Nyasaland, ends emergency crisis
1978 – 1st day of Test cricket for Desmond Haynes (WI v Australia)
1980 – Pierre Trudeau sworn in, for the second time, as the 17th Prime Minister of Canada
2004 – Belgian brewer Interbrew and Brazilian rival AmBev agreed to merge in a $11.2 billion deal forming InBev, the world’s largest brewer
Author: gil7
Today in History for 3rd March 2024
Historical Events
1905 – US Forest Service forms
1917 – First major strike of the Russian “February Revolution” starts at the giant Putilov factory in Petrograd [OS=Feb 18]
1942 – 1st combat flight for Canadian British-built Avro Lancaster bomber
1981 – NY Islanders and Edmonton Oilers play to an 8-8 tie
1992 – Charges are filed in Florida against NY Mets Darryl Boston, Vince Coleman and Dwight Gooden of rape (dropped in April)
2021 – Great apes at San Diego Zoo reported given experimental COVID-19 vaccine designed for animals after earlier outbreak among the gorillas (San Diego, California)
Famous Birthdays
1814 – Charles Kensington Salaman, British pianist and synagogue music composer, born in London, England (d. 1901)
1880 – Florence Auer, American actress (Eradicating Aunty), born in Albany, New York (d. 1962)
1893 – Beatrice Wood, American artist, ceramist and editor (The Blind Man, inspiration for Titanic film character Rose), born in San Francisco, California (d. 1998)
1913 – Roger Caillois, French writer and scholar (Les Jeux et les Hommes), born in Reims, France (d. 1978)
1920 – Julius Boros, American golfer (PGA C’ship 1968, US Open 1952, 63), born in Fairfield, Connecticut (d. 1994)
1945 – Farooq Hamid, cricketer (1-107 in Test, Pakistan v Australia 1964)
Famous Deaths
1459 – Ausiàs March, Catalan poet of Valencian literature, dies at 59
1927 – J.G. Parry-Thomas, Welsh motor-racing driver (b. 1884)
1973 – Vera Panova, Russian author and journalist (Sputniki), dies at 67
1996 – Ludwig Freiherr von Hammerstein-Equord, German journalist, dies at 76
2000 – Toni Ortelli, Italian composer (“La Montanara” (The Song of the Mountains), conductor, and alpinist, dies at 95
2004 – Cecily Adams, American actress and casting director (b. 1958)
Famous Deaths for 2nd March 2024
1835 – Francis II, last Holy Roman Emperor (1792-1806), Emperor of Austria (1804-35) dies at 67
1882 – Louis Kufferath, German-Belgian composer, dies at 70
1967 – José Martínez Ruiz, Spanish poet and writer (b. 1873)
1981 – Tony Gulotta, American auto racer (Indianapolis 500 1927 3rd), dies at 78
1992 – Sandy Dennis, American Tony and Academy Award-winning stage and screen actress (Any Wednesday; Who’s Afraid of Virginia Wolfe?; The Out-of-Towners), dies of ovarian cancer at 54
1998 – Henry Steele Commager, American historian (Atlas of Civil War), dies at 95
2001 – John Diamond, British journalist, dies of cancer at 47
2012 – Nydia Ecury, celebrated Afro-Dutch writer, translator and actress (Kantika pa Mama Tera), dies at 86
2013 – Robert Feenstra, Dutch law historian, dies at 92
2023 – Rafael Viñoly, Uruguayan-American architect (20 Fenchurch Street (London); Kimmel Center (Philadelphia); Booth School of Business (Chicago)), dies of an aneurysm at 78
Historical Events for 2nd March 2024
1865 – Freedman’s Bureau founded for Black Education, 1865
1888 – The Convention of Constantinople signed, guaranteeing free maritime passage through the Suez Canal during war and peace
1934 – Union Pacific tests light-weight high-speed passenger train, Omaha
1939 – Massachusetts Legislature votes to ratify the US Bill of Rights – 147 years late
1986 – Edmonton’s Finnish right wing Jari Kurri scores 2 goals, including the overtime winner, to lead Oilers to a 2-1 win over Philadelphia; Kurri, 100 points for the 4th straight NHL season
1991 – “La Bete” closes at Eugene O’Neill Theater NYC after 24 performances
1996 – Despite Sachin Tendulkar’s masterful 137 in India’s 3 for 272, Sri Lanka wins Cricket World Cup match in Delhi by 6 wickets; Sanath Jayasuriya 79, Hashan Tillakaratne 70no
2000 – Former Chilean dictator General Augusto Pinochet heads home after being told the UK would not extradite him on torture charges
2021 – Six books by Dr. Seuss will cease publication because of racist and insensitive imagery according to Dr. Seuss Enterprises
2023 – UN confirms it will ignore statements made by an Indian guru and now fugitive from the fictional country of the United States of Kailasa, made attending official UN events in Geneva
Today in History for 2nd March 2024
Historical Events
1861 – Government Printing Office purchases 1st printing plant, Washington
1925 – Japan’s House of Representatives recognizes male suffrage
1965 – Montcalm Community College founded in Sidney, Mich
1989 – GreenLeft (GroenLinks) political party forms from merger of four left-wing parties: the Communist Party, the Pacifist Socialist Party, the Political Party of Radicals, and the Evangelical People’s Party in the Netherlands
2002 – U.S. invasion of Afghanistan: US conventional forces first deployed as part of Operation Anaconda
2014 – President Vladimir Putin receives unanimous approval from Russia’s parliament to send troops to Ukraine
Famous Birthdays
1769 – DeWitt Clinton, American politician (Senator, Governor and Mayor of New York, had Erie Canal constructed), born in Little Britain, New York (d. 1828)
1779 – Joel Roberts Poinsett, American statesman and botanist (d. 1851)
1916 – Bernard George Stevens, British composer, born in London, England (d. 1983)
1947 – Harry Redknapp, English soccer winger (West Ham United; AFC Bournemouth) and manager (Bournemouth, West Ham, Tottenham, Portsmouth, QPR, Southampton), born in London, England
1952 – Mark Evanier, American writer
1954 – Pete Johnson, American football running back (Pro Bowl, 2nd Team All Pro 1981; Cincinnati Bengals; Ohio State University), born in Fort Valley, Georgia
Famous Deaths
1127 – Charles, the Good, Count of Flanders, murdered
1943 – Alexandre Yersin, Swiss French bacteriologist (discovered bubonic plague bacillus), dies at 79
1985 – John Kelly Jr, American rower (Olympic bronze single sculls 1956; president US Olympic Committee 1985) and brother of Grace Kelly, dies at 57
1994 – Charles Brink, German-born British classical scholar (Horace), dies at 86
2015 – Mal Peet, British children’s author, dies at 67
2017 – Simon Hobday, South African golfer (US Senior Open 1994), dies of cancer at 76
Famous Deaths for 1st March 2024
1244 – Gruffydd ap Llywelyn Fawr, son of Welsh leader Llywelyn the Great, dies trying to escape from the Tower of London (b. 1200)
1929 – Royal H. Weller, American politician (Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New York), dies at 47
1956 – Henriette Renié, French harp prodigy, composer, and teacher, dies at 80
1976 – Jean Martinon, French conductor and composer, dies at 66
1994 – Timothy Andrew James Souster, British composer, dies at 51
1994 – Eliseo Diego, Cuban poet, dies at 74
2007 – Joel Brodsky, American photographer, credited with photographing over 400 album covers, dies of a heart attack at 67
2010 – Kristian Digby, British television presenter and director, dies at 32
2016 – Jim Kimsey, American co-founder of AOL, dies at 76
2020 – Stefan Lindqvist, Swedish soccer midfielder (5 caps; IFK Göteborg), dies from Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis at 52
Historical Events for 1st March 2024
1872 – Yellowstone becomes the world’s 1st national park
1913 – 1First state law requiring bonding of officers and state employees, ND
1941 – Former University of Notre Dame star fullback Elmer Layden is named first Commissioner of the NFL
1953 – After an all-night movie and dinner session with his top advisers, Joseph Stalin suffers a stroke and collapses. He dies four days later.
1966 – Venera 3 becomes 1st man-made object to impact on a planet (Venus)
1991 – 37 year-old Pat Day becomes the 6th jockey in history whose mounts earned $100 million when he rides Wild Sierra to 2nd-place in the 1st race at Oaklawn Park, Arkansas
1992 – “Visit” closes at Criterion Theater NYC after 45 performances
1993 – New expansion NHL team, owned in Anaheim, CA by Disney, receives its name, inspired by the 1992 Disney movie ‘The Mighty Ducks’
2003 – Legendary Mount St. Mary’s basketball head coach Jim Phelan wins final game of 49 year career as Mountaineers win 60-56 over Central Connecticut State; Phelan: 830 wins in NCAA record 1,354 games
2004 – Mohammed Bahr al-Uloum becomes President of Iraq.
Today in History for 1st March 2024
Historical Events
1847 – Michigan becomes 1st English-speaking jurisdiction to abolish the death penalty (except for treason against the state)
1946 – Panama accepts its new constitution
1970 – End of US commercial whale hunting
1984 – USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR #3931 Batten, #4529 Webern, #4530 Smoluchowski, #4818 Elgar, #5502 Brashear and #5943 Lovi
1991 – US Embassy in Kuwait officially reopens
2023 – At least 1000 Iranian school girls exposed to toxic gas attacks, since November, amid accusations they are an attempt to close schools after girls participated in recent anti-government protests
Famous Birthdays
1432 – Isabel of Coimbra, Queen of Portugal (d. 1455)
1734 – Pieter Valck, Dutch artist and sculptor (d. 1783)
1822 – Albin Francisco Schoepf, Polish-American Brigadier General (Union Army), born in Podgórze, Kraków, Poland (d. 1886)
1837 – William Dean Howells, American novelist, critic and editor (Atlantic), born in Martinsville, Ohio (d. 1920)
1920 – Howard Nemerov, American poet, two-time US Poet Laureate and novelist (Blue Swallows), born in New York City (d. 1991)
1956 – Timothy Daly, American actor (Joe-Wings, Diner, Made in Heaven), born in Sufferin, New York
Famous Deaths
1510 – Francisco de Almeida, Portuguese soldier, explorer and 1st Viceroy of India dies at Table Bay, Africa at about 59
1826 – Friedrich Weinbrenner, German architect, dies at 59
1906 – Moritz Heyne, German germanist (Beowulf), dies at 68
1928 – Jacob Adolf Hägg, Swedish composer, dies at 77
1980 – Dixie Dean, English soccer striker (16 caps; Everton), dies from a heart attack at 73
1991 – Scott Huston, American composer, dies at 74
Famous Deaths for 29th February 2024
1852 – John Landseer, English printer and engraver (Royal Academy), dies (birth date unknown 1763-69)
1880 – Sir James Wilson, Premier of Tasmania (b. 1812, also on 29 February)
1956 – Elpidio Quirino, 6th President of the Philippines (1949-53), dies at 65
1964 – Frank Albertson, American actor (Psycho, It’s a Wonderful Life, Alice Adams), dies in his sleep at 55
1968 – Tore Ørjasæter, Norwegian poet (b. 1886)
1996 – Wes Farrell, American songwriter (The Partridge Family), dies of cancer at 56
1996 – Duncan Stuart Wilson Fighter pilot-MacDonald, dies at 83
1996 – Joe Minogue, British journalist (Guardian), dies at 72
2000 – Dennis Danell, American punk rock guitarist (Social Distortion), dies of heart failure at 38
2016 – Aron Burton, American electric and Chicago blues bass guitarist, singer, and songwriter, dies of heart disease and diabetes at 77
Historical Events for 29th February 2024
1868 – 1st British government of Benjamin Disraeli forms
1892 – St. Petersburg, Florida is incorporated
1952 – Ice Dance Championship at Paris France won by Westwood and Demmy of Great Britain
1952 – Ice Pairs Championship at Paris won by Ria Falk and Paul Falk of West Germany
1956 – MLB’s Cleveland Indians franchise is sold for nearly $4m; former player and the team’s general manager Hank Greenberg is part of the new ownership group
1968 – Howard Hanson’s 6th Symphony, premieres
1968 – Beatles’ “Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” wins Grammy Award for Album of the Year, the first rock LP to do so
1984 – Swedish center Patrik Sundström scores a goal and adds 6 assists as Vancouver Canucks beat the Penguins 9-5 in Pittsburgh; just the 3rd player in NHL history to record 6 assists in a road game
1988 – New Zealand cricket batsman Mark Greatbatch scores an unbeaten 107 on debut to rescue a draw in 2nd Test v England at Eden Park, Auckland
2004 – 76th Academy Awards: “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King,” Sean Penn and Charlize Theron win