1885 – Great Britain declares Bechuanaland a protectorate
1906 – Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the United States is founded to set rules in amateur sports; becomes the National Collegiate Athletic Association in 1910
1949 – Newfoundland becomes Canada’s 10th province
1955 – Merger of Chase National Bank (3rd largest bank) and Bank of the Manhattan Company (15th largest bank) forms Chase Manhattan
1958 – USSR suspends nuclear weapons tests, and urges US and Britain to do same
1972 – Final day of the rum ration in the Royal Canadian Navy
1996 – First time in MLB history, the regular season opens in March with Seattle Mariners beating Chicago White Sox, 3-2 in 12 innings at the Kingdome, Seattle
1996 – Radio Canada International’s final shortwave broadcast
1998 – Expansion clubs, Tampa Bay and Arizona both suffer bad losses in their MLB debuts; Devil Rays lose, 11-6 to the Detroit Tigers and the Diamondbacks fall, 9-2 to Colorado Rockies
2012 – Fiji Floods kill 2 people and force thousands to be evacuated
Author: gil7
Today in History for 31st March 2021
Historical Events
1667 – France and England sign anti-Dutch military accord
1917 – The Danish West Indies are officially ceded to the US for $25 million and renamed the Virgin Islands
1918 – 1st daylight savings time in US goes into effect
1961 – Aklilou Habtewold becomes 1st premier of Ethiopia
2001 – German brothers Michael and Ralf Schumacher become first siblings to share front row of the grid in a Formula 1 World Championship event; qualify 1st and 2nd respectively for Brazilian GP in São Paulo
2020 – British pensioner Robert Weighton becomes the world’s oldest man at 112 years
Famous Birthdays
1794 – Thompson McKennan, American politician who served as the 2nd United States Secretary of the Interior (d. 1852)
1913 – Dai Rees, Scottish golfer (British Open runner-up 1953-54, 61), born in Fontegary, Glamorgan (d. 1983)
1915 – Henry Morgan, American comedian and TV panelist (I’ve Got a Secret, Arena), born in NYC, New York (d. 1994)
1916 – John H. Wood, Jr., American federal judge (d. 1979)
1944 – Mick Ralphs, British rock guitarist (Mott the Hoople; Bad Company), born in Stoke Lacy, Herefordshire, England
1967 – Nanci Bowen, American golfer (Nabisco Dinah Shore 1995), born in Tifton, Georgia
Famous Deaths
1567 – Philip, the Generous, count of Hessen, dies at 62
1703 – Johann Christoph Bach, German composer, dies at 60
1855 – Charlotte Brontë, English novelist (Jane Eyre), dies at 38
1886 – Giovanni Rossi, composer, dies at 57
1900 – Frank Milligan, cricketer (Mafeking 2 Tests Eng v South Africa 1898-99), dies
1968 – Grover Lowdermilk, American baseball player (b. 1885)
Famous Deaths for 30th March 2021
1486 – Thomas Bourchier, Archbishop of Canterbury
1764 – Pietro Locatelli, Italian violinist and composer, dies at 68
1949 – Dattaram Hindlekar, Indian cricket wicketkeeper (4 Tests), dies at 40
1959 – Riccardo Zanella, president of Free State of Fiume (b. 1875)
1960 – Joseph Haas, German opera composer (Totenmesse), dies at 81
1986 – John Ciardi, American poet/interpreter (Dante), dies at 69
1989 – Dort Clark, actor (In Harm’s Way), dies
1991 – Jan Willem Hofstra, Dutch actor/writer (Friends of My Friends), dies
2004 – Hubert Gregg, British broadcaster (b. 1914)
2016 – Howard Cable, Canadian conductor, arranger, and composer, dies at 95
Historical Events for 30th March 2021
1870 – Florida territorial government established
1942 – SS murders 200 inmates of Trawniki concentration camp
1945 – 289 anti-fascists murdered by nazis in Rombergpark Dortmund
1946 – 3rd Golden Globes: “The Lost Weekend”, Ray Milland, and Ingrid Bergman win
1968 – General Ludvik Svoboda elected president of Czechoslovakia
1972 – Northern Ireland’s Government and Parliament dissolved by the British Government and ‘direct rule’ from Westminster is introduced
1981 – “Chariots of Fire” directed by Hugh Hudson and starring Ben Cross and Ian Charleson premieres at a Royal Command Film Performance (Best Picture 1982)
1983 – Ray Cooney’s “Run for your Wives” premieres in London
1984 – World’s most valuable tip – New York police detective Robert Cunningham offers waitress Phyllis Penzo half of $1 lottery ticket, next day they win $6 million
1991 – PBA National Championship Won by Mike Miller
Today in History for 30th March 2021
Historical Events
1919 – Gandhi announces resistance against Rowlatt Act
1923 – Zeta Phi Beta Sorority formed at Howard U in 1920 incorporates
1949 – Riot breaks out in Austurvöllur square in Reykjavík, when Iceland joins NATO
1993 – French government of Balladur forms
2003 – PGA Players Championship, TPC at Sawgrass: Davis Love III shoots a final round 64 to win his 2nd Players title, 6 strokes ahead of runners-up Jay Haas and Pádraig Harrington
2019 – Pope Francis arrives in Rabat, Morocco, on his first-ever visit to the Magreb region of Northern Africa
Famous Birthdays
1768 – Maria Reynolds, American mistress of Alexander Hamilton and part of America’s 1st political sex scandal (Reynolds Pamphlet), born in NYC, Province of New York, British Empire (d. 1828)
1892 – Erhard Milch, German field marshal (d. 1972)
1930 – John Astin, American actor (I’m Dickens, He’s Fenster; The Addams Family), born in Baltimore, Maryland
1931 – Aleksey Vasilyevich Sorokin, Russian cosmonaut
1957 – Paul Reiser, American actor (My 2 Dads, Diner, Aliens, Mad About You), born in NYC, New York
1983 – Jérémie Aliadière, French footballer
Famous Deaths
1969 – Lucien Bianchi, Italian-Belgian auto racer (24 Hours of Le Mans 1968), dies during Le Mans testing accident at 34
1978 – Larry Young [Khalid Yasin], American jazz musician (Unity), dies at 37 in unclear circumstances
2003 – Valentin Pavlov, Russian politician and Prime Minister of the Soviet Union (1991), dies at 65
2014 – Kate O’Mara, English actress (Dynasty) and writer, dies at 74
2016 – Gianmaria Testa, Italian singer-songwriter, dies of cancer at 57
2018 – Bill Maynard [Walter Williams], English actor (Greengrass-Heartbeat) and comedian, dies at 89
Famous Deaths for 29th March 2021
1792 – Gustav III, King of Sweden (1771-92), dies of septicemia at 46 after being shot by an assassin thirteen days earlier
1906 – Slava Raskaj, Croatian painter (b. 1878)
1924 – Charles Villiers Stanford, Irish composer/writer, dies at 71
1934 – Otto Hermann Kahn, German millionaire and benefactor (b. 1867)
1995 – James Eric Storrar, fighter pilot, dies at 74
1995 – Jimmy McShane, Irish singer (Baltimora-Tarzan Boy), dies of aids at 37
2002 – Rachel Levy and Ayat al-Akhras, Israeli and Palestinian children
2005 – Miltos Sahtouris, Greek poet (b. 1919)
2012 – Bill Jenkins, American engine builder and drag racer (Motorsports Hall of Fame of America), dies of heart failure at 81
2020 – Ken Shimura, Japanese comedian and actor (Shimura Ken no Bakatono-sama), dies of COVID-19 at 70
Historical Events for 29th March 2021
1924 – Bavaria and Vatican reach accord
1930 – Heinrich Brüning is appointed German Reichskanzler.
1941 – 3rd NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship: Wisconsin beats Washington State, 39-34; Badgers’ forward John Kotz is named tournament Most Outstanding Player
1942 – Bombing of Lübeck in World War II was the first major success for the RAF Bomber Command against Germany and a German city
1943 – Meat (784 gram/week, 2 kilogram for GI’s), butter and cheese rationed in US during WW II
1961 – 23rd Amendment to the US Constitution ratified, allowing Washington, D.C. residents to vote in presidential elections
1971 – Chile president Allende nationalizes banks/copper mines
1982 – 2nd Golden Raspberry Awards: “Mommie Dearest” wins
2015 – WrestleMania XXXI, Levi’s Stadium, Santa Clara, CA (76,976): Seth Rollins beats Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns in impromptu triple threat match to capture WWE Heavyweight title
2019 – Joe Biden accused of an inappropriate kiss by fellow Democrat Lucy Flores
Today in History for 29th March 2021
Historical Events
1850 – SS Royal Adelaide sinks in storm; 200 die
1865 – Battle of Lewis’s Farm [alt. Quaker Road, Gravelly Run], in Dinwiddie County, Virginia begins (Union victory)
1895 – 57th Grand National: Joe Widger aboard 10/1 chance Wild Man From Borneo wins by 1.5 lengths from Cathal
1979 – Last day of Test cricket for Pakistani cricketer Mushtaq Mohammad
1980 – 134th Grand National: American amateur rider Charlie Fenwick wins aboard 40/1 outsider Ben Nevis; only 4 from 30 starters finish race
1993 – 65th Academy Awards: “Unforgiven”, Al Pacino and Emma Thompson win
Famous Birthdays
1829 – Ritta and Christina Parodi, Siamese twins, born in Sassare, Sardinia (d. 1829)
1848 – Aleksei Kuropatkin, Russian general and minister of War, born in Sheshurino, Russia (d. 1925)
1911 – Philip Ahn, American actor (Kung Fu, Thoroughly Modern Millie), born in Los Angeles, California (d. 1978)
1929 – Utpal Dutt, Indian actor and director (Manusher Adhikar), born in Barisal, Bengal Presidency, India (d. 1993)
1966 – Robb Thomas, American NFL receiver (Seattle Seahawks, Tampa Bay Buccaneers), born in Portland, Oregon
1969 – Jimmy Spencer, NFL cornerback (New Orleans Saints, Cincinnati Bengals)
Famous Deaths
1368 – Emperor Go-Murakami, Emperor of Japan (b. 1328)
1772 – Emanuel Swedenborg, Swedish philosopher and mathematician (b. 1688)
1892 – William Bowman, English anatomist, dies at 75
1995 – James Eric Storrar, fighter pilot, dies at 74
2009 – Maurice Jarre, French composer (Doctor Zhivago-Acad Award 1966), dies at 84
2017 – Alexei Abrikosov, Russian-born American physicist (Nobel Prize 2003), dies at 88
Famous Deaths for 28th March 2021
593 – Guntram, French King in Burgundy, dies at about 67
1818 – Antonio Capuzzi, Italian violinist and composer, dies at 62
1927 – Karl Prohaska, Austrian composer, dies at 57
1941 – Virginia Woolf-Stephen [Adeline], British writer (To Lighthouse), dies from suicide at 59
1979 – Emmett Kelly, American circus clown (Weary Willy), dies at 80
2001 – Moe Koffman, Canadian musician (b. 1928)
2011 – Wenche Foss, Norwegian actress (b. 1917)
2012 – Harry Crews, American writer and actor (Indian Runner), dies from neuropathy at 76
2015 – Gene Saks, American actor and director (One and Only, Prisoner of 2nd Ave), dies at 93
2017 – Ahmed “Kathy” Kathrada, South African anti-apartheid activist and politician, dies at 87
Historical Events for 28th March 2021
1879 – 41st Grand National: Garry Moore aboard 5/1 chance The Liberator wins by 2 lengths from Jackal
1924 – 83rd Grand National: Bob Trudgill wins aboard 25/1 shot Master Robert; last GN from a general riding start, now-familiar ‘tape’ introduced the following year.
1942 – 4th NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship: Stanford beats Dartmouth, 53-38; Cardinal forward Howie Dallmar is named tournament Most Outstanding Player
1952 – US Ladies’ Figure Skating championship won by Tenley Albright
1960 – Scotch whisky factory explodes burying 20 fire fighters in Glasgow, Scotland
1967 – “Sherry!” opens at Alvin Theater NYC for 65 performances
1981 – Gabi Schonbrunn skates ladies world record 3 km (4:21.70)
1981 – France performs nuclear test
1990 – Bengal beat Delhi in rained-out cricket Ranji Trophy final on quotient
1993 – Conservatives win French parliamentary election