Post by MacBeth on Mar 12, 2009 5:58:58 GMT -5
In 1664, England's King Charles II granted an area of land in present-day North America known as New Netherland to his brother James, the Duke of York.
In 1864, Ulysses S. Grant was promoted to the rank of general-in-chief of the Union armies in the Civil War by President Abraham Lincoln.
In 1888, The massive and unexpected Blizzard of 1888 strikes the East coast of the United States, paralyzing New York and many other cities and leaving at least 400 dead. Snowdrifts fifty feet high were reported, and New York received over 40 inches of snow.
In 1912, Juliette Gordon Low of Savannah, Georgia, founded the Girl Guides, which later became the Girl Scouts of America.
In 1928, The two-year-old St. Francis Dam north of Los Angeles fails catastrophically just before midnight, unleashing 52 million tons of water on the city of Santa Paula. 437 people are killed by the torrent, including 19 families with no survivors.
In 1930, Indian political and spiritual leader Mohandas K. Gandhi began a 200-mile march to protest a British tax on salt.
In 1933, President Franklin D. Roosevelt delivered the first of his 30 radio "fireside chats," telling Americans what was being done to deal with the nation's economic crisis.
In 1938, the Anschluss merging Austria with Nazi Germany took place as German forces crossed the border between the two countries.
In 1939, Pope Pius XII was formally crowned in ceremonies at the Vatican.
In 1945, Anne Frank dies at Auschwitz.
In 1947, President Harry S. Truman established what became known as the Truman Doctrine to help Greece and Turkey resist Communism.
In 1968, President Lyndon B. Johnson won the New Hampshire Democratic primary, but anti-war Sen. Eugene McCarthy of Minnesota placed a strong second.
In 1969, Paul McCartney married Linda Eastman in London.
In 1989, some 2,500 veterans and supporters marched at the Art Institute of Chicago to demand that officials remove an American flag placed on the floor as part of a student's exhibit.
In 1994, the Church of England ordained its first female priests.
In 1999, Hungary, Poland and the Czech Republic joined NATO.
In 2000, Pope John Paul II asked God's forgiveness for the sins of Roman Catholics through the ages, including wrongs inflicted on Jews, women and minorities.
In 2002, the U.N. Security Council approved a U.S.-sponsored resolution endorsing a Palestinian state for the first time.
In 2004, Marcus Wesson, the domineering patriarch of a cultlike clan he'd bred through incest, surrendered to police who found the bodies of nine of his offspring, all but one minors, at their home in Fresno, Calif. (Wesson was later convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death.)
In 2008, New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer resigned two days after reports had surfaced that he was a client of a prostitution ring. Space shuttle Endeavour docked with the international space station, kicking off almost two weeks of demanding construction work. Lance Mackey won his second consecutive Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, completing the 1,100-mile journey in just under 9 1/2 days.
In 1864, Ulysses S. Grant was promoted to the rank of general-in-chief of the Union armies in the Civil War by President Abraham Lincoln.
In 1888, The massive and unexpected Blizzard of 1888 strikes the East coast of the United States, paralyzing New York and many other cities and leaving at least 400 dead. Snowdrifts fifty feet high were reported, and New York received over 40 inches of snow.
In 1912, Juliette Gordon Low of Savannah, Georgia, founded the Girl Guides, which later became the Girl Scouts of America.
In 1928, The two-year-old St. Francis Dam north of Los Angeles fails catastrophically just before midnight, unleashing 52 million tons of water on the city of Santa Paula. 437 people are killed by the torrent, including 19 families with no survivors.
In 1930, Indian political and spiritual leader Mohandas K. Gandhi began a 200-mile march to protest a British tax on salt.
In 1933, President Franklin D. Roosevelt delivered the first of his 30 radio "fireside chats," telling Americans what was being done to deal with the nation's economic crisis.
In 1938, the Anschluss merging Austria with Nazi Germany took place as German forces crossed the border between the two countries.
In 1939, Pope Pius XII was formally crowned in ceremonies at the Vatican.
In 1945, Anne Frank dies at Auschwitz.
In 1947, President Harry S. Truman established what became known as the Truman Doctrine to help Greece and Turkey resist Communism.
In 1968, President Lyndon B. Johnson won the New Hampshire Democratic primary, but anti-war Sen. Eugene McCarthy of Minnesota placed a strong second.
In 1969, Paul McCartney married Linda Eastman in London.
In 1989, some 2,500 veterans and supporters marched at the Art Institute of Chicago to demand that officials remove an American flag placed on the floor as part of a student's exhibit.
In 1994, the Church of England ordained its first female priests.
In 1999, Hungary, Poland and the Czech Republic joined NATO.
In 2000, Pope John Paul II asked God's forgiveness for the sins of Roman Catholics through the ages, including wrongs inflicted on Jews, women and minorities.
In 2002, the U.N. Security Council approved a U.S.-sponsored resolution endorsing a Palestinian state for the first time.
In 2004, Marcus Wesson, the domineering patriarch of a cultlike clan he'd bred through incest, surrendered to police who found the bodies of nine of his offspring, all but one minors, at their home in Fresno, Calif. (Wesson was later convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death.)
In 2008, New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer resigned two days after reports had surfaced that he was a client of a prostitution ring. Space shuttle Endeavour docked with the international space station, kicking off almost two weeks of demanding construction work. Lance Mackey won his second consecutive Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, completing the 1,100-mile journey in just under 9 1/2 days.