July 4, 2008

170 years ago
1838

Americana
The Iowa Territory was organized.

160 years ago
1848

Died on this date
François-René de Chateaubriand, 79. French diplomat, politician, and writer. Vicomte de Chateaubriand held various ambassadorial posts, including to the United Kingdom, and was Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1822-1824. He was more influential as a writer, being a major influence on Romanticism.

120 years ago
1888

Politics and government
Joseph Royal was appointed Commissioner of the North-West Territories.

110 years ago
1898

Disasters
The French steamship La Bourgogne collided with the British ship Cromartyshire off Sable Island, Nova Scotia, with the loss of 549 lives.

100 years ago
1908

Baseball
Hooks Wiltse pitched a no-hitter for the New York Giants as they edged the Philadelphia Phillies 1-0 in 10 innings before 8,000 fans in the first of 2 games at the Polo Grounds in New York. New York shortstop Al Bridwell had 3 singles, the last of which drove home Art Devlin with the game's only run with none out in the bottom of the 10th inning. Losing pitcher George McQuillan allowed 10 hits and 1 earned run in 9+ innings. The Giants scored 7 runs in the first 2 innings as they won the second game 9-3 before 12,000 fans.

Three Finger Brown pitched a 2-hitter to improve his 1908 record to 12-1 and Ed Reulbach pitched an 8-hitter to improve his record to 7-1 as the Chicago Cubs swept a doubleheader from the Pittsburg Pirates 2-0 and 9-3 at Exposition Park in Pittsburg.

Ed Summers pitched a 5-hitter to win the pitchers' duel over Addie Joss, who pitched a 4-hitter, as the Detroit Tigers edged the Cleveland Naps 1-0 in the first game of a doubleheader at League Park in Cleveland. The Naps scored 5 runs in the first 2 innings and won the second game 5-3.

The Chicago White Sox scored 5 runs in the bottom of the 6th inning as they overcame a 4-1 deficit and defeated the St. Louis Browns 8-4 in the first game of a doubleheader at South Side Park in Chicago. Ed Walsh pitched the last 3 innings and was credited with the win, and hit a 2-run home run--his third and last major league home run--in the 7th. Rube Waddell relieved St. Louis starter Bill Grahame and allowed a hit and 2 bases on balls in just 1/3 inning and took the loss. The Browns scored 2 runs in the 1st and 6 in the 3rd to win the second game 8-1. Mr. Walsh started on the mound and allowed 10 hits and 8 runs in 3 innings to take the loss, dropping his record for the season to 17-6.

90 years ago
1918

War
The Australian Cops, led by General John Monash, was victorious against German forces in the Battle of Hamel, demonstrating the effectiveness of combined arms techniques in trench warfare.

80 years ago
1928

Died on this date
Alfred Loewenstein, 51. Belgian industrialist and financier. Mr. Loewenstein invested in electric power and artificial silk businesses when those industries were in their infancy, and was worth around £12 million in the currency of the time at his peak in the 1920s. He was flying from London to Brussels when he jumped or fell 4,000 feet from his plane to his death off Cape Griz Nez. His body was found on July 19, and the autopsy showed that Mr. Loewenstein was alive when he struck the water; no trace of poison was found in his body. Conspiracy theories abound.

Americana
A monument to Captain George DeLong, who had died while commanding a polar expedition in 1879-1881, was unveiled in Woodlawn cemetery in New York City, in the presence of Capt. Sir George Hubert Wilkins, Vilhjalmur Strefansson, and other Arctic explorers.

A statue of former U.S. President Woodrow Wilson was unveiled in Prague.

Franciana
A monument and sanctuary to the memory of the members of the Escadrille Lafayette "who died in defense of right and liberty" was dedicated an a private park at Villeneuve Letang, near Paris.

Politics and government
Eleftherios Venizelos took office as Prime Minister of Greece.

Velimir Vukićević announced his resignation as Prime Minister of Yugoslavia, after the June 20 assassination attempt in the National Assembly on Croatian People's Peasant Party leader Stjepan Radić. Mr. Vukićević's resignation took effect on July 28, and he was succeeded by Anton Korošec.

Adventure
Jean Lussier, 36, of Springfield, Massachusetts, went over Niagara (Horse Shoe) Falls in a 700-pound rubber ball, which was safely towed ashore in the eddy below the falls.

Disasters
Storms in Germany, killed 14 people and caused 10 million marks in damage.

The Independence Day holiday in the United States concluded with 205 accidental deaths: 106 by drowning; 54 by automobile; 12 by heat; 11 by fireworks; and 22 by other special causes. In metropolitan New York, the total was: 28 by drowning; 20 in auto accidents; 6 by fireworks.

70 years ago
1938

Died on this date
Otto Bauer, 56. Austrian politician. Mr. Bauer led the Austrian Social Democratic Party and served as State Secretary for Foreign Affairs in the coalition government of Chancellor Karl Renner from November 21, 1918-July 26, 1919. He was forced into exile abroad after a failed coup attempt against the dictatorship of Chancellor Engelbert Dollfuss in 1934, and died of heart failure in Paris.

Suzanne Lenglen, 39. French tennis player. Miss Lenglen won 81 singles titles from 1914-1926, including 6 women's singles titles at Wimbledon. In late 1926-early 1927 she became the first major female star to turn professional, but she retired from competitive tennis after a brief tour. Miss Lenglen died of pernicious anemia.

60 years ago
1948

Died on this date
Edward Gent, 52. U.K. politician. Sir Edward was Governor of the Malayan Union from 1946-1948, and then High Commissioner for Malaya until he was sacked on June 29 at the onset of the Malayan Emergency for failing to take action against Communist insurgents. Sir Edward was returning to England aboard a Royal Air Force Avro York C.1 transport plane, and was one of 39 people killed in the mid-air collision with a Scandinavian Airlines System Douglas DC-6.

Protest
Panamanian President Enrique Jimenez declared a state of siege after clashes erupted between police and supporters of former President Arnulfo Arias, who claimed to have won the presidential election in May.

Politics and government
The French Socialist Party Congress ended in Paris after passing resolutions permitting the party to support the cabinet of Prime Minister Robert Schuman.

Disasters
A Scandinavian Airlines System Douglas DC-6 and a Royal Air Force Avro York C.1 collided in mid-air over Northwood, London, killing all 39 people aboard both planes.

50 years ago
1958

Hit parade
#1 single in the U.K. (New Musical Express): On the Street Where You Live--Vic Damone (2nd week at #1); All I Have to Do is Dream--The Everly Brothers

On television tonight
Harbor Command, starring Wendell Corey
Tonight's episode: Desperate Day

This was the 39th and last episode of the series.

Died on this date
Pedro Manini Rios, 78. Uruguayan politician. Mr. Manini was Uruguay's Minister of Foreign Relations from 1923-1924.

Eugene F. Bannigan, 46. U.S. politician. Mr. Bannigan, a Democrat, represented various districts in the New York State Assembly from 1941-1958 and was Minority Leader from 1953 until his death from heart disease.

War
The United Nations Observation Group reported to the Security Council that its limited patrols had failed to turn up evidence of alleged U.A.R. support for Lebanese rebel forces.

Environment
U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the Rivers and Harbors Flood Control Bill.

Auto racing
Bobby Unser won the Pikes Peak Hill Climb, covering the 12 1/2 miles in a record time of 13 minutes 47.9 seconds.

40 years ago
1968

Space
The United States launched the satellite Explorer 38 from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. The satellite was also known as Radio Astronomy Explorer A, RAE-A and RAE-1, and was the first satellite to study radio astronomy.

War
The U.S. command in Saigon reported that American combat deaths for 1968 had reached 9,557 on June 29, 138 more than the number killed in all of 1967.

Adventure
Round-the-world yachtsman Alec Rose received a hero's welcome as he sailed into Portsmouth, England to conclude his 354-day trip.

30 years ago
1978

Diplomacy
U.S. Vice President Walter Mondale returned to Washington from a four-day visit to Israel and Egypt.

Labour
Memphis, Tennessee obtained a court order to end the strike of the city's 1,400 firemen after 400 fires had broken out since the beginning of the strike on July 1.

Football
CFL
Pre-season
Toronto (2-2) 24 @ Montreal (3-1) 27
Ottawa (1-3) 27 @ Winnipeg (3-1) 28
British Columbia (3-1) 1 @ Edmonton (2-2) 46

George McGowan, who had missed the first three pre-season games with a bad knee, caught 8 passes in his return to action to help the Eskimos rout the Lions at Clarke Stadium. Rookie Joe Paopao saw a considerable amount of playing time at quarterback for the Lions.

25 years ago
1983

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): Total Eclipse of the Heart--Bonnie Tyler (6th week at #1)

Diplomacy
West German Chancellor Helmut Kohl began a visit to the U.S.S.R. Soviet leder Yuri Andropov cancelled two scheduled meetings with Mr. Kohl without explanation.

U.S. Secretary of State George Shultz began a visit to the Middle East.

Basketball
Canada whipped China 124-61 in men's competition at the Universiade Pavilion in Edmonton at the World University Games.

Baseball
Dave Righetti pitched a no-hitter for the New York Yankees as they blanked the Boston Red Sox 4-0 at Yankee Stadium. It was the Yankees' first no-hitter since Don Larsen's perfect game in the 5th game of the 1956 World Series.





20 years ago
1988

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Australian Music Report): Got to Be Certain--Kylie Minogue

10 years ago
1998

Space
Japan launched the Nozomi probe to Mars, joining the United States and Russia as a space-exploring nation.