On This Day in History.....

1092 Lincoln Cathedral consecrated
1336 Italian poet Francesco Petrarca climbs Mont Ventoux
1386 Treaty of Windsor between Portugal-England
1460 Court yard episcopal palace Atrecht has witch burnings
1502 Columbus left Spain on his 4th & final trip to New World
1519 Austrian adel/burgerij in uprising against central government
1573 Polish Parliament selects duke of Anjou as king
1588 Duke Henri de Guises troops occupy Paris France
1671 Colonel Thomas Blood attempts to steal Crown Jewels
1689 English King William III declares war on France
1738 England routes fleet in Mediterranean Sea & West-Indies
1753 King Louis XV disbands French parliament
1754 1st newspaper cartoon in America-divided snake "Join or die"
1766 John Byron back in England after trip around the world
1785 Joseph Bramah receives British patent for beer pump handles
1788 English parliament accepts abolishing of slave trade
1836 HMS Beagle with Charles Darwin departs Port Louis, Mauritius
1837 "Sherrod" burns in Mississippi River below Natchez MS; 175 dies
1846 Battle of Resaca de la Palma-US sends México back to Rio Grande
1862 Battle of Farmington MS
1862 Battle of Fort Pickens FL (Pensacola), evacuated by CS
1862 US Naval Academy relocated from Annapolis MD to Newport RI
1864 Battle of Cloyd's Mount & Swift Creek VA (Drewery's Bluff, Fort Darling)
1864 Battle of Dalton GA
1864 Ship battle at Helgoland, Austria-Denmark
1864 Skirmish at Ware Bottom Church VA
1868 Anton Bruckner's 1st Symphony in C, premieres
1874 Victoria Embankment, in London opens
1882 Telegraph Hill RR Company organized
1889 15th Kentucky Derby: Thomas Kiley aboard Spokane wins in 2:34½
1896 1st horseless carriage show in London (featured 10 models)
1899 Lawn mower patented
1901 Australia opens its 1st parliament in Melbourne
1901 Cleveland's Earl Moore no-hits Chicago White Sox 9 innings but loses in 10th 4-2
1908 Dirk Fock becomes Governor of Suriname
1911 Fire breaks out at Empire Theater in Edinburgh Scotland
1913 17th amendment provides for election of senators by popular vote
1914 40th Kentucky Derby: John McCabe aboard Old Rosebud wins in 2:03.4
1914 President Wilson proclaims Mother's Day
1915 German & French fight the Battle of Artois
1916 British-France Sykes-Picot meet over division of Turkey
1925 Cornerstone for Hebrew University, Jerusalem laid
1926 Richard Byrd & Floyd Bennett make 1st flight over North Pole
1927 53rd Preakness: Whitey Abel aboard Bostonian wins in 2:01.6
1927 Australian Parliament 1st convenes in new capital, Canberra
1929 New York Giant Carl Hubbell no-hits Pittsburgh Pirates
1929 WJW-AM in Cleveland OH begins radio transmissions
1930 56th Preakness: Earl Sande aboard Gallant Fox wins in 2:00.6
1931 57th Preakness: George Ellis aboard Mate wins in 1:59
1932 58th Preakness: Eugene James aboard Burgoo King wins in 1:59.8
1932 Piccadilly Circus, 1st lit by electricity
1932 WOC-AM in Davenport IA merges with WHO to become WHO-WOC
1933 Spanish anarchists call for general strike
1934 Bradman out for a Cricket duck against Cambridge University!
1936 1st KLM airplane to land on Bonaire
1936 Italy takes Addis Ababa, annexing Abyssinia (Ethiopia)
1937 Reds beat Phillies 21-10 (Ernie Lombardi goes 6 for 6)
1939 Catholic church beatified the 1st Native American, Kateri Tekakwitha
1941 English Army breaks German spy codes
1942 68th Preakness: Basil James aboard Alsab wins in 1:57
1943 5th German Panser army surrenders in Tunisia
1943 Rotschild-Haddassh University Hospital opens
1944 1st eye bank opens (NYC)
1944 Country singer Jimmie Davis becomes Governor of Louisiana
1944 Dutch resistance fighter Gerard Musch arrested
1944 Joe McCarthy returns as Yankee manager after an illness
1944 Russians recapture Crimea by taking Sevastopol
1945 Czechoslovakia liberated from Nazi occupation (National Day)
1945 Jersey liberated from Nazis
1945 Nazi propagandist Max Blokzijl arrested
1945 New balata ball used in baseball, 50% livilier
1945 Norwegian Nazi collaborators Vidkun Quisling arrested
1945 Victory celebration at Red Square
1946 1st hour long entertainment TV show, "NBC's Hour Glass" premieres
1946 King Victor Emmanuel II of Italy abdicates, replaced by Umberto
1949 Britain's 1st launderette opens in Queensway London
1949 Prince Rainier III becomes leader of Monaco
1950 French Foreign minister Robert Schuman announces the Schuman Plan for European integration
1950 Norman Dello Joco's premieres in Bronxville
1951 Air raid on Chinese positions at Yalu River
1955 German Federal Republic joins NATO
1958 Botvinnik recaptures world chess championship
1959 Dorothy Rigney, husband John, & Hank Greenberg resign from White Sox
1960 Nigeria becomes a member of the British Commonwealth
1960 US is 1st country to use the birth control pill legally
1960 US send U-2 over USSR
1961 Baltimore Oriole Jim Gentile hits 2 grand slams (9 RBIs) vs Minnesota Twins
1961 FCC Chairman Newton N Minow criticizes TV as a "vast wasteland"
1962 Beatles sign their 1st contract with EMI Parlophone
1962 Laser beam successfully bounced off Moon for 1st time
1962 US performs atmospheric nuclear test at Christmas Island
1963 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1964 Khrushchev visits Egypt
1964 Peter & Gordon release "World Without Love"
1965 Beatles attend a Bob Dylan concert
1965 Luna 5 launched (USSR) 1st attempt to soft land on Moon (fails)
1966 1st black member of Federal Reserve Board (A F Brimmer)
1966 China People's Republic performs nuclear test at Lop Nor People's Rebublic of China
1967 1st flight of Fokker F-28 Fellowship
1967 Gijsbert van Hall resigns as mayor of Amsterdam
1969 BPAA All-Star Bowling Tournament won by Billy Hardwick
1970 100,000s demonstrate against Vietnam War
1971 23rd Emmy Awards: All in the Family, Jack Klugman & Jean Stapleton
1971 Elizabeth Bonner runs female world record marathon (3:01:42)
1971 Friends of Earth return 1500 non-returnable bottles to Schweppes
1971 Largest walk in crowd (31,626) in Baltimore Oriole history
1971 Sandra Haynie wins LPGA San Antonio Alamo Golf Open
1973 For 2nd time, Johnny Bench hits 3 homeruns in a game
1974 House Judiciary Committee begin formal hearings on Nixon impeachment
1975 Brian Oldfield shot puts 22.86 meters (world record)
1975 Flyers 1-Isles 5-Semifinals-Flyers hold 3-2 lead
1976 "So Long 174th St" closes at Harkness Theater NYC after 16 performances
1976 Sally Little wins LPGA Ladies Masters at Moss Creek Golf Tournament
1977 Hotel Poland in Amsterdam destroyed by fire, 33 killed
1977 Mabel Murphy Smythe confirmed as ambassador to Republic of Cameroon
1977 Patty Hearst let out of jail
1978 Corpse of kidnapped ex-premier Aldo Moro found
1978 Fee Waybill of the Tubes breaks a leg falling off stage
1978 Musical "Ain't Misbehavin'" opens at Longacre Theater NYC for 1604 performances
1978 PSV beats Bastica, 3-0, to win UEFA Cup in Eindhoven Netherlands
1979 US & USSR sign Salt 2 treaty, limiting nuclear weapons
1980 35 motorists die as a Liberian freighter rams a Tampa Bay Bridge
1981 Kazimiroff Blvd in the Bronx named for a Bronx historian
1982 Arthur Kopit's musical "Nine" premieres at 46th St Theater NYC for 739 performances
1982 Sally Little wins LPGA United Virginia Bank Golf Classic
1983 18th Academy of Country Music Awards: Alabama & Willie Nelson win
1984 Alexander Calder's "Big Crinkly" sells for $852,000
1984 Chicago White Sox beat Milwaukee Brewers, 7-6, in 25 innings (started 5/8, 8 hour 6 minute game-longest timed baseball game)
1987 183 die aboard a Polish jetliner that crashes in Warsaw
1987 Actor Tom Cruise (27) & actress Mimi Rogers (33), marry
1987 Oriole Eddie Murray is 1st to switch hit homeruns in 2 consecutive games
1988 A's winning streak hits 14, ends tommorow
1988 Australia's new parliament house is opened by Queen Elizabeth
1988 Belgium: 8th Government of Martens forms
1989 "Sarafina!" closes at Cort Theater NYC after 597 performances
1989 Journalists petition Chinese Government for freedom of press
1989 New York Mets Kevin Elster, errors after 88 errorless games at shortstop
1989 New York Mets Rick Cerone, errors after 159 errorless games as catcher
1989 Vice President Dan Quayle says in United Negro College Fund speech: "What a waste it is to lose one's mind" instead of "a mind is terrible thing to waste"
1990 New York Newsday reporter Jimmy Breslin suspended for a racial slur
1990 Sampdoria wins 30th Europe Cup II
1991 Italian actress Laura Antonelli found guilty of cocaine possession
1991 Michael Landon appears on Tonight Show to talk about his cancer
1992 After trailing 9-0, St Louis Cardinals beat Atlanta Braves 12-11
1992 America's Cup finals begin in San Diego
1992 Final episode of "Golden Girls" airs on NBC-TV
1992 Michelle McLean, 19, of Namibia, crowned 41st Miss Universe
1993 "Ain't Broadway Grand" closes at Lunt-Fontanne NYC after 25 performances
1993 "Song of Jacob Zulu" closes at Plymouth Theater NYC after 53 performances
1993 Landslide in Nambija Ecuador, kills 300
1993 Meg Mallon wins LPGA Sara Lee Golf Classic
1993 Mustapha Matura's "Playboy of West Indies" premieres in NYC
1993 Paraguay holds its 1st presidential & parliamentary elections in 50 years
1994 "Passion" opens at Plymouth Theater NYC for 280 performances
1994 Massachusetts murderer Joel Rifkind found guilty in New York
1995 Cleveland Indians tie record of scoring 8 runs before making an out, they beat Twins 10-0
1995 Kinshasa, Zaire under quarantine after an outbreak of Ebola virus
1997 1st US ambassador since Saigon fell arrives in Vietnam
1997 San Diego Padres retire #35 worn by pitcher Randy Jones
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Missing In Action.....

1965 KARDELL DAVID A. SONOMA CA NO PARA/BEEPER " REMAINS RETURNED 7/31/89, ID 11/08/89"
1965 WISTRAND ROBERT C. NEW YORK NY CRASH NO PARA BEEPER SEARCH NEG
1966 DEXTER BENNIE L. BEND OR CAPTURE WITNESSED JEEP FOUND
1967 TODD ROBERT JACY NORTH EASTON MA
1968 LEOPOLD STEPHEN R. OKLAHOMA CITY OK 03/05/73 RELEASED BY PRG INJURED
1968 VAN ARTSDALEN CLIFFORD V. PLUMSTEADVILLE PA
1970 HAIGHT STEPHEN H. CAZENOVIA NY
1972 REEDER WILLIAM S. LAKE ARROWHEAD CA 03/27/73 RELEASED BY PRG

Births which occurred on May 09:

1265 Dante Alighieri Italian poet (Divina Commedia)
1596 Abraham van Diepenbeeck painter
1738 John Pindar [Peter] physician/poet
1740 Giovanni Paisiello Italian composer (Barber of Seville)
1783 Alexander Ross Canada, pioneer/fur trader
1785 James Pollard Espy Pennsylvania, meteorologist (Philosphy of Storms)
1793 Johannes C de Jonge Dutch historian/archivist
1796 August Pauly German classicus (Real Encyclopedia)
1800 John Brown abolitionist; led attack on Harpers Ferry
1801 Samuel Cousins mezzotint engraver
1810 Louis Gallait historical painter
1810 WFLC Marianne princess of Orange-Nassau/daughter of king Willem I
1814 Adolph von Henselt composer
1824 William Edmonson "Grumble" Jones Brigadier General (Confederate Army)
1829 Ciro Pinsuti pianist/composer
1833 Boleslaw Dembinski composer
1837 Adam Opel German manufacturer (cycling, motorcars)
1843 Belle Boyd spy (Confederate)/actress/lecturer
1844 [Maria] Catharina Beersmans Belgian actress (Bad Herders)
1846 Nikolay Feopemptovich Solov'yov composer
1855 Julius Rontgen composer
1860 Sir James Matthew Barrie Scotland, novelist (Margaret Ogilvy, Peter Pan, The Little Minister)
1865 August de Boeck composer
1873 Howard Carter British archaeologist/Egyptologist (found King Tutankhamen's tomb)
1873 Lilian Mary Baylis manager (Old Vic & Sadler's Wells Theater)
1882 Henry J Kaiser builder (Liberty Ships, Jeeps, Boulder Dam)
1883 José Ortega y Gasset Spain, philosopher (Revolt of the Masses)
1887 Jules Van de Leene Belgian writer
1892 Eric Westberg composer
1892 Zita empress (Austria)/Queen (Hungary)
1895 Lucian Blaga Romaniams philosopher/poet (Dogmatic Aeon)
1895 Richard Barthelmess New York NY, actor (Broken Blossoms, Noose)
1899 Edward Pollock saxophone/clarinet
19-- Jeanna Michaels New London CT, actress (Connie-Dallas, General Hospital)
1901 Fuzzy Knight Fairmont WV, actor (Oklahoma Annie, Cowby & the Lady)
1901 George Duckworth cricket wicket-keeper (England late 20's early 30's)
1903 Walter Dehmel writer
1906 Eleanor Estes author (Ginger Pye, Moffats)
1907 Baldur von Schirach German writer/Nazi politician (Frame)
1910 Barbara Woodhouse dog training expert
1910 P E Palia cricketer (appeared in India's 1st Test-Lord's 1932)
1911 Harry Simeone Newark NJ, choral director (Kate Smith Show)
1912 Pedro Armendariz México, actor (From Russia With Love)
1913 John Hayes Admiral
1913 Victor Smith Admiral (Australian Chiefs of Staff)
1914 Carlo Maria Giulini conductor
1914 Frank Chacksfield arranger/orchestra leader
1914 Hank Snow Nova Scotia Canada, country singer (I Went to Your Wedding)
1914 Josef Muller-Brockmann graphic designer/writer
1914 Theodore Kheel labor negotiator (Fair Employment Practices)
1915 Richard Janvrin British Vice Admiral
1916 Bernard William George Rose composer/organist
1916 Cyril Bowles bishop of Derby
1916 Douglas Guest organist
1917 George Fleming cyclist
1917 John Arnatt actor (Circumstantial Evidence)
1918 Mike Wallace Brookline MA, newscaster (Biography, 60 Minutes)
1918 Orville Freeman Minneapolis MN, (Senator-D-MN)/Secretary of Agriculture (1961-69)
1919 Arthur English comedian/actor (Malachi's Cove)
1920 Richard Adams author (Day Gone By)
1922 Sheila Burrell actress (Black Orchid, Paranoiac, Laughter in Dark)
1924 Bulat S Okudzjava Russian author (Student!)
1924 Connie Russell New York NY, singer (Club Embassy, Garroway at Large)
1924 Gerard Wernars Dutch graphic designer (Library stamps 1991)
1924 Jean J A Girault French director/screenwriter (l'Amour)
1925 Peter Leng Master General of the Ordnance
1926 Alistair MacFarlane principal (Heriot-Watt University England)
1926 Francis Kennedy British diplomat
1926 Joshua Hassan chief minister (Gibralter)
1926 Robin Cooke president (New Zealand Court of Appeal)
1927 John McDermott Lord Justice of Appeal (Northern Ireland)
1927 Manfred Eigen German physicist/chemist (Nobel 1967)
1927 Ray Katt baseball player
1928 Barbara Ann Scott Ottawa Ontario Canada, figure skater (Olympics-gold-1948)
1928 Pall Pampichier Palsson composer
1928 Richard A "Pancho" Gonzalez Los Angeles CA, tennis star (US 1948-49)
1929 Anthony Lloyd Lord Justice of Appeal
1930 Joan Sims actress (Carry on Behind, Carry on Cleo)
1931 Vance DeVoe Brand Longmont CO, astronaut (Apollo 18, STS-5, 41B, 35)
1932 Conrad Hunte cricketer (great West Indian opener 1958-66)
1932 David Plastow CEO (Medical Research Council)
1932 Gavin Lyall author (Conduct of Major Maxim)
1932 Geraldine McEwan actress (Henry V)
1932 J Alex McMillan (Representative-R-NC, 1985- )
1933 Johnny Grant unofficial mayor of Hollywood
1934 Alan Bennett England, playwright/actor (Secret Policeman's Other Ball)
1934 John Robertson deputy chairman (Barclays de Zoete Wedd)
1934 Roy Massey Master of Choristers (Hereford Cathedral)
1936 Albert Finney Salford UK, actor (Dresser, Under the Volcano)
1936 Floyd Robinson baseball player (White Sox, Reds, A's)
1936 Glenda Jackson Cheshire England, actress (Women in Love)
1936 Terry Downes middleweight boxing champion (1961-62)
1936 Terry Drinkwater TV newsman (CBS)
1937 Dave Prater Ocilla GA, rock vocalist (Sam & Dave)
1937 Sonny Curtis Meadow TX, guitarist (Crickets)
1938 Geoffrey Holland civil servant
1938 Nokie Edwards rocker (Ventures)
1939 Bruce Mather composer
1939 Herbert Hippauf baseball player
1939 Jim Dent Augusta GA, PGA golfer (1989 MONY Syracuse Senior)
1939 Kenneth Warby fastest man on water at 300 knots (345 mph)
1939 Nokle Edwards rocker
1939 Ralph Boston Laurel MS, long jumper (Olympics-gold/silver/bronze-60, 64, 68)
1940 Dick Morrissey saxophonist
1940 James L Brooks producer/director (Broadcast News, Taxi, Critic)
1941 Dorothy Hyman England, sprinter (Olympics-silver-60)
1941 Jan Dibbets sculptor/artist (Dutch Mountains)
1941 Pete Birrell rock bassist (Freddie & The Dreamers)
1942 John D Ashcroft (Governor-MO)
1942 Mike Millward rocker
1942 Tommy Roe Atlanta, rocker (Hooray for Hazel)
1942 William Olner MP
1943 Bruce Milner rocker (Every Mother's Son)
1943 Maurice Foster cricketer (West Indies batsman of 70's)
1944 Don Dannemann rocker (Cyrkle)
1944 Richard [Richie] Furay Yellow Springs OH, rock vocalist (Buffalo Springfield, Poco)
1945 Steve Katz New York NY, rock guitarist/vocalist (Blood, Sweat & Tears)
1946 Candice Bergen Beverly Hills, actress (Carnal Knowledge, Murphy Brown)
1947 Anthony Corlan Cork City Ireland, actor (Something for Everyone)
1948 John Drayton Mahaffey Kerrville TX, PGA golfer (1978 PGA Champion)
1949 Billy Joel Hicksville Long Island NY, singer/songwriter/piano player (Pianoman, Captain Jack, Bridge)
1949 Oleg Yuriyevich Atkov Russian cosmonaut (Soyuz T-10)
1950 James A Butts Los Angeles CA, triple jumper (Olympics-silver-1976)
1950 Matthew Kelly actor/TV host (Holding the Fort, Relative Strangers)
1950 Tom Petersson Rockford IL, rock bassist (Cheap Trick)
1951 Alley Mills Chicago IL, actress (Norma Arnold-Wonder Years)
1952 Patrick Ryecart actor (Silas Mariner)
1953 Daniel Talbot Montréal Québec, golfer (Québec Open-1979, 81, 84)
1953 Gregory Beecroft Corpus Christi TX, actor (Guiding Light)
1953 Ron Jackson baseball player
1953 Scott McInnis (Representative-R-CO)
1954 Balazs Taroczy Hungary, tennis star
1955 Kevin Peter Hall Pittsburgh PA, actor (Misfits of Science)
1955 Myra Blackwelder LPGA golfer
1957 Fred Markham 1st man to pedal a bike 65 mph
1957 John Stuper baseball pitcher (St Louis Cardinals)
1958 Esko Rechardt Finland, yachtsman (Olympics-gold-1980)
1959 Andrew Jones cricketer (highly consistent for New Zealand at 1st drop)
1959 Asantha De Mel cricketer (pioneering Sri Lankan Test opening bowler)
1960 Iain Butchart cricket all-rounder (Zimbabwe, Test vs Pakistan 1995)
1960 Jim Reilly rocker (Red Rockers)
1960 Tony Gwynn Los Angeles CA, outfielder (San Diego Padres)
1961 Rene Capo Pinal del Rio Cuba, half-heavyweight judoka (Olympics-96)
1962 David Gahan Epping Essex England, rock vocalist (Depeche Mode-Dreaming of Me)
1962 John Corbett actor/singer (Chris-Northern Exposure)
1962 Paul Heaton rocker (The Housemartins-Happy Hour, Over There)
1964 Miloslav Mecir Czechoslovakia, tennis player (Olympics-gold-1988)
1965 Ben Volpeliere-Pierrot rocker (Curiosity Killed Cat-Keep Distance)
1965 Marc Logan NFL running back (Washington Redskins)
1965 Steve Yzerman Cranbrook British Columbia, NHL forward (Team Canada, Detroit)
1966 Mark Tinordi Red Deer, NHL defenseman (Washington Capitals)
1968 Bruce Pickens NFL cornerback (Oakland Raiders)
1968 David Benoit NBA forward (Utah Jazz, New Jersey Nets)
1968 Marie-José Pérec Guadeloupe, French 200 meter/400 meter runner (Olympics-2 gold-96)
1968 Vince Workman NFL running back (Packers, Panthers, Colts)
1969 Carla Overbeck Pasadena CA, soccer defender (Olympics-96)
1969 Renn Crichlow Ottawa Ontario, canoeist (Olympics-92, 96)
1970 Doug Christie NBA guard/forward (Toronto Raptors)
1972 Dan Hollander Royal Oak MI, figure skater (1996 Great Lakes champion)
1972 Dave Barr WLAF quarterback (Scotland Claymores)
1972 Simon Hollingsworth Australian 400 meter hurdler (Olympics-92, 96)
1974 Pete Kelley 218¼ lbs (99 kg) US weightlifter (Olympics-14th-1996)
1974 Shin Yahata hockey forward (Team Japan 1998)
1974 Stephane Yelle Ottawa, NHL center (Colorado Avalanche)
1976 Faye Johnstone Auckland New Zealand, archer (Olympics-96)
1980 Angela Nikodinov Spartanburg SC, figure skater (1997 Pacific Senior champion)
1980 Tatewin Means Miss South Dakota Teen USA (1996)
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Deaths which occurred on May 09:

1079 Stanislaus Polish bishop of Cracow, murdered
1280 Magnus VI Lagaboeter King of Norway (1263-80), dies at 42
1443 Niccoló d'Albergati Italian cardinal, dies
1460 Jean Lavite Atrechts painter, dies
1474 Peter van Hagenbach Elzasser knight/land guardian, beheaded
1590 Karel "Cardinal" van Bourbon archbishop of Rouen, dies at 66
1657 William Bradford Governor (Plymouth Colony, Massachusetts), dies
1667 Marie Louise de Gonzague-Nevers French Queen of Poland (1645-48)
1688 Frederick William Great Elector of Brandenburg, dies at 68
1707 Dietrich Buxtehude German organist/composer, dies at about 69
1745 Tomaso Antonio Vitali composer, dies at 82
1760 Nikolaus Ludwig und Pottendorf Austrian composer, dies at 59
1770 Charles Avison composer, dies at 61
1785 Franz Xaver Schnitzer composer, dies at 44
1791 Francis Hopkinson US writer/music/lawyer, dies at 53
1799 Claude-Benigne Balbastre composer, dies at 72
1805 Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller poet/playwright, dies at 45
1822 Charles Duquesnoy composer, dies at 62
1850 Louis-Joseph Gay-Lussac chemist/physicist, dies
1853 Johann Philipp Samuel Schmidt composer, dies at 73
1864 "Uncle" John Sedgwick US Union general-major, dies in battle at 50
1864 Thomas Donnely Doubleday US Union Colonel, dies in an accident
1880 Johann Hermann Berens composer, dies at 54
1884 Hermanus W Witteveen theologist, dies at 69
1903 Rudolf Serkin Bohemian/US pianist, dies
1905 Ernst Pauer composer, dies at 78
1926 Joseph Mallaby Dent publisher, dies
1927 Tommy Routledge cricketer (4 Tests for South Africa 1892-96), dies
1928 Constantin Dimitrescu composer, dies at 81
1931 A[lbert] A[braham] Michelson US physicist (1907 Nobel), dies at 78
1937 Walter Mittelholzer Swiss aviation pioneer, dies in crash at 43
1944 Ethel Mary Smyth composer, dies at 86
1945 Clem Hill cricketer (49 Tests for Australia 1896-1912), dies
1949 Louis II Prince of Monaco, dies
1951 Marie Ault dies at 80
1952 Canada Lee black actor (Lost Boundaries), dies in New York NY at 45
1957 Ezio F Pinza Italian bass (Scale of Milan, New York Metropolitan Opera), dies
1957 Heinrich Campendonk German painter/wood carver/glasier, dies at 67
1958 Bill Goodwin TV announcer (Burns & Allen), dies at 47
1965 Leopold Figl premier Austria, dies at 62
1966 Alfred Mendelsohn composer, dies at 56
1966 Wilhelmus M Bekkers bishop of Dukeenbosch, dies
1967 Elmar Berkovich Dutch industrial designer (Eindhoven theater), dies
1967 Philippa Duke Schuyler composer, dies at 35
1968 Finlay Currie dies at 90
1968 Harold Gray US comic strip artist (Little Orphan Annie), dies at 74
1968 Marion Lorne actress (Aunt Clara-Bewitched), dies at 81
1968 Phil Arnold actor (Skidoo, Errand Boy, Damn Yankees), dies at 58
1970 Percy Brier composer, dies at 84
1970 Walter Reuther UAW union leader/president (CIO), dies in a jet crash
1974 Lyubomir Pipkov composer, dies at 69
1975 Philip Dorn dies at 73
1976 Raymond Chevreuille Belgian composer, dies at 74
1976 Valentino Bucchi composer, dies at 59
1977 James Jones US writer (Bad Blood, From Here to Eternity), dies at 55
1977 Walter Kraft composer, dies at 71
1979 Cyrus S Eaton Canada/US multi-millionaire, dies at 95
1979 Lan Adomian composer, dies at 73
1981 C E "Nip" Pellew cricketer (10 Tests 484 runs at 37), dies
1981 Nelson Algren US writer (Man with the Golden Arm), dies at 72
1982 Ab [Albert] Visser poet/writer (Kaïn sloeg Abel), dies
1985 Edmond O'Brien actor (Sam Benedict, Johnny Midnight), dies at 69
1986 Dirk de Vroome [Red Giant] Limbourg activist, dies at 60
1986 Herschel Bernardi actor (Lieutenant Jacoby-Peter Gunn, Arnie), dies at 62
1986 Tenzing Norgay Tibetan climber (Mount Everest 1953), dies at 71
1987 Obafemi Awolowo Nigeria, President of Nigeria (1979-83), dies at 78
1989 Keith Whitley country singer (Don't Close Your Eyes), dies at 33
1989 Paul J Steenbergen actor (Ciske de Rat), dies at 82
1990 Luigi Nono Italian composer (Intolleranza), dies at 66
1990 Pauline Frederick 1st woman to moderate Presidential debate, dies at 84
1991 James L Reinsch media-advisor (Roosevelt/Churchill/Kennedy), dies
1991 Ronnie Brody British actor (Superman III, Whats Up Nurse), dies at 72
1991 Rudolf Serkin Bohemian/US pianist, dies
1992 Mike Tyrell [Red Baron] British air acrobat, dies in an accident
1993 Freya Stark English author (Sunday Bloody Sunday), dies at 61
1993 Mary Duncan Sanford dies at 98
1993 Penelope Gilliatt [Conner] British author
1995 Abha Gandhi servant to Gandhi, dies at 68
1995 Charles Montgomery Monteith publisher, dies at 74
1995 Marshall Royal jazz Sax/Clarinet, dies at 82
1995 Percy Mansell cricketer (355 runs in 13 Tests for South Africa), dies

1791 Patriot politician and composer Francis Hopkinson dies

On this day in 1791, Francis Hopkinson, signer of the Declaration of Independence and the first American secular composer, dies suddenly of a seizure in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Hopkinson was born to an elite family in Philadelphia and graduated from the College of Philadelphia in 1757; he became an attorney four years later. Hopkinson then spent two years studying under his mother’s relative, the bishop of Worcester, in London, before returning to the colonies with a lucrative royal appointment as the collector of customs for Salem, New Jersey, in 1763. He added New Castle, Delaware, to his responsibilities in 1772. In 1774, Hopkinson’s revolutionary sentiments caused him to resign his post and return to private legal practice in Bordentown, New Jersey. He was elected as one of New Jersey’s delegates to the Continental Congress in 1776 and soon after signed his name to the Declaration of Independence.

As the American Revolution raged, Hopkinson returned to serve in the colony of his birth in 1777, first on the Navy Board at Philadelphia, then as treasurer of the Continental Loan Office in 1778 and finally with a seat on the Admiralty court in Pennsylvania in 1779. He joined Pennsylvania’s ratification convention in 1787, and served on the bench of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania from 1789 until his death.

In addition to his contributions to American history as a politician and jurist, Hopkinson is known as the father of American secular music, a talent complemented by his skills as a poet, playwright and harpsichordist. Some of his compositions reflected his patriotism, including “The Battle of The Kegs,” which described the Patriots’ early attempt to mine the Delaware River using barrels filled with powder. Hopkinson also played a significant role in designing the first American flag.
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1864 Union troops take Snake Creek Gap, Georgia

On this day, Union troops secure a crucial pass during the Atlanta campaign. In the spring and summer of 1864, Union General William T. Sherman and Confederate General Joseph Johnston conducted a slow and methodical campaign to seize control of Atlanta. Pushing southeast from Chattanooga toward Atlanta, Sherman continually tried to flank Johnston, but Johnston countered each move. On May 3, 1864, two of Sherman's corps moved against Confederate defenses at Dalton, while another Yankee force under James McPherson swung wide to the south and west of Dalton in an attempt to approach Johnston from the rear. It was along this path that McPherson captured Snake Creek Gap, a crucial opening in a long elevation called Rocky Face Ridge.

On one hand, seizure of the strategic pass was a brilliant Union victory. Rocky Face Ridge was a key geographic feature for Johnston and his army. It was a barrier against Sherman's army that could neutralize the superior numbers of Federal troops. When the Yankees captured the gap, Johnston had to pull his men much further south where the terrain did not offer such advantages. But securing Snake Creek Gap was also a missed opportunity for the Union. McPherson had a chance to cut directly into the Confederate rear but encountered what he judged to be strong Rebel defenses at Resaca. Union troops reached the Western and Atlantic Railroad, Johnston's supply line, but they did not have adequate numbers to hold the railroad, and did not have enough time to cut the line. McPherson halted his advance on Resaca and fell back to the mouth of Snake Creek Gap, causing Sherman to complain for years later that McPherson was timid and had lost the chance to route the Confederates. The campaign would eventually be successful, but the failure to secure or destroy the Confederate supply line prolonged the campaign, possibly by months.
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1915 Allies launch dual offensive on Western Front

On this day in 1915, Anglo-French forces fighting in World War I launch their first combined attempt to break through the heavily fortified German trench lines on the Western Front in France.

At Vimy Ridge, a strategically important crest of land on the Aisne River, in northwestern France, French troops launched an attack on German positions after firing shrapnel shells for five hours on the morning of May 9, 1915. On the heels of the artillery barrage, the French soldiers left their trenches to advance across No Man’s Land, only to find that the bombardment had failed to break the first German wire. As they struggled to cut the wire themselves, German machine gunners opened fire. Eventually, the French were able to reach their objective, as the Germans withdrew to better lines, but they suffered heavy casualties: one regiment of the French Foreign Legion lost nearly 2,000 of its 3,000 soldiers, including its commanding officer, who was shot in the chest by a sniper, and all three battalion commanders.

That same day, British troops under the orders of Sir Douglas Haig, commander in chief of the 1st Army Corps, attacked German lines further north in the Artois region in an attempt to capture Aubers Ridge, where they had failed during the Battle of Neuve Chapelle two months earlier. The British artillery here also proved ineffective, with many of the shells fired proving defective and many others too light to cause serious damage. As a result, when the soldiers attacked, they were completely unable to break through the German defenses. An entry in the German regimental diary about that ill-fated advance recorded that “There could never before in war have been a more perfect target than this solid wall of khaki men, British and Indian side by side. There was only one possible order to give – ‘Fire until the barrels burst.’”

After the first British assault failed to break the German line, many of the soldiers who had crossed into No Man’s Land and been injured by enemy fire were killed by a follow-up British artillery barrage lasting 40 minutes. British troops running back to their own lines came under German fire as they ran; as they had a number of German prisoners with them, soldiers in the British trenches mistakenly believed they were facing a counter-attack, and also fired on their retreating comrades.

Despite the initial failure, Haig ordered a second attack, disregarding reports from air reconnaissance of a steady forward movement of German reinforcements. Two of his three subordinate commanders protested, including General James Willcocks, commander of the Indian Corps, and General Hubert Gough, commander of the 7th division, who reported to Haig his “certainty of any further attempt to attack by daylight being a failure.” Only one commander, General Richard Haking of the 1st Division, felt confident of the success of a further assault, and Haig accepted his judgment.

Thus, the British forces, led by a regiment of kilted bagpipers from the 1st Black Watch, attacked again later on May 9, and were slaughtered by German machine gunners. At dusk, Haig ordered the attackers to push forward with bayonets; faced with overwhelming resistance from his three commanders, he withdrew this order but mandated that battle be resumed the next day. On the morning of May 10 however, Willcocks, Gough and Haking all told Haig they lacked sufficient ammunition to start a second day’s offensive, and the attack was canceled. The first and only day of the Battle of Aubers Ridge had resulted in the loss of 458 officers and 11,161 men. As Haig’s close associate, General Richard Charteris, wrote in his diary on May 11: “Our attack has failed, and failed badly, and with heavy casualties. That is the bald and most unpleasant fact.”
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1945 Herman Goering is captured by the U.S. Seventh Army

On this day in 1945, Herman Goering, commander in chief of the Luftwaffe, president of the Reichstag, head of the Gestapo, prime minister of Prussia, and Hitler's designated successor is taken prisoner by the U.S. Seventh Army in Bavaria.

Goering was an early member of the Nazi Party and was wounded in the failed Munich Beer Hall Putsch in 1923. That wound would have long-term effects; Goering became increasingly addicted to painkillers. Not long after Hitler's accession to power, Goering was instrumental in creating concentration camps for political enemies. Ostentatious and self-indulgent, he changed his uniform five times a day and was notorious for flaunting his decorations, jewelry, and stolen artwork. It was Goering who ordered the purging of German Jews from the economy following the Kristallnacht pogrom in 1938, initiating an "Aryanization" policy that confiscated Jewish property and businesses.

Goering's failure to win the Battle of Britain and prevent the Allied bombing of Germany led to his loss of stature within the Party, aggravated by the low esteem with which he was always held by fellow officers because of his egocentrism and position as Hitler's right-hand man. As the war progressed, he dropped into depressions and battled drug addiction.

When Goering fell into U.S. hands after Germany's surrender, he had in his possession a rich stash of pills. He was tried at Nuremberg and charged with various crimes against humanity. Despite a vigorous attempt at self acquittal, he was found guilty and sentenced to be hanged, but before he could be executed, he committed suicide by swallowing a cyanide tablet he had hidden from his guards.
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1969 Reporter breaks the news of secret bombing in Cambodia

William Beecher, military correspondent for the New York Times, publishes a front page dispatch from Washington, "Raids in Cambodia by U.S. Unprotested," which accurately described the first of the secret B-52 bombing raids in Cambodia. Within hours, Henry Kissinger, presidential assistant for national security affairs, contacted J. Edgar Hoover, the director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, asking him to find the governmental sources of Beecher's article. During the next two years, Alexander Haig, a key Kissinger assistant, transmitted the names of National Security Council staff members and reporters who were to have their telephones wiretapped by the FBI.
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1970 Demonstrations held in Washington

Between 75,000 and 100,000 young people, mostly from college campuses, demonstrate peacefully in Washington, D.C., at the rear of a barricaded White House. They demanded the withdrawal of U.S. military forces from Vietnam and other Southeast Asian nations. Afterwards, a few hundred militants spread through surrounding streets, causing limited damage. Police attacked the most threatening crowds with tear gas.
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1974 House votes to initiate impeachment proceedings

The House of Representatives Judiciary Committee opens impeachment hearings against President Richard Nixon, voting to impeach him on three counts on July 30.

The impeachment was the result of the scandal involving the bungled burglary of the offices of the Democratic National Committee in the Watergate apartment complex in Washington, D.C., on June 23, 1972. Eventually, it was learned that there was a criminal cover-up that went all the way to the White House. Nixon, facing the impeachment proceedings, resigned the presidency on August 8, 1974. His resignation had a major impact on the situation in Vietnam. Nixon had convinced South Vietnamese President Nguyen Van Thieu to consent to the provisions of the Paris Peace Accords by personally promising (on more than 30 occasions) that the United States would re-enter the conflict if the North Vietnamese violated the peace agreement. However, when Nixon resigned, his successor, Gerald R. Ford, was not able to keep Nixon's promises. Ford could not, despite Thieu's desperate pleas for help, get Congress to appropriate significant funds to help the South Vietnamese. Having lost its sole source of aid and support, South Vietnam fell to the North Vietnamese in April 1975.