Today in History – October 22nd

Published October 22, 2012 |

1383, King Fernando dies without a male heir to the Portuguese throne, sparking a period of civil war and disorder.
1633, Battle of southern Fujian sea: The Ming dynasty defeats the Dutch East India Company.
1730, Construction of the Ladoga Canal is completed.
1734, Daniel Boone, American pioneer and hunter (d. 1820) was born.
1746, The College of New Jersey (later renamed Princeton University) receives its charter.
1784, Russia founds a colony on Kodiak Island, Alaska.
1790, Warriors of the Miami tribe under Chief Little Turtle defeat US troops at the site of present-day Fort Wayne, IN.
1797, One thousand meters (3,200 feet) above Paris, Andre-Jacques Garnerin makes 1st recorded parachute jump.
1836, Sam Houston is inaugurated as 1st President of the Republic of Texas.
1844, Louis Riel, Canadian Metis Political Leader (d. 1885) was born.
1859, Spain declares war on Morocco.
1877, The Blantyre mining disaster in Scotland kills 207 miners.
1878, 1st rugby match under floodlights takes place in Salford, between Broughton and Swinton.
1883, The Metropolitan Opera House in New York City opens with a performance of Gounod’s Faust.
1903, Curly Howard, American actor and comedian, member of the Three Stooges (d. 1952) was born.
1906, Paul Cezanne, French painter (b. 1839) died.
1907, Panic of 1907: A run on the stock of the Knickerbocker Trust Company sets events in motion that will lead to a depression.
1910, Dr. Crippen is convicted at the Old Bailey of poisoning his wife and is subsequently hanged at Pentonville Prison in London.
1920, Timothy Leary, American writer (d. 1996) was born.
1924, Toastmasters International is founded.
1926, J. Gordon Whitehead sucker punches magician Harry Houdini in the stomach in Montreal.
1927, Nikola Tesla exposed his six (6) new inventions including motor with onephase electricity
1934, In East Liverpool, Ohio, Federal Bureau of Investigation agents shoot and kill notorious bank robber Pretty Boy Floyd.
1934, Pretty Boy Floyd, American gangster (b. 1904) died.
1943, WWII: 2nd firestorm raid on Germany, RAF conducts an air raid on town of Kassel, killing 10k and rendering 150k homeless.
1946, Soviet Operation Osoaviakhim takes place.
1957, Vietnam War: 1st US casualties in Vietnam.
1962, Cuban Missile Crisis: US Pres JFK announces that US reconnaissance planes have discovered Soviet nuclear weapons in Cuba.
1963, A BAC One-Eleven prototype airliner crashes in UK with the loss of all on board.
1964, Canada: A Multi-Party Parliamentary Committee selects the design which becomes the new official Flag of Canada.
1964, Jean-Paul Sartre is awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature, but turns down the honor.
1968, Apollo program: Apollo 7 safely splashes down in the Atlantic Ocean after orbiting the Earth 163 times.
1975, The Soviet unmanned space mission Venera 9 lands on Venus.
1976, Red Dye No. 4 is banned by the US FDA after it is discovered that it causes tumors in the bladders of dogs.
2002, Richard Helms, American CIA director (b. 1913) died.
2009, Soupy Sales, American comedian and television personality (b. 1926) died.

Chris Rivait

Chris loves history and hopes that Yesteeyear becomes a place where everyone can share their history knowledge. Chris owns an Internet Marketing company, Arrivait Marketing. He has a wonderful wife and four great children.