Today in History for Nov. 2, 2017

U.S. President Warren G. Harding

Nov. 2, 1734 – Frontier hero, hunter and explorer Daniel Boone was born near Reading, Pa.

Nov. 2, 1755 – Marie-Antoinette, the 15th child of Maria Theresa, the Hapsburg empress, and Emperor Francis I, was born in Vienna.

Nov. 2, 1776 - During the American Revolutionary War, William Demont, became the first traitor of the American Revolution when he deserted.

Nov. 2, 1777 - The USS Ranger, with a crew of 140 men under the command of John Paul Jones, left Portsmouth, New Hampshire for the naval port at Brest, France, where it would stop before heading toward the Irish Sea to begin raids on British warships. This was the first mission of its kind during the Revolutionary War.

Nov. 2, 1783 - U.S. Gen. George Washington gave his "Farewell Address to the Army" near Princeton, N.J.

Nov. 2, 1795 - James Knox Polk, the 11th president of the United States, was born in Pineville, N.C.

Nov. 2, 1815 – English mathematician George Boole was born in Lincolnshire, England.

Nov. 2, 1859 - Abolitionist John Brown was found guilty of treason and murder for acts during his raid on an arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Va. on Oct. 16. He was executed on Dec. 2, 1859.

Nov. 2, 1861 – Controversial Union General John C. Fremont, a former presidential candidate, was relieved of command in the Western Department and was replaced by David Hunter.

Nov. 2, 1861 – During the Civil War, a 10-day series of Federal operations began from Bird’s Point, Cape Girardeau and Ironton in Missouri against Confederate partisan forces.

Nov. 2, 1862 – During the Civil War, skirmishes were fought near Castleman’s Ferry, Union and Upperville in Virginia.

Nov. 2, 1863 – During the Civil War, skirmishes were fought at Bayou Bourbeau, La.; at Corinth, Miss.; and at Centreville and Piney Factory in Tennessee.

Nov. 2, 1863 – During the Civil War, President Jefferson Davis arrived at Charleston, S.C. and observed first hand the continued Federal bombardment of Fort Sumter.

Nov. 2, 1863 – During the Civil War, Brazos Island, Texas was occupied by the expeditionary Federal force under Union Major General Nathaniel P. Banks, arriving from New Orleans, La. aboard the USS Monongahela, Owasco and Virginia.

Nov. 2, 1864 – During the Civil War, an affair occurred at Hazen’s Farm, near Devall’s Bluff, Ark., when a party of Federal troops sent to collect bricks at the Hazen Farm were captured, robbed and paroled by Confederates. Upon hearing of this, the furious Federal officer in charge ordered the arrest of the paroled troops.

Nov. 2, 1864 – During the Civil War, a Federal expedition from Little Rock to Benton, Ark. began.

Nov. 2, 1865 – Warren G. Harding, the 29th President of the United States, was born in Blooming Grove, Ohio. He was the great-grandson of Conecuh County, Ala. plantation owner Henchie Warren, who is buried in the Sparta community.

Nov. 2, 1875 - Alabama author Hardin E. Taliaferro died in Loudon, Tenn.

Nov. 2, 1885 – Astronomer Harlow Shapley was born in Nashville, Mo.

Nov. 2, 1889 - North Dakota and South Dakota were admitted into the union as the 39th and 40th states.

Nov. 2, 1898 – Cheerleading was started at the University of Minnesota with Johnny Campbell leading the crowd in cheering on the football team.

Nov. 2, 1903 – National Baseball Hall of Fame shortstop Travis Jackson was born in Waldo, Ark. He played his entire career, 1922-1936, for the New York Giants. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1982.

Nov. 2, 1911 – The Conecuh Record reported that construction of the Brooklyn Masonic Hall was nearly complete at a cost of $2,000. The 28x85-foot building included the Rabun & Feagin store on the floor beneath the hall.

Nov. 2, 1914 – The first installment of “The Million Dollar Mystery” was shown at the Arcade Theatre in Evergreen. The next installment was scheduled to be shown on Nov. 6.

Nov. 2, 1914 – During World War I, the Russian Empire declared war on the Ottoman Empire and the Dardanelles were subsequently closed.

Nov. 2, 1917 - Corporal James Gresham and privates Thomas Enright and Merle Hay of the 16th Infantry became the first American soldiers to die during World War I when Germans raided their trenches near Bathelemont, France.

Nov. 2, 1917 – Britain’s “Balfour Declartion” was issued by Foreign Secretary Lord Arthur James Balfour, proclaiming Britain’s support for a Jewish state in Palestine.

Nov. 2, 1920 – In the United States, KDKA of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania started broadcasting as the first commercial radio station. The first broadcast was the result of the United States presidential election in 1920.

Nov. 2, 1920 – Adam Martin Wyant became the first former professional American football player to be elected to the United States Congress.

Nov. 2, 1927 – H.P. Lovecraft completed his story, “The Very Old Folk,” which was originally published in the Summer 1940 issue of “Scienti-Snaps.”

Nov. 2, 1936 – For the first time in a number of years, Monroe County, Ala. was scheduled to hold a fall fair. The event was sponsored by Monroe County American Legion Post No. 61 and was to be held at the Legion Field.

Nov. 2, 1936 – Pulitzer Prize-winning poet C.K. Williams was born in Newark, N.J.

Nov. 2, 1938 - It was announced that George Herman "Babe" Ruth had applied for the job of manager of the St. Louis Browns after being released as a coach from the Brooklyn Dodgers.

Nov. 2, 1943 – While on his 48th mission, B-17 Flying Fortress pilot James Marion Veazey of Monroeville, Ala. was killed in an explosion while in flight due to enemy fire. He was on a mission to destroy a munitions plant in Austria. He was buried in the Ardennes American Cemetery and Memorial in Liège, Belgium.

Nov. 2, 1945 – Pro Football Hall of Fame guard Larry Little was born in Groveland, Ga. He went on to play at Bethune-Cookman, the San Diego Chargers and the Miami Dolphins. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1993.

Nov. 2, 1951 – Novelist and essayist Thomas Mallon was born in Glen Cove, N.Y.

Nov. 2, 1956 – On homecoming night in Evergreen, Ala., Milton High School beat Evergreen High School, 28-7.

Nov. 2-3, 1957 – The Levelland UFO Case occurred in Levelland, Texas and generated national publicity.

Nov. 2, 1960 – Penguin Books was found not guilty of obscenity in the trial R v Penguin Books Ltd, the “Lady Chatterley's Lover” case.

Nov. 2, 1963 – South Korean mountaineer and explorer Park Young-seok was born.

Nov. 2, 1963 – South Vietnamese President Ngô Đình Diệm was assassinated following a military coup by dissident generals of the South Vietnamese army.

Nov. 2, 1964 - CBS purchased 80 percent of the New York Yankees for $11,200,000.

Nov. 2, 1964 - Dalton C. Baker of Frisco City, Ala. was named Frisco City Town Clerk, replacing Robert Carter, who resigned to enter private business.

Nov. 2, 1965 – Norman Morrison, a 31-year-old Quaker, set himself on fire in front of the river entrance to the Pentagon to protest the use of napalm in the Vietnam war.

Nov. 2, 1967 – During the Vietnam War, U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson and "The Wise Men" concluded that the American people should be given more optimistic reports on the progress of the war.

Nov. 2, 1969 – Patrick Henry State Junior College in Monroeville, Ala. was scheduled to hold an open house at its new multi-purpose building on this Sunday afternoon from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Completed early in September, this $405,000 building housed a three-court gymnasium with a seating capacity of 1,300 for basketball games as well as for other recreational activities. This multi-purpose building was the fourth major structure to be erected on the Patrick Henry campus.

Nov. 2, 1971 – A musical play adaptation of Truman Capote's book “The Grass Harp” opened at the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway. With lyrics by Kenward Elmslie and music by Claibe Richardson, the musical ran for only seven performances with the last being performed on Nov. 6.

Nov. 2, 1972 - Construction began on the Kingdome in Seattle, Wash.

Nov. 2, 1972 – On this Thursday night at Evergreen High School, Miss Homecoming was to be crowned. Miss Football was to be named on Oct. 20 by the football team.

Nov. 2, 1976 – Major League Baseball pitcher Sidney Ponson was born in Noord, Aruba. He went on to play for the Baltimore Orioles, the San Francisco Giants, the St. Louis Cardinals, the New York Yankees, the Minnesota Twins, the Texas Rangers and the Kansas City Royals.

Nov. 2, 1979 – Evergreen High School, under head coach Guy Sawyer, won the 3A Area 2, Region 1 championship by beating Greenville High School, 28-0, in Greenville.

Nov. 2, 1979 – Sparta Academy beat McIntosh Academy, 46-8, at Stuart-McGehee Field in Evergreen, Ala. Ronny McKenzie added to his school-record figures as he ran for 152 yards and two touchdowns on just 16 carries and caught a 41-yard pass from Terry Peacock for another score.The tackle chart was led by Russ Raines who had five solo tackles and one assist. Other outstanding Sparta players in that game included Scott Baggett, Robert Bozeman, Wes Brown, Ed Carrier, Ira Cook, Greg Crabtree, Andy Hammonds, Jeff Johnson, Bobby Mason, Joe McInvale, Mike Mixon, Cook Morrison, Darwin Nix, Richard Nix and Lee Talbot.

Nov. 2, 1979 – Sparta Academy Headmaster Jack Miller crowned Reta Mixon, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Mickey Mixon, as Sparta’s 1979 Miss Homecoming during a pre-game ceremony at Stuart-McGehee Field in Evergreen. Mixon was escorted by Sparta football captain Terry Peacock.

Nov. 2, 1979 – Frisco City High School beat Repton High School, 28-7, in Frisco City, Ala. to win the Class A, Region 1, Area 2 title. Repton’s only touchdown came on a 56-yard run by Robbie Harris, and Trey Wilson added the extra point.

Nov. 2, 1981 – NFL wide receiver Roddy White was born in Charleston, South Carolina. He went on to play for UAB and the Atlanta Falcons.

Nov. 2, 1987 - Alabama author Douglas Fields Bailey died in Dothan, Ala.

Nov. 2, 1990 – Monroe Academy, under head coach K.J. Lazenby, improved to 9-0 on the season with a 52-6 win over Faith Academy in Mobile. Standout MA players in that game included Nick Ackerman, Shannon Baggett, Dallas Gamble, Chris Hare, Shenandoah McLaurin, Shane Stafford, Jerrod Thompson, Keith Tucker and Mitchell Turberville.

Nov. 2, 1995 – Jamelle Williams was named the Defensive Player of the Week, and Roger Rudolph was named the Offensive Player of the Week for Hillcrest High School in Evergreen, Ala.

Nov. 2, 1997 - Eric Metcalf of the San Diego Chargers set an NFL record when he ran back two kicks for touchdowns. The two returns gave him the league record with 10 in his career.

Nov. 2, 2001 – Hillcrest High School beat Carroll in Evergreen, 21-7. Derrick Rogers scored two touchdowns for Hillcrest and LaCheston Moore scored one. Chenson Griffin scored on a two-point conversion run, and Dominique Etheridge added an extra point.

Nov. 2, 2002 – Army Sgt. William Wayne Seay, a native of Brewton, Ala., was inducted into the Alabama Military Hall of Honor at Marion Military Institute. Seay was killed in action in Vietnam in 1969 and received the Medal of Honor for his actions.

Nov. 2, 2010 - Republican candidate Dr. Robert Bentley was elected Alabama governor and the party gained a majority in the Alabama House, Senate and Supreme Court, wresting control from Democrats for the first time since 1874.

Nov. 2, 2010 – Edwin Booker was elected to another term as Conecuh County (Ala.) Sheriff as 5,393 Conecuh County voters turned out at the polls. Booker received 3,481 votes. Republican John Pate got 1,494 votes and write-in candidate Larry Wayne Davis got 290 votes.

Nov. 2, 2010 - In Arlington, Texas, former Presidents George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush attended Game 5 of the World Series. George W. Bush threw out the first pitch.