Today in History for Sept. 14, 2015

Pierre Savorgnan de Brazz 

Sept. 14, 1741 – George Frideric Handel completed his oratorio “Messiah.”

Sept. 14, 1769 – German geographer and explorer Alexander von Humboldt was born in Berlin. Between 1799 and 1804, Humboldt travelled extensively in Latin America, exploring and describing it for the first time from a modern scientific point of view. Humboldt was one of the first people to propose that the lands bordering the Atlantic Ocean were once joined (South America and Africa in particular).

Sept. 14, 1779 - American Colonel Daniel Brodhead concluded an ambitious assault against the Seneca Indians throughout the Allegheny Valley of Pennsylvania. Simultaneously, Major General John Sullivan had attacked the Iroquois of New York.

Sept. 14, 1807 - Former U.S. Vice President Aaron Burr was acquitted of a misdemeanor charge. Two weeks earlier, Burr had been found innocent of treason.

Sept. 14, 1814 – Francis Scott Key composed the lyrics to “The Star-Spangled Banner.” He composed them while he watched, from the British ship on which he had been detained, the U.S. flag survive a British attack.

Sept. 14, 1817 – Walter Taylor, one of the founders of the United Methodist Church in Jackson and the man who built the Taylor House around 1841, was born in Jackson, Ala. The Taylor House was moved to Leroy in 1985 and was restored into a modern bank building.

Sept. 14, 1832 – Camden, Ala. was founded on land donated to the Wilcox County Commission for a new county seat by Thomas Dunn and wife, Martha Hobbs.

Sept. 14, 1836 – Two years after a stroke that left him an invalid, Aaron Burr died at a boarding house in Port Richmond.

  

Sept. 14, 1849 – Physiologist Ivan Pavlov was born in Ryazan in central Russia.

Sept. 14, 1861 - Federals descended on the Pensacola, Fla. navy yard, and the men of the USS Colorado destroyed the Confederate privateer, Judah.

Sept. 14, 1861 – During the Civil War, a skirmish was fought at Old Randolph, Mo.

Sept. 14, 1861 - On those rare occasions when Jefferson Davis didn’t have enough to worry about, along would come a day like today, when he received a complaint from Gen. Joseph E. Johnston concerning the issuance of ranks. Johnston had been a general in the United States Army, after all. Now he was ranked behind Robert E. Lee and even P. T. G. Beauregard, who had been a mere major when the war started. Davis and Johnston had been friends at one time, but this perceived slight, which Davis never felt able to change, was the beginning of a rift between the two.

Sept. 14, 1861 - Confederate troops under General Robert E. Lee retreated from Cheat Mountain without a shot being fired. The campaign was considered a fiasco and damaged Lee's reputation.

Sept. 14, 1862 – The North and the South clashed at the Battle of South Mountain as General Robert E. Lee's exhausted Confederate forces held off the pursuing Yankees by closing two passes through Maryland's South Mountain, allowing Lee time to gather his forces further west along Antietam Creek near Sharpsburg.

Sept. 14, 1862 - Confederate General Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson rolled his artillery into place and began to shell Harpers Ferry, Virginia.

Sept. 14, 1869 – National Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Kid Nichols was born in Madison, Wisc. He went on to play for the Boston Beaneaters, the St. Louis Cardinals and the Philadelphia Phillies and he also managed the Cardinals for two seasons. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1949.

Sept. 14, 1896 – The notorious outlaw Bart Thrasher was killed by law enforcement officers near Calera, Ala.

Sept. 14, 1901 – U.S. President William McKinley died after an assassination attempt on September 6, and was succeeded by 42-year-old Vice President Theodore Roosevelt.

Sept. 14, 1905 - The annual reunion of Confederate Veterans of Wilcox County was scheduled to be held at the courthouse in Camden, Ala. on this Thursday. J.F. Foster was the adjutant of the F.K. Beck Camp, No. 224, United Confederate Veterans.

Sept. 14, 1905 – The Monroe Journal reported that Prof. Weaver of Lineville, Ala., who had been chosen principal of the Monroeville school, had arrived in Monroeville a few days before to enter upon his duties at the school.

Sept. 14, 1905 – John L. Betts, who was well known throughout Monroe and Conecuh counties, died at his home in Burnt Corn, Ala. after “an illness of several weeks with typhoid fever.” For a number of years, he had been the partner of Jas. K. Kyser in the mercantile business.

Sept. 14, 1905 – Italian-French Freemason and explorer Pierre Savorgnan de Brazz died at the age of 53 in Dakar of dysentery and fever (amid rumours that he had been poisoned). With the backing of the Société de Géographie de Paris, he opened up for France entry along the right bank of the Congo that eventually led to French colonies in Central Africa. Under French colonial rule, the capital of the Republic of the Congo was named Brazzaville after him and the name was retained by the post-colonial rulers.

Sept. 14, 1914 – A municipal primary election in Evergreen, Ala. for the nomination of mayor and town councilmen was held. Those nominated for office included W.B. Ivey for mayor and R.F. Croom, J.G. Lunday, A.H. Mason, F.A. Pritchett, H.A. Shields for councilmen. Executive committee nominees were H.W. Dunn, E.J. McCreary, E.E. Newton.

Sept. 14, 1914 – Monroe County High School and the Monroeville, Ala. City Grammar School opened for the 1914-15 school year. Prof. E.P. Yeldell was principal of the city school and other teachers there included Edna Barge and Mrs. J.C. Hudson. The high school’s faulty included Prof. L.O. Kyzar, Miss Chapman of Pine Apple (art department) and Miss Janie Mae Eppes (music department at high school and city school).

Sept. 14, 1916 - Christy Mathewson of the Cincinnati Reds won his 373rd career game. It was the only victory he had earned for a team other than the New York Giants during his 17-year career.

Sept. 14, 1916 – Drama critic Eric Bentley was born in Bolton, Lancashire, England.

Sept. 14, 1934 – American essayist Barbara Grizzuti Harrison was born in Queens, N.Y.

Sept. 14, 1936 – The Ritz Theater in Brewton, Ala. opened its doors for business, and its first feature was “Yours for the Asking.”

Sept. 14, 1937 – Conecuh County, Ala. schools opened for the 1937-38 school year.

Sept. 14, 1939 – The Monroe Journal newspaper in Monroeville, Ala. reported that Truman Capote, who had spent the summer in Monroeville with Misses Nannie and Jennie Faulk and Mrs. W.J. Carter, had returned to his home in New York on Fri., Sept. 8. At the beginning of the week, he entered a Connecticut school.

Sept. 14, 1939 – The Evergreen Courant reported that during the previous week the Bank of Evergreen had installed a new night depository system. O.C. McGehee was the bank’s vice-president and cashier.

Sept. 14, 1940 – Congress passed the Selective Service Act, the first peacetime draft in the United States, to raise an army of 900,000 men. All men between the ages of 21 and 35 were required to register.

Sept. 14, 1951 – Evergreen High School opened the 1951 football season with an 18-0 win over Millry in Evergreen, Ala.

Sept. 14, 1952 – The Starlington Stars baseball team won the Conecuh Amateur League championship by beating the Centerville Rookies, 7-0, at Brooks Stadium in Evergreen, Ala. In a game before the Starlington-Centerville game, Shreve beat Castleberry, 5-4, to take home third place honors.

Sept. 14, 1954 – The Geo. W. Cole Wild Animal Circus was scheduled to hold two performances, afternoon and evening, at the Evergreen, Ala. airport. The circus featured “Goliath,” a monster hippopotamus from the River Nile, weighing over four tons.

Sept. 14, 1960 - The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) was founded. The core members were Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Venezuela.

Sept. 14, 1961 – Conecuh County, Ala. public schools were scheduled to open on this day after three days of in-service training for teachers.

Sept. 14, 1962 – Frisco City High School running back Ed Brown led the Whippets with 103 yards rushing in a 26-0 win over T.R. Miller in Frisco City, Ala.

Sept. 14, 1962 – Marengo County, Ala. native Tommie Agee made his Major League debut with the Cleveland Indians. With the Indians already behind 11-1 to the Minnesota Twins, Agee made his major league debut at Metropolitan Stadium pinch-hitting for pitcher Bill Dailey in the ninth inning.

Sept. 14, 1964 – The USS Alabama Battleship arrived in Mobile Bay and Battleship Park opened on Jan. 9, 1965.

Sept. 14, 1964 – President Lyndon B. Johnson awarded Helen Keller with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Sept. 14, 1964 - Writer John Steinbeck was presented the U.S. Medal of Freedom. Steinbeck had already received numerous other honors and awards for his writing, including the 1962 Nobel Prize and a 1939 Pulitzer Prize for “Grapes of Wrath.”

Sept. 14, 1964 – The administration of another round of oral polio vaccines began in Monroe County, Ala.

Sept. 14, 1968 - Detroit Tigers pitcher Denny McLain won his 30th game of the season, becoming the first 30-game winner in the major leagues since 1938. The Tigers scored two runs in the bottom of the ninth to come from behind in a 5-4 decision over the Oakland A’s.

Sept. 14, 1969 - Talladega Speedway opened with its first running of the Talladega 500, which was won by Richard Brickhouse. Over 30 top drivers boycotted the first run saying the track was unsafe at high speeds. The facility cost $4 million dollars to build and attracted a crowd of 65,000 to the first major race. In April 2000, a crowd of 180,000 watched Jeff Gordon win the Diehard 500.

Sept. 14, 1972 – The Fort Mims Historic Site in Baldwin County, Ala. was added to the National Register of Historic Places.

Sept. 14, 1974 - Alabama author and Poet Laureate Bert Henderson died in Montgomery, Ala.

Sept. 14, 1981 - U.S. President Reagan signed the Yorktown Bicentennial Proclamation marking the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Yorktown.

Sept. 14, 1981 - Pink Floyd's movie "The Wall" began production.

Sept. 14, 1985 – Major Leauge Baseball outfielder and designated hitter Delmon Young was born in Montgomery, Ala. During his career, he has played for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, the Minnesota Twins, the Detroit Tigers, the Philadelphia Phillies, the Tampa Bay Rays and the Baltimore Orioles.

Sept. 14, 1986 - Bob Brenley of the San Francisco Giants tied a Major League Baseball record when he committed four errors in one inning.

Sept. 14, 1987 - The Toronto Blue Jays set a club record with 10 home runs when they defeated the Baltimore Orioles, 18-3.

Sept. 14, 1990 - Ken Griffey Sr. and Jr. of the Seattle Mariners hit back-to-back home runs off California Angels pitcher Kirk McCaskill in the first inning. The Angels won the game, 7-5.

Sept. 14, 1990 - Senior quarterback Carlos Booker bailed Monroe County High out of a bad situation on this Friday night in Camden, Ala. when he turned the corner on an option play and raced 40 yards for a touchdown to lift MCHS past Wilcox Central High by a 16-14 score in a high school football game.

Sept. 14, 1994 - It was announced that the season was over for the National Baseball League on the 34th day of the players strike. The final days of the regular season were canceled. Baseball owners had voted 26-2 in favor of ending the season. The result was a year with no World Series for the first time since 1904.

Sept. 14, 1995 - The Body Worlds exhibition debuted in Japan. The museum display features human remains, preserved in plastic via a process called plastination. Body Worlds proved to be a huge hit and has gone on to be featured in over 50 museums throughout the world. However, it has also spawned numerous ethical debates as well as urban legends about the source of the plastic encased corpses.

Sept. 14, 1999 - Leon Lett of the Dallas Cowboys was suspended for seven games as punishment for a fifth violation of the NFL's substance abuse policy.

Sept. 14, 2001 - The FBI released the names of the 19 suspected hijackers that had taken part in the September 11 terror attacks on the U.S.

Sept. 14, 2001 - U.S. President George W. Bush toured the ruins of the World Trade Center and addressed rescue workers through a bullhorn. The buildings had collapsed on September 11 after a terrorist attack.

Sept. 14, 2001 – Historic National Prayer Service was held at Washington National Cathedral for victims of the September 11 attacks. A similar service was held in Canada on Parliament Hill, the largest vigil ever held in the nation's capital.

Sept. 14, 2002 - U.S. President George W. Bush said the United States was willing to take Iraq on alone if the U.N. failed to "show some backbone."

Sept. 14, 2003 - Jamal Lewis of the Baltimore Ravens set an NFL record for yards gained in a single-game when he gained 295 yards rushing. The Ravens beat the Cleveland Browns, 33-13.

Sept. 14, 2003 - Vinny Testaverde of the New York Jets became the ninth player in NFL history to pass for over 40,000 yards.

Sept. 14, 2004 – First baseman Andy Phillips of Tuscaloosa, Ala. made his Major League debut, taking the field for the first time for the New York Yankees. In his first Major League at bat, he hit a home run over the Green Monster in Fenway Park off Terry Adams of the Boston Red Sox.

Sept. 14, 2005 - All restrictions on the four Natalee Holloway disappearance suspects were removed by the Combined Appeals Court of the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba.

Sept. 14, 2013 – Evergreen, Alabama’s Justin Nared compiled 173 passing yards and scored rushing touchdown to lead the Tuskegee University Golden Tigers to a 19-13 win over Albany State University Saturday in Albany, Ga. Nared completed 11 of 19 passes for 173 yards and scored on a one-yard run that tied the game, 13-13, with 4:14 to go in the third quarter.

  

Sept. 14, 2014 – As of 7:45 a.m., the 1,000,000th active geocache in the U.S. was published on Geocaching.com, a site that launched in 2000 with just 75 geocaches. The 1,000,000th U.S. geocache was called Daddy’s Fishing Hole and is located near Chambersburg, Pennsylvania.