Today in History for Nov. 2, 2015

John C. Fremont

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

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, 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 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, Mo. against Confederate partisan forces.

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 said to have hidden a chest of gold in Shipps Pond during the Civil War.

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, 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, 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, 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.

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, 1963 – South Korean mountaineer and explorer Park Young-seok was born. He was the first person in the world who completed a True Explorers Grand Slam. He climbed the world's 14 Eight-thousanders, the Seven Summits, and visited both poles.

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

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, Ala., 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.

  

Nov. 2, 2014 – The first frost of the year was observed in Excel, Ala.