Today in History for Jan. 6, 2016

Jan. 6, 786 – Abo of Tiflis, Iraqi martyr and saint, was executed in Tbilisi, Georgia.

Jan. 6, 1412 – Saint Joan of Arc was born in Domrémy, Duchy of Bar, France.

Jan. 6, 1702 - French colonists from Biloxi unloaded goods at Massacre Island to be used for the establishment of Fort Louis de la Louisiane on a bluff 27 miles from the mouth of the Mobile River.

Jan. 6, 1777 - After two significant victories over the British in Trenton and Princeton, New Jersey, General George Washington marched north to Morristown, New Jersey, where he set up winter headquarters for himself and the men of the Continental Army. The hills surrounding the camp offered Washington a perfect vantage point from which to keep an eye on the British army, which was headquartered across the Hudson River in New York City. Morristown’s position also allowed Washington to protect the roads leading from the British strongholds in New Jersey to New England and the roads leading to Philadelphia, where the leaders of the American Revolution were headquartered.

Jan. 6, 1799 – American hunter, explorer, and author Jedediah Smith was born in Bainbridge, New York.

Jan. 6, 1814 – The Town of Blakeley was incorporated by authorization of the House of Representatives of the Mississippi Territory on the northern end of Mobile Bay in present-day Baldwin County, Ala. Established by Joseph Blakeley, the town was the scene of the last major defense of Mobile, Ala. by Confederate troops during the Civil War. Blakely was also the southern end of the extension of the Federal road.

Jan. 6, 1827 - Confederate General John Calvin Brown, who served in the Army of the Tennessee during the Civil War, was born in Giles County, Tenn. He was wounded three times, including at Chickamauga in September 1863. After the Civil War he served two terms as the governor of Tennessee and was a railroad president.

Jan. 6, 1851, Foucalt's Pendulum experimentally proved that the Earth rotates on its axis.

Jan. 6, 1855 – Italian jurist, explorer and author Giacomo Beltrami died in Filottrano, Italy. He is best known for claiming to have discovered the headwaters of the Mississippi River in 1823 while on a trip through much of the United States.

Jan. 6, 1861 During the Civil War, the U.S. Arsenal at Apalachicola, Fla. was seized by Florida State Troops. It is of interest that this action was taken before Florida seceded from the Federal Union. Florida did not secede until Jan. 10.


Jan. 6, 1863 – During the Civil War, a skirmish was fought at Fort Lawrence, Beaver Station, Mo., where Confederate Brigadier General Jon Sappington Marmaduke burned Fort Lawrence.

Jan. 6, 1864 – During the Civil War, skirmishes were fought at Dalton, Ga. and Flint Hill, Va. An attack was also carried out on the steamer Delta on the Mississippi River in Mississippi. A 15-day Federal operation against Navajo Indians also began in the New Mexico Territory.

Jan. 6, 1865 – During the Civil War, a skirmish was fought at Huntsville, Ark.

Jan. 6, 1873 – The construction of the Escambia County Courthouse at Pollard, Ala. was completed. The courthouse burned in 1879, and arson was suspected as the cause of the fire.

Jan. 6, 1883 – Poet Khalil Gibran, the third-best-selling poet in history (behind Shakespeare and Lao-Tzu) was born in the mountain village of Bsharri, Lebanon.

Jan. 6, 1912 - New Mexico became the 47th U.S. state.

Jan. 6, 1916 – The Conecuh Record reported that M.A. Travis had been appointed as chairman of the Conecuh County Tax Equalization Board.

Jan. 6, 1916 – The Conecuh Record reported that W.J. Travis, who was charged with the killing of “Dr. Nall” in McKenzie, had his bail set at $1,500.

Jan. 6, 1916 – The Conech Record reported that a “new and valuable acquisition” had been added to the library at Conecuh County High School in Castleberry – a 24-volume set of the International Encyclopedia.

Jan. 6, 1916 – The Conecuh Record reported that the “colored population observed emancipation day with music and marching and speechmaking.”

Jan. 6, 1916 - The Conecuh Record reported that Record editor J.C. Whitcomb had “been confined to his bed for the past two or three weeks with typhoid fever.”

Jan. 6, 1918 – During World War I, Army Pvt. William H. Harris of Flat Rock, Ala. “died from disease.”

Jan. 6, 1919 – During World War I, Army Pvt. Wade Shavers of Garland, Ala. and Army Pvt. Warb Moton of Camden, Ala. “died from disease.”

Jan. 6, 1919 – Between 4 a.m. and 4:15 a.m., the 26th president of the United States, Theodore Roosevelt, died in his sleep at Sagamore Hill in Cove Neck, N.Y. a result of a blood clot detaching itself from a vein and entering his lungs. He was 60 years old.

Jan. 6, 1920 – National Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Early Wynn was born in Hartford, Ala. Nicknamed “Gus,” he went on to play for the Washington Senators, the Cleveland Indians and the Chicago White Sox. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1972.

Jan. 6, 1921 – The Iraqi Army was officially formed on this day.

Jan. 6, 1930 - The Hat Shop, a well known store dealing in ladies hats, located over Binion Grocery and Feed Co. in Evergreen, Ala., was scheduled to move on this Monday to the store formerly occupied by jeweler J.H. Dey, who had moved his business to the new store next door to Evergreen Motor Car Co.

Jan. 6, 1931 – Novelist E.L. Doctorow was born Edgar Lawrence Doctorow in the Bronx.

Jan. 6, 1942 - The National Collegiate Football Rules Committee abolished the Y formation.

Jan. 6, 1942 - Alabama author Charles Gaines was born in Jacksonville, Fla.

Jan. 6, 1945 – Essayist and fiction writer Barry Lopez was born in Port Chester, N.Y.

Jan. 6, 1946 – The first general election ever in Vietnam was held.

Jan. 6, 1954 – National Baseball Hall of Fame shortstop and second baseman Rabbit Maranville died at the age of 62 in Woodside, Queens, New York. During his career, he played for the Boston Braves, the Pittsburg Pirates, the Chicago Cubs, the Brooklyn Robins and the St. Louis Cardinals. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1954.

Jan. 6, 1956 - Novelist Elizabeth Strout was born in Portland, Maine.

Jan. 6, 1959 - Alabama author Octavus Roy Cohen died in Los Angeles, Calif.

Jan. 6, 1960 – The Associations Law came into force in Iraq, allowing registration of political parties.

Jan. 6, 1960 – Pro Football Hall of Fame defensive end Howie Long was born in Charlestown, Massachusetts. He went on to play for Villinova and the Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2000.

Jan. 6, 1964 – Pro Football Hall of Fame defensive end and linebacker Charles Haley was born in Gladys, Va. He would go on to play for James Madison, the San Francisco 49ers and the Dallas Cowboys. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2015.

Jan. 6, 1967 – During the Vietnam War, United States Marine Corps and ARVN troops launched "Operation Deckhouse Five" in the Mekong River delta.

Jan. 6, 1969 - Mark Norman Reedus was born in Hollywood, Fla. He is best known for his role as Daryl Dixon in the AMC series “The Walking Dead.”

Jan. 6, 1971 – During the Vietnam War, the Army dropped charges of an alleged cover-up in the My Lai massacre against four officers. After the charges were dropped, a total of 11 people had been cleared of responsibility during the My Lai trials.

Jan. 6, 1974 – Major League Baseball second baseman Marlon Anderson was born in Montgomery, Ala. He would go on to play for the Los Angeles Dodgers, the New York Mets, the Philadelphia Phillies, the St. Louis Cardinals, the Tampa Bay Devils Rays and the Washington Nationals.

Jan. 6, 1975 – As related to the Vietnam War, Phuoc Binh, the capital of Phuoc Long Province, about 60 miles north of Saigon, fell to the North Vietnamese. Phuoc Binh was the first provincial capital taken by the communists since the fall of Quang Tri on May 1, 1972.

Jan. 6, 1976 - Ted Turner purchased the Atlanta Braves for $12 million dollars.

Jan. 6, 1976 – Actor and martial artist Johnny Yong Bosch was born in Kansas City, Mo. He is perhaps best known for his role as the Black Power Ranger in the Power Ranger franchise.

Jan. 6, 1976 – Actor Danny Pintauro was born in Milltown, N.J. He is best known for his role as Jonathan Bower on the popular American sitcom “Who's the Boss?” and his role in the 1983 film “Cujo.”

Jan. 6, 1992 – Hansford Cooper, 54, of Evergreen, Ala. escaped serious injury when the 1989 Ford Bronco he was driving was struck by a train in downtown Evergreen. This was the second vehicle-train collision in downtown Evergreen in as many weeks.

Jan. 6, 1994 – Heisman Trophy winner Jameis Winston was born in Hueytown, Ala. He went on to play for Hueytown High School, Florida State and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Jan. 6, 1997 - Peter O'Malley announced that the Los Angeles Dodgers were for sale. The team had been owned by his family for 47 years.

Jan. 6, 1998 - Barry Switzer resigned as the head coach of the Dallas Cowboys.

Jan. 6, 1998 - The Dallas Cowboys signed lineman Larry Allen to a six-year deal worth more than $3.5 million a year.

Jan. 6, 2002 - Emmitt Smith of the Dallas Cowboys became the first running back in the NFL to run gain 1,000 yards in 11 consecutive seasons.