Today in History for March 1, 2016

Joe Tipton

March 1, 1498 - Vasco de Gama landed at what is now Mozambique on his way to India.

March 1, 1510 – Portuguese solider and explorer Francisco de Almeida died at Table Bay, Cape of Good Hope.

March 1, 1642 – Georgeana, Massachusetts (now known as York, Maine), became the first incorporated city in the United States.

March 1, 1692 – Sarah Good, Sarah Osborne and Tituba were brought before local magistrates in Salem Village, Massachusetts, beginning what would become known as the Salem witch trials. Magistrates John Hathorne and Jonathan Corwin interrogated the three women over the course of several days. Tituba confessed to “afflicting” and confirmed that Good and Osborne were her co-conspirators.

March 1, 1781 - The Articles of Confederation were finally ratified. The Articles were signed by Congress and sent to the individual states for ratification on Nov. 15, 1777, after 16 months of debate. Bickering over land claims between Virginia and Maryland delayed final ratification for almost four more years. Maryland finally approved the Articles on March 1, 1781, affirming the Articles as the outline of the official government of the United States. The nation was guided by the Articles of Confederation until the implementation of the current U.S. Constitution in 1789. Between 1776 and 1787, Americans went from living under a sovereign king, to living in sovereign states, to becoming a sovereign people. That transformation defined the American Revolution.

March 1, 1790 - The U.S. Congress authorized the first U.S. census.

March 1, 1803 - Ohio became the 17th U.S. state.

March 1, 1817 – The Enabling Act was passed by Congress for the admission of the western part of Mississippi as a state.

March 1, 1836 – Alexander B. Puryear became postmaster at Burnt Corn, Ala.

March 1, 1836 – At the Alamo, a second cold front arrived. A relief column from Gonzales arrived, responding to William Barrett Travis’ pleas for help. The Gonzales Ranging Company safely entered the compound, increasing the garrison’s strength by at least 32. Finding no sign of James W. Fannin’s reinforcements, the detachment sent by Santa Anna returned.

March 1, 1845 - U.S. President John Tyler signed the congressional resolution to annex the Republic of Texas.

March 1, 1850 – The ill-fated Orline St. John prepared for the upriver trip to Montgomery, a voyage that would depend heavily on passenger revenue, freight and what merchant goods the stores of Claiborne, Cahawba, Selma and Montgomery needed to replenish winter-depleted stocks. But the run promised to be profitable, for with some 50 to 70 passengers, including a number of women and children, the first-class cabins were filled, and the lower deck was crowded. When everyone was on board – passengers and crew – the total may have exceeded 120. (Rivers of History)

March 1, 1858 – The Eliza Battle riverboat was destroyed by fire near present day Pennington, Ala. on the Tombigbee River. (13 Alabama Ghosts)

March 1, 1861 - Texas was accepted as a state by the provisional government of the Confederate States of America. Texas' secession from the Union was not official until the next day.

March 1, 1861 – During the Civil War, the government of the Confederate States of America assumed control of military affairs at Charleston Harbor, S.C.

March 1, 1862 – During the Civil War, a skirmish was fought at Sikeston, Mo., and engagement occurred at Pittsburg, Tennessee, involving the Union gunboats, USS Lexington and USS Tyler.

March 1, 1863 – During the Civil War, skirmishes were fought at Bradyville and Woodbury, Tenn.; near Fairfield and Swan Quarter, N.C.; and at Bloomfield, Mo. which was also captured on this day. A six-day Federal expedition from New Berne aboard the US steamer, Escort, to Swan Quarter, N.C. began.

March 1, 1864 – After getting captured by the Union at Campbell’s Station, Noah Dallas Peacock (Lewis Lavon Peacock’s older brother) was transferred from Louisville Military Prison to Fort Delaware.

March 1, 1864 - Union General Hugh Judson Kilpatrick arrived at the outskirts of Richmond, Virginia. Colonel Ulrich Dahlgren was killed while trying to rejoin Kilpatrick. (Kilpatrick-Dahlgren raid)

March 1, 1864 - U.S. President Abraham Lincoln nominated Ulysses S. Grant for the newly revived rank of lieutenant general, carrying Grant to the supreme command of Union forces. At the time, George Washington was the only other man to have held that rank. Winfield Scott also attained the title but by brevet only; he did not actually command with it.

March 1, 1864 – During the Civl War, skirmishes were fought at Buffalo City and Cedar Glade, Ark.; near Arcata, Calif. with Indians; at Cedar Creek and McGirt's Creek, Fla.; and at Ashland, Burton's Ford, near Stanardsville, near Atlee's, and on the Brook Turnpike in Virginia. A three-day Federal operation along the Quachita River in Louisiana began, with skirmishes at Trinity and Harrisonburg, Louisiana.

March 1, 1865 - General Thomas Rosser set fire to a bridge along the middle fork of the Shenandoah River. General George Custer's troops charged across the burning span and extinguished the fire before the bridge was destroyed.

March 1, 1865 – During the Civil War, skirmishes were fought at Holly Creek, Ga.; at Poison Creek, Idaho; at Wilson's Store, S.C.; at Philadelphia, Tenn.; and at Mount Crawford, Va.

March 1, 1867 – Nebraska became the 37th U.S. state, and Lancaster, Nebraska was renamed Lincoln and became the state capital.

March 1, 1872 – President Ulysses S. Grant signed legislation making Yellowstone National Park the first U.S. national park.

March 1, 1893 – Electrical engineer Nikola Tesla gave the first public demonstration of radio in St. Louis, Missouri.

March 1, 1898 - Alabama author Sara Haardt was born in Montgomery, Ala.

March 1, 1899 – German SS officer Erich von dem Bach-Zelewski was born in Lauenburg, Province of Pomerania, Kingdom of Prussia, German Empire (now Lębork, Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland).

March 1, 1905 – Jabez J. Parker, “one of the best known attorneys” in Mobile, Ala., died suddenly around 9 p.m. at his home at 206 St. Emmanuel St. in Mobile from heart failure.

March 1, 1914 – Baseball broadcaster Harry Caray was born in St. Louis, Mo.

March 1, 1914 – Novelist and essayist Ralph Ellison was born in Oklahoma City, Okla.

March 1, 1915 - The movie “Heart of Flame,” screenplay written by Alabama author Marie Stanley under her maiden name Marie Layet, was released.

March 1, 1915 – The two-story schoolhouse at Buena Vista, Ala. burned down. A one-room, one-teacher school house was built to replace it in the same location during the summer of 1915.

March 1, 1915 – The Arcade Theatre in Evergreen, Ala. began showing the five-part silent movie, “Such a Little Queen,” which starred Mary Pickford. First released on Sept. 21, 1914, this romantic comedy is now considered a lost film. Admission was 10 cents and 20 cents.

March 1, 1916 – R. Millsap Jr. left Evergreen, Ala. on this afternoon on the No. 4 train, bound for St. Louis to buy a carload of mules and horses, which he planned to sell in Evergreen. His stock was expected to reach Evergreen around the first of the following week.

March 1, 1916 – Dr. Sanders of Troy, who was a candidate for U.S. Congress, spoke at the Conecuh County Courthouse on this Wednesday night.

March 1, 1917 – Poet Robert Lowell was born in Boston, Mass.

March 1, 1921 – Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Richard Wilbur was born in New York City.

March 1, 1926 – Pro Football Hall of Famer Pete Rozelle was born in South Gate, Calif.

March 1, 1927 – H.P. Lovecraft completed “The Case of Charles Dexter Ward,” which was originally published in the May and July 1941 issues of Weird Tales.

March 1, 1928 – As best could be determined by the staff at The Evergreen Courant, the 16-page edition published on this day was “the largest regular edition of a newspaper ever published in Evergreen and Conecuh County.” Special “booster” editions had been bigger, but never before had a regular edition reached 16 pages.

March 1, 1928 – The Evergreen Courant reported that the members of the State Secondary Agricultural School’s boys basketball team were “worried” and “very anxious” because “so far they have been unable to raise the necessary funds” to pay for their trip to the state basketball tournament in Tuscaloosa.

March 1, 1934 – J.P. Matthews of Castleberry, Ala. qualified as a candidate in the election for Conecuh County Tax Collector.

March 1, 1936 – The Hoover Dam was completed.

March 1-2, 1936 – “Mutiny on the Bounty” was scheduled to be shown at the Evergreen (Ala.) Theatre on this Sunday and Monday. The movie starred Charles Laughton, Clark Gable and Franchot Tone.

March 1, 1937 - In Connecticut, the first permanent automobile license plates were issued.

March 1, 1941 - FM Radio began in Nashville, Tenn. when station W47NV began operations.

March 1, 1941 - Elmer Layden was named the first Commissioner of the National Football League.

March 1, 1942 – William Edward Stinson was killed in service in Vienna. He was a lieutenant in the Air Force and was a pilot in the 415th B. Squadron.

March 1, 1943 – The old Finklea & Finklea store, which was owned and operated by J. Foster Finklea and Charles Finklea from February 1926 to 1943, was sold to Bedsoles.

March 1-3, 1951 - The Class AA First District Basketball Tournament was scheduled to be held in Evergreen High School’s Memorial Gym in Evergreen, Ala. Fourteen teams were scheduled to compete for the district crown. McGill Institute of Mobile, runner-up to Ensley in the 1950 state tournament, was the defending champion.

March 1, 1952 – Physician and explorer Jerri Nielsen was born in Salem, Ohio.

March 1, 1961 – The Alabama River reached flood stage at Miller’s Ferry, Ala., and Wilcox County residents began preparing for the worst. Then things began to improve. The weather cleared and turned warmer, almost spring-like, but the flood situation would soon take a turn for the worst.

March 1, 1965 - Ambassador Maxwell Taylor informed South Vietnamese Premier Phan Huy Quat that the United States was preparing to send 3,500 U.S. Marines to Vietnam to protect the U.S. airbase at Da Nang. Three days later, a formal request was submitted by the U.S. Embassy, asking the South Vietnamese government to “invite” the United States to send the Marines. Premier Quat, a mere figurehead, had to obtain approval from the real power, Gen. Nguyen Van Thieu, chief of the Armed Forces Council. Thieu approved, but asked that the Marines be “brought ashore in the most inconspicuous way feasible.”

March 1, 1967 – In the opening game of the Region 1, Area 2 basketball tournament in Flomaton, Ala., Evergreen High School played Georgiana at 7 p.m., and Monroeville played T.R. Miller at 8 p.m.

March 1, 1968 - Clark Clifford replaced Robert McNamara as Secretary of Defense. McNamara, who had first taken office under President John F. Kennedy, left amid a debate over Vietnam policy precipitated by the Tet Offensive. 

March 1, 1969 - Mickey Mantle announced his retirement from Major League Baseball.

March 1, 1969 - Jim Morrison of the Doors was arrested and officially charged with lewd and lascivious behavior, indecent behavior, open profanity and public drunkenness in Miami. Morrison was later sentenced. Morrison died while the sentence was under appeal.

March 1, 1971 – A bomb exploded in the Capitol building in Washington, D.C., causing an estimated $300,000 in damage but hurting no one. A group calling itself the “Weather Underground” claimed credit for the bombing, which was done in protest of the ongoing U.S.-supported Laos invasion. The so-called Weathermen were a radical faction of the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS); the Weathermen advocated violent means to transform American society. 

March 1, 1973 - Pink Floyd released "Dark Side of the Moon".

March 1, 1973 - A movie version of Alabama author Gay Talese's book “Honor Thy Father” was released.

March 1, 1973 – The Evergreen Courant reported that Myrtice Morris of Brewton, Ala. had found a World War I citation issued to Charlie Rutledge of Evergreen, Ala. by President Woodrow Wilson. She found the citation while going through some old papers.

March 1, 1973 – The Evergreen Courant reported that John Crum Sessions of Evergreen, Ala. had been selected from over 26,000 Future Farmers of America in Alabama as Alabama’s “Future Farmer of the Year,” the highest annual award presented to a member of the Alabama FFA Association. Crum was to receive the award at the annual State FFA Convention on June 6, 1974 in Montgomery, Ala.

March 1, 1973 – Evergreen High School’s boys basketball team played Andalusia in the 3A state basketball tournament at 6 p.m. at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Ala. In 32 games, Evergreen was undefeated on the floor, but they’d had to forfeit four games earlier in the season.

March 1, 1974 – During the Watergate Scandal, seven were indicted for their role in the Watergate break-in and charged with conspiracy to obstruct justice.

March 1, 1974 – Former Auburn running back Stephen Davis was born in Spartanburg, S.C. He went on to play for Spartanburg High School, Auburn University, the Washington Redskins, the Carolina Panthers and the St. Louis Rams.

March 1, 1977 – The City of Evergreen, Ala. began collecting an additional one-cent sales tax within the city limits to pay back $233,000 the city borrowed to provide financial assistance to the Conecuh County Hospital.

March 1, 1979 - The NCAA granted ESPN the exclusive rights to telecast collegiate events.

March 1, 1980 – Evergreen High School’s varsity boys basketball team won the region/district championship by beating Jackson, 67-65, in East Brewton, Ala. Perona Rankins led Evergreen with 24 points; Sanford Moye had 18; Philander Rodgers, nine; David Floyd, six; Horace Smith, five; Joe Mitchell, three; and Johnny Allen, two. This win gave them a berth in the 3A state tournament.

March 1, 1991 - "The Doors" movie debuted. Val Kilmer played the role of Jim Morrison.

March 1, 1994 – Former Major League Baseball catcher Joe Tipton passed away at the age of 72 in Birmingham, Ala. During his career, he played for the Cleveland Indians, the Chicago White Sox, the Philadelphia Athletics and the Washington Senators.

March 1, 2004 – Mohammad Bahr al-Ulloum becames President of Iraq.

March 1, 2007 – Tornadoes broke out across the southern United States, killing at least 20. Eight of the deaths were at Enterprise High School in Enterprise, Ala.

March 1, 2007 – Millers Ferry in Wilcox County, Ala. was struck by a deadly tornado. One person was killed, two injured and over 70 houses were damaged and destroyed. The tornado caused well over $2 million in damage.

March 1, 2012 – The Heron Hill Cemetery in Clarke County was added to the Alabama Historic Cemetery Register.