Today in History for March 29, 2016

U.S. General Winfield Scott

March 29, 1638 – Swedish colonists established the first European settlement in Delaware, naming it New Sweden.

March 29, 1776 - General George Washington appointed Major General Israel Putnam commander of the troops in New York. In his new capacity, Putnam was expected to execute plans for the defense of New York City and its waterways.

March 29, 1780 – Danish adventurer Jørgen Jørgensen was born in Copenhagen, Denmark.

March 29, 1790 - John Tyler, the 10th President of the United States, was born in Charles City County, Va.

March 29, 1806 – Construction was authorized of the Great National Pike, better known as the Cumberland Road, becoming the first United States federal highway.

March 29, 1847 – During the Mexican–American War, United States forces led by General Winfield Scott took Veracruz after a siege.

March 29, 1848 - Niagara Falls stopped flowing for one day due to an ice jam.

March 29, 1861 – During the Civil War, Fort Mason, Texas was abandoned by Federal forces.

March 29, 1862 – During the Civil War, skirmishes were fought near Warrensburg, Mo. and on Edisto Island, S.C.

March 29, 1862 – During the Civil War, Middleburg, Va., in the Shenandoah Valley, was the scene of a conflict between Union and Confederate cavalry and infantry. In a somewhat unusual outcome, it was a complete Union victory. The reason for this was the employment of a new and horrible weapon of war: the coffee grinder. This was the nickname of a new device, given because of the large handle which had to be turned to fire it. Much work was needed before it became reliable enough to use on a regular basis, by which time it was known as the machine gun.

March 29, 1863 – During the Civil War, an eight-day Federal operation inclusive of Fayetteville, Cassville and Springfield, Mo. began. Skirmishes were also fought near Jacksonville, Fla.; at Moscow, Tenn.; and at Dumfries, Kelly’s Ford and Williamsburg, Va.

March 29, 1864 – During the Civil War, skirmishes were fought at Arkadelphia, Bellfonte, Long View, Roseville and in the vicinity of Fort Smith, Ark.; at Monett’s Ferry and at Coulterville, La.; and in the vicinity of Bolivar, Tenn.

March 29, 1865 - The final campaign of the Civil War, now known as the Appomattox Campaig, began in Virginia when Union troops under General Ulysses S. Grant moved against the Confederate trenches around Petersburg, Va. General Robert E. Lee’s outnumbered Rebels were soon forced to evacuate the city and begin a desperate race west.

March 29, 1865 – During the Civil War, Major General Frederick Steele’s column reached Weatherford, Ala.

March 29, 1865 – During the Civil War, skirmishes were fought along the Blackwater River in Kentucky; near Mosely Hall and at Wilkesborough, N.C.; and at Gravelly Run, at the junction of the Quaker and Boydton Roads, and near Hatcher’s Run. Va. A five-day Federal operation inclusive of Waynesville, Rolla, Jackson’s Mills, Coppage’s Mill, Spring Creek and Big Piney, Mo. began. A Federal operation between Stephen’s Depot, Va. and Smithfield, S.C. also began.

March 29, 1867 – National Hall of Fame baseball pitcher and manager Cy Young was born in Gilmore, Ohio. During his career, he played for the Cleveland Spiders, the St. Louis Perfectos, the Boston Americans/Red Sox, the Cleveland Naps and the Boston Rustlers. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1937.

March 29, 1869 – Thirty-two attorney’s organized the Mobile Bar Association, which was Alabama first bar association and is one of the oldest in the entire nation.

March 29, 1882 - The Knights of Columbus organization was established when it was granted a charter by the State of Connecticut.

March 29, 1886 – Dr. John Pemberton brewed the first batch of Coca-Cola in a backyard in Atlanta.

March 29, 1903 - A regular news service began between New York and London on Marconi's wireless.

March 29, 1906 – The Monroe Journal reported that J.B. Barnett and family were occupying the dwelling recently vacated by Dr. R.A. Smith.

March 29, 1906 – The Monroe Journal reported that Bush English of Eliska, Ala. was now employed in the office of the Monroe County Probate Judge.

March 29, 1911 – The M1911 .45 ACP pistol became the official U.S. Army side arm.

March 29, 1912 – Three members of the ill-fated Terra Nova Expedition to Antarctica died from a combination of exhaustion, starvation and extreme cold on the Ross Ice Shelf. They included English lieutenant and explorer Robert Falcon Scott, 43; Scottish lieutenant and explorer Henry Robertson “Birdie” Bowers, 28; and English physician, natural historian, painter, ornithologist and explorer Edward Adrian “Uncle Bill” Wilson, 39.

March 29, 1913 – Poet R.S. Thomas was born in Cardiff, Wales.

March 29, 1916 – Politician and author Eugene McCarthy was born in Watkins, Minnesota. His books include “Ground Fog and Night” (1979) and “Other Things and the Aardvark” (1970).

March 29, 1916 - The body of Frank M. Wiggins was found in the woods near Salem in Monroe County, Ala. on this Wednesday morning. Wiggins went out hunting on the afternoon before (Tues., March 28), and failing to return to his home, a search was instituted with the result stated. He had evidently died several hours before from natural causes.

March 29, 1936 – Novelist and screenwriter Judith Guest was born in Detroit, Mich.

March 29, 1936 – In Germany, Adolf Hitler received 99 percent of the votes in a referendum to ratify Germany's illegal reoccupation of the Rhineland, receiving 44.5 million votes out of 45.5 million registered voters.

March 29, 1938 - Senator D. Hardy Riddle of Talladega, candidate for Alabama governor, was scheduled to address voters at the Conecuh County Courthouse on this Tuesday at 7:30 p.m.

March 29, 1941 – The North American Radio Broadcasting Agreement went into effect at 03:00 local time.

March 29, 1943 – Comedian, author, actor, singer, comedy writer, composer and alumnus of the Monty Python troupe Eric Idle was born in South Shields, England.

March 29, 1944 – Anne Frank made the decision to rewrite her diary as an autobiography.

March 29, 1955 – Pro Football Hall of Fame running back and Heisman Trophy winner Earl Campbell was born in Tyler, Texas. He would go on to play for the University of Texas, the Houston Oilers and the New Orleans Saints. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1991.

March 29, 1961 – The Twenty-third Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified, allowing residents of Washington, D.C. to vote in presidential elections.

March 29, 1961 – Actress, author and comedian Amy Sedaris was born in Endicott, N.Y.

March 29, 1969 – The annual Miss Evergreen Pageant was held at the Evergreen City School auditorium. A total of 45 young ladies were slated to compete for the title, which Patricia Montgomery won the 1968.

March 29, 1968 – Evergreen High School, under Coach Wendell Hart, was scheduled to play in a spring football jamboree against T.R. Miller and Greenville in Brewton on this Friday night. Evergreen’s defensive starters were linemen Ernest Shipp, Roger Waller, Eddie Ralls, Jimmy Hamiter and Forrest Simpson; linebackers Tommy Weaver, Buck Quarles and Jimmy Bell; and defensive backs Hollis Tranum, Jimmy Hart and Leon Hinson. Offensive starters were wingback Tommy Weaver, right end Ernest Shipp, right tackle Jimmy Hamiter, right guard Roger Waller, fullback Elliott (Buck) Quarles, quarterback Jimmy Hart, center Ralph Deason, left guard Eddie Ralls, tailback Don Montgomery, left tackle Forrest Simpson and left end Charlie Wild.

March 29, 1968 – Lyeffion High School was scheduled to host a spring football jamboree that included Repton, Red Level and Coffeeville on this Friday at 7 p.m. Each school was to play two 12-minute quarters. The schools were to draw to see who they would play on the field just prior to the game. Admission was 50 cents and $1.

March 29, 1971 – Lt. William L. Calley was found guilty of premeditated murder at My Lai by a U.S. Army court-martial at Fort Benning, Georgia. Calley, a platoon leader, had led his men in a massacre of Vietnamese civilians, including women and children, at My Lai 4, a cluster of hamlets in Quang Ngai Province on March 16, 1968.

March 29, 1973 – Under the provisions of the Paris Peace Accords signed on Jan. 27, 1973, the last U.S. troops departed South Vietnam, ending nearly 10 years of U.S. military presence in that country. The U.S. Military Assistance Command Vietnam headquarters was disestablished. Only a Defense Attache Office and a few Marine guards at the Saigon American Embassy remained, although roughly 8,500 U.S. civilians stayed on as technical advisers to the South Vietnamese.

March 29, 1973 - As part of the Paris Peace Accords, Hanoi released the last 67 of its acknowledged American prisoners of war, bringing the total number released to 591

March 29, 1973 – Operation Barrel Roll, a covert U.S. bombing campaign in Laos to stop communist infiltration of South Vietnam, ended.

March 29, 1973 - Dr. Hook & the Medicine Show appeared on the cover of "Rolling Stone." The members of the band included Ray “Eye Patch” Sawyer, a native of Chickasaw, Ala.

March 29, 1974 – Local farmers in Lintong District, Xi'an, Shaanxi province, China, discovered the Terracotta Army that was buried with Qin Shi Huang, the first Emperor of China, in the third century BCE.

March 29, 1976 – Tennis player Jennifer Capriati was born in New York City.

March 29, 1977 – The First Presbyterian Church and the Lomax-Hannon Junior College, both in Greenville, Ala., were added to the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage.

March 29, 1979 - The Committee on Assassinations Report issued by U.S. House of Representatives stated the assassination of President John F. Kennedy was the result of a conspiracy.

March 29, 1984 – The Baltimore Colts loaded its possessions onto 15 Mayflower moving trucks in the early morning hours and transfered its operations to Indianapolis.

March 29, 1985 – Dr. Luther Terry, a native of Red Level, Ala., passed away from heart failure at the age of 73 in Philadelphia, Pa. He was appointed the ninth Surgeon General of the United States from 1961 to 1965, and is best known for his warnings against the dangers and the impact of tobacco use on health.

March 29, 1987 – Shortly after 2:40 p.m., Frank Dewberry and his wife, Dorothy, found the badly decomposed nude body of Vickie Lynn Pittman of East Brewton off County Road 43 at Brooklyn, Ala.

March 29, 1990 - David Taylor of Conecuh County, Ala. killed gobbler that weighed 18 pounds and had a nine-inch beard and one-inch spurs.

March 29, 1995 – Former Major League Baseball outfielder Terry Moore, a native of Lamar County, Ala., passed away at the age of 82 in Collinsville, Ill. He played his entire career for the St. Louis Cardinals. He was a four-time All Star and was part of two World Series championship teams.

March 29, 1998 - Author Eugene Walter died in Mobile, Ala.

March 29, 2001 – The Evergreen Courant reported that repairs were underway to buildings damaged in Evergreen, Ala. during a recent storm.

March 29, 2001 – Norwegian explorer Helge Ingstad passed away at the age of 101 at Diakonhjemmet Hospital in Oslo. After mapping some Norse settlements, Ingstad and his wife Anne Stine, an archaeologist, in 1960 found remnants of a Viking settlement in L'Anse aux Meadows in the Province of Newfoundland in Canada. With that they were the first to prove conclusively that the Greenlandic Norsemen had found a way across the Atlantic Ocean to North America, roughly 500 years before Christopher Columbus and John Cabot.

March 29, 2010 – Jordan Van der Sloot allegedly contacted John Q. Kelly, legal representative of Beth Twitty, with an offer to reveal the location of Holloway's body and the circumstances surrounding her death for an advance of $25,000 against a total of $250,000. After Kelly notified the Federal Bureau of Investigation, they arranged to proceed with the transaction.

March 29, 2012 – Oak Lawn Farm in Greenville, Ala. was added to the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage.