Today in History for June 9, 2016

Alfred Pleasonton

June 9, 1534 - Jacques Cartier became the first to sail into the river he named the Saint Lawrence River.

June 9, 1732 – James Oglethorpe was granted a royal charter for the colony of the future U.S. state of Georgia.

June 9, 1772 - Off the coast of Rhode Island, the HMS Gaspee ran aground while chasing the packet boat Hannah. The ship was an armed British customs schooner. The next morning the ship was attacked and burned.

June 9, 1790 - John Barry copyrighted the “Philadelphia Spelling Book,” making it the first American book to be copyrighted.

June 9, 1815 - Alabama author Johnson Jones Hooper was born in Wilmington, N.C.

June 9, 1822 - Charles Graham received the first patent for false teeth.

June 9, 1856 – Five hundred Mormons left Iowa City, Iowa, and headed west for Salt Lake City carrying all their possessions in two-wheeled handcarts.

June 9, 1860 – The first dime novel, “Malaeska, the Indian Wife of the White Hunter” by Ann S. Stephens, was published. It was the first of 321 novels published by Beadle & Adams in their series Beadle’s Dime Novels.

June 9, 1861 - Mary Ann "Mother" Bickerdyke began working in Union hospitals.

June 9, 1862 – During the Civil War, Stonewall Jackson concluded his successful Shenandoah Valley Campaign with a victory in the Battle of Port Republic. His tactics during the campaign are now studied by militaries around the world. Leaving a brigade to protect against action by Fremont, Confederate Robert Ewell crossed the Shenandoah in support of Jackson in his action against the Union’s James Shields, resulting in a Confederate victory.

June 9, 1862 – During the Civil War, an engagement was fought at Grand Gulf, Mississippi.

June 9, 1863 - In Virginia, the Battle of Brandy Station occurred. It was the largest cavalry battle of the war. Confederate General J.E.B. Stuart's cavalry held the field after being attacked by Union troops under General Alfred Pleasonton. An engagement was also fought at Beveraly Ford, Va.

June 9, 1863 – During the Civil War, “affairs” occurred at Rocky Gap and Monticello in Kentucky. A skirmish was fought on the Big Black River in Mississippi, and an “action” occurred near Lake Providence, La.

June 9, 1863 – During the Civil War, the siege at Vicksburg, Mississippi entered Day 22.

June 9, 1864-March 25, 1865 – The Siege of Petersburg, Va. took place during the Civil War. William Haskins of the Conecuh Guards was killed at Petersburg, and 3rd Sgt. Louis Stahl of the Conecuh Guards wounded there in October 1864 at Petersburg. Stahl had his arm resected, survived war and moved to Marlin, Texas. Lewis Lavon Peacock also claimed to have been wounded at Petersburg.

June 9, 1864 – During the Civil War, an engagement was fought at Petersburg, Va.; an “affair” occurred near Breckenridge, Missouri; and an “action” took place at Mount Sterling, Ky.; and an “affair” occurred near Pleasureville, Ky.

June 9, 1864 – During the Civil War, Confederates captured Mount Sterling, Kentucky.

June 9, 1864 – During the Civil War, skirmishes were fought at LaFayette, Tenn. and at Big Shanty and Stilesborough, Ga.

June 9, 1865 - U.S. President Andrew Johnson moved into the White House, nearly two months after the death of Abraham Lincoln.

June 9, 1870 – In Higham, Kent, England, novelist Charles Dickens suffered a stroke, fell off his chair at the dinner table and died at the age of 58.

June 9, 1885 – The Treaty of Tientsin was signed to end the Sino-French War, with China eventually giving up Tonkin and Annam – most of present-day Vietnam – to France.

June 9, 1891 – Song-writer Cole Porter was born in Peru, Indiana.

June 9, 1892 – Canadian-English captain and explorer William Grant Stairs, 28, died from malaria and was buried in the European Cemetery in Chinde, Mozambique at the mouth of the Zambezi River. He played a leading role in two of the most controversial expeditions in the history of the colonisation of Africa, the Emin Pasha Relief Expedition and the Stairs Expedition to Katanga.

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June 9, 1914 - Honus Wagner became the second player in Major League Baseball history to record 3,000 hits.

June 9, 1915 – William Jennings Bryan resigned as Woodrow Wilson's Secretary of State over a disagreement regarding the United States' handling of the sinking of the RMS Lusitania.

June 9, 1915 – Burnt Corn Masonic Lodge No. 489 elected officers for the ensuing year. Those officers included Hugh C. Fountain, Worshipful Master; Harold R. Betts, Senior Warden; Anderson M. Stokes, Junior Warden; Henry H. Brantley, Treasurer; Ajax O. Brantley, Secretary; Henry G. Brantley, Senior Deacon; Francis T. Thames, Junior Deacon; Henry J. Roberson, Tiler; Isaac S. Ridgway, Chaplain; Enoch M. Salter and Owen J. Day, Stewards.

June 9, 1916 – Alabama daily papers on this Friday announced the adoption of the eastern route by the Forrest Highway committee in executive session at Montgomery following official inspection of both the eastern and western routes. The route was to extend from Montgomery to Bay Minette, embracing the towns of Luverne, Andalusia, Brewton and Atmore.

June 9, 1916 - The first cotton bloom of the season was left on the editor’s desk at The Monroe Journal on this day, but it wasn’t unaccompanied by a note or any other means of identification, so the newspaper didn’t know who to give credit to for the bloom.

June 9, 1916 – German SS officer Siegfried Graetschus was born in Tilsit, German Empire.

June 9, 1919 - At a meeting of the stockholders of the new Monroeville Gin & Mill Co., held on this Monday, the following officers and directors were elected: J.K. Kyser, president; Jno. Bigger, vice president; J.A. Lazenby, secretary and treasurer; A.T. Sowell and B.H. Stallworth, additional directors. It was expected that work would begin at once.

June 9, 1924 – Lamar W. Matkin purchased The Evergreen Courant in Evergreen, Ala.

June 9, 1926 – The Electrik-Maid Bake Shop opened in Evergreen, Ala. under the management of J.O. Stapp.

June 9, 1934 – Donald Duck made his debut in “The Wise Little Hen.”

June 9, 1943 - The famed “Tuskegee Airmen” were involved in their first air battle with German fighter planes in the skies over North Africa. These flyers from the 99th Fighter Squadron were among those trained at Tuskegee Army Air Field, the center for pilot training of African Americans during World War II.

June 9, 1944 - A foxhound named Lena in Pennsylvania gave birth to a record litter of 23 puppies.

June 9, 1946 - Mel Ott of the New York Giants became the first manager to be ejected from both games of a doubleheader.

June 9, 1946 - Ted Williams hit the longest home run inside Fenway Park. The ball traveled 502 feet and landed in Seat 21 in Row 37 of Section 42. It is marked now by an iconic red seat.

June 9, 1949 – The Monroe Journal reported that three Monroeville, Ala. baseball players who had participated in three or more Dixie League games were hitting above the .300 mark for the season. They were Joe Tucker, who was hitting .386; “Nub” Stacey, who was batting .318; and Coach LaVaughn Hanks, who was hitting .302.

June 9, 1949 - Foy F. Feagin, prominent Monroeville druggist, died suddenly of a heart attack shortly before nine o’clock on this Thursday morning (Thursday) while at work in his store. He was the owner and operation of the Monroeville Pharmacy.

June 9, 1956 – Crime novelist Patricia Cornwell was born in Miami, Fla.

June 9, 1957 – The first ascent of Broad Peak was achieved by Fritz Wintersteller, Marcus Schmuck, Kurt Diemberger and Hermann Buhl.

June 9, 1961 – In American League youth baseball action in Evergreen, Ala., the Chicks beat the Orioles, 7-5. Langford pitched for the Chicks, and Huggins pitched for the Orioles. Later that night, the Dodgers beat the Yankees, 6-5. Hart pitched for the Dodgers, and White pitched for the Yankees.

June 9, 1961 – While three children “watched in horror” on this Friday afternoon, Dennis Gross, 55, and Joe Nathan, 24, drowned in a pond behind Gross’ home on the old Evergreen-Castleberry Road, about a mile south of P.J. Godwin’s. Both men drowned when Gross tried to save Betts from downing in the pond.

June 9, 1963 – Actor Johnny Depp was born in Owensboro, Kentucky.

June 9-10, 1964 - About 50 youths were expected to participate in the Evergreen Rotary Club’s Fifth Annual Conecuh County 4-H Fish & Wildlife Camp on this Tuesday and Wednesday, according to Camp Director Elbert Williams. The camp was located at Tal Stuart’s Pond near Belleville, Ala.

June 9, 1964 - In reply to a formal question submitted by President Lyndon B. Johnson–“Would the rest of Southeast Asia necessarily fall if Laos and South Vietnam came under North Vietnamese control?”–the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) submitted a memo that effectively challenged the “domino theory” backbone of the Johnson administration policies. This theory contended that if South Vietnam fell to the communists, the rest of Southeast Asia would also fall “like dominoes,” and the theory had been used to justify much of the Vietnam War effort. President Johnson appears to have ignored the CIA analysis–he eventually committed over 500,000 American troops to the war in an effort to block the spread of communism to South Vietnam.

June 9, 1965 – During the Vietnam War, the Viet Cong commenced combat with the Army of the Republic of Vietnam in the Battle of Đồng Xoài, one of the largest battles in the war.

June 9, 1965 – The civilian Prime Minister of South Vietnam, Phan Huy Quát, resigned after being unable to work with a junta led by Nguyễn Cao Kỳ.

June 9, 1966 - Minnesota set a Major League Baseball record when they hit six home runs in one inning. First baseman Don Mincher, a native of Huntsville, Ala., was one of the six Twins to hit a home run in the seventh inning of that game against the Kansas City Athletics starter Catfish Hunter and reliever Paul Lindblad. The others were Harmon Killebrew, Tony Oliva, Rich Rollins and Zoilo Versalles.

June 9, 1968 – U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson declared a national day of mourning following the assassination of Senator Robert F. Kennedy.

June 9, 1969 – Thomas Charles Littles of Brooklyn, Ala. arrived in Vietnam. He would later be fatally wounded.

June 9, 1972 - Part of a relief column composed mainly of South Vietnamese 21st Division troops finally arrived in the outskirts of An Loc. The division had been trying to reach the besieged city since April 9, when it had been moved from its normal station in the Mekong Delta and ordered to attack up Highway 13 from Lai Khe to open the route to An Loc. The South Vietnamese forces had been locked in a desperate battle with a North Vietnamese division that had been blocking the highway since the very beginning of the siege. As the 21st Division tried to open the road, the defenders inside An Loc fought off repeated attacks by two North Vietnamese divisions that had surrounded the city early in April. This was the southernmost thrust of the North Vietnamese invasion that had begun on March 30; the other main objectives were Quang Tri in the north and Kontum in the Central Highlands.

June 9, 1972 - John Paul Vann, the senior U.S. advisor in the Central Highlands, was killed in a helicopter crash, probably shot down by a North Vietnamese unit. Vann had successfully directed the battle against the North Vietnamese invaders at Kontum.

June 9, 1977 – Oakey Streak Methodist Church near Greenville, Ala. was added to the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage.

June 9, 1978 – The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints opened its priesthood to "all worthy men," ending a 148-year-old policy of excluding black men.

June 9, 1991 – Susan Harper, who lived at 226 Elizabeth St. in Evergreen, celebrated her 100th birthday with a party at her residence. She was presented a Key to the City of Evergreen by Evergreen Mayor Lee Smith.

June 9, 1994 - Lisa "Left-Eye" Lopes of TLC set fire to her boyfriend's house. Her boyfriend was Andre Rison of the Atlanta Falcons.

June 9, 1996 - Frank Thomas of the Chicago White Sox hit his 200th career home run.

June 9, 1996 - Ryan Hancock became the first California Angel pitcher to get a hit in 24 years. Nolan Ryan was the previous pitcher to get a hit for the Angels in 1972.

June 9, 1998 – Mark Childress’ fifth novel, “Gone for Good,” was released by Knopf.

June 9, 1998 – David C. Fleming, who taught vocational agribusiness at Evergreen High School for 30 years, was inducted into the Future Farmers of America Wall of Honor during the FFA state convention at the Montgomery Civic Center.

June 9, 2000 - The U.S. Justice Department announced that it had not uncovered reliable evidence of conspiracy behind 1968 assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.

June 9, 2003 - Alabama author Robert O. Bowen died in Anchorage, Alaska.

June 9, 2004 – Pro Football Hall of Fame tackle Rosey Brown died at the age of 71 in Mansfield Township, New Jersey. During his career, he played for Morgan State and the New York Giants. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1975.

June 9, 2005 – Police arrested Jordan Van der Sloot, 17, Deepak Kalpoe, 21, and Satish Kalpoe, 18, on suspicion of kidnapping and murdering Natalee Holloway, 18, of Mountain Brook, Ala.

June 9, 2006 – The 2006 Conecuh County Relay For Life event was held at Middleton Field in Evergreen and raised a total of $65,641.83. Inez Booker was the Relay chairman.

June 9, 2008 - Ken Griffey Jr. of the Cincinnati Reds hit his 600th career home run. Only Barry Bonds, Hank Aaron, Babe Ruth, Willie Mays and Sammy Sosa had more runs at the time.