Today in History for Oct. 2, 2017

Pvt. Daniel Robinson of Camden, Ala.

Oct. 2, 1535 – Jacques Cartier discovered the area where Montreal is now located.

Oct. 2, 1768 - The British fleet first entered Boston Harbor carrying 1,000 soldiers. This was the beginning of the British occupation of Boston.

Oct. 2, 1780 – During the American Revolution, British army major (and Benedict Arnold accomplice) John André, age 31, was hanged as a spy at Tappan, N.Y. by American forces.

Oct. 2, 1781 - William Wyatt Bibb, the first governor of the Alabama Territory and then governor when Alabama became a state in 1819, was born in Virginia. When the Alabama Territory was divided from the Mississippi Territory in 1817, President James Monroe appointed Bibb territorial governor. That April, Bibb and his wife joined thousands of others in the land rush known as "Alabama fever." The Bibbs traveled to Alabama to settle briefly at the territorial capital of St. Stephens on the Tombigbee River. Alabama was granted statehood on Dec. 14, 1819 and Bibb was elected the state's first governor. He did not serve as governor very long. While riding near his plantation in Autauga County, he was thrown from his horse, bruising his head and kidney. He spent much of early 1820 bedridden and in "as much pain . . . as ever fell to the lot of any man." He died in July 1820 at the age of 39. Legislators honored him by changing the name of Cahawba County to Bibb County.

Oct. 2, 1789 – George Washington sent proposed Constitutional amendments (the United States Bill of Rights) to the States for ratification.

Oct. 2, 1800 – Nat Turner was born a slave in Southhampton County, Va. and went on to lead a slave revolt in 1831.

Oct. 2, 1835 – The Texas Revolution began with the Battle of Gonzales as Mexican soldiers attempted to disarm the people of Gonzales, Texas, but encountered stiff resistance from a hastily assembled militia.

Oct. 2, 1836 - Charles Darwin returned to England after five years of acquiring knowledge around the world about fauna, flora, wildlife and geology. He used the information to develop his "theory of evolution" which he unveiled in his 1859 book entitled “The Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection.”

Oct. 2, 1851 - The pasilalinic-sympathetic compass was first demonstrated. Also known as the snail telegraph, the compass was a contraption built to show that snails create a permanent telepathic link when they touch. It was later revealed to be a hoax.

Oct. 2, 1861 – During the Civil War, a skirmish was fought near the Confederate camp at Charlestown, Mo.

Oct. 2, 1861 – During the Civil War, skirmishes were fought at Chapmansville and Springfield Station in Virginia.

Oct. 2, 1862 – During the Civil War, skirmishes were fought on the Shepherdsville Road, Ky.; at Baldwyn, Miss.; at Ramer’s Crossing of the Mobile and Ohio Railroad in Mississippi; near Columbia, Mo.; at Vance’s Store, Ark.; at Carthage, Mo.; and at Anderson’s Crossroads, Dunlap, Greeneville, near Jasper, outside Chattanooga and at Pitt’s Crossroads in the Sequatchie Valley of Tennessee. Multiple skirmishes were also fought between Mayport Mills and Saint John’s Bluff in Florida.

Oct. 2, 1862 – During the Civil War, Federals destroyed the railroad depot at Beaumont, Texas.

Oct. 2, 1862 – During the Civil War, a series of operations began at Blue’s Gap (or Hanging Rock,) Little Cacapon Bridge, and Paw Paw Tunnel in West Virginia.

Oct. 2, 1864 - The Battle of Saltville took place in southwestern Virginia. Union cavalry forces attacked but were defeated by a Confederate force that was patched together from several reserve units. The Union suffered 329 men killed, wounded, or missing at Saltville, while the Confederates lost 190 men.

Oct. 2, 1864 – During the Civil War, skirmishes were fought at Big Shanty, Sand Mountain, Shadna Church, Westbrooks, Sweet Water, Noyes Creek, the Kennesaw Water Tank, and at the crossing of the Flat Rock and McDonough roads in Georgia; at Fayette, Miss.; near Columbia, Tenn.; and at Bridgewater and at Mount Crawford in Virginia.

Oct. 2, 1864 – During the Civil War, a six-day Federal expedition to the Amite River, New River and Bayou Manchac in Louisiana began.

Oct. 2, 1864 – During the Civil War, a 28-day series of Federal operations began in Southwest Mississippi and Eastern Louisiana.

Oct. 2, 1864 – During the Civil War, Confederates began their occupation of Washington, Mo.

Oct. 2, 1869 – Religious and political leader Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, best known as Mahatma Gandhi, was born in western India.

Oct. 2, 1879 – Modernist poet Wallace Stevens was born in Reading, Pa.

Oct. 2, 1890 – Comedian Groucho Marx was born in New York City.

Oct. 2, 1904 – Writer Graham Greene was born in Hertfordshire, England.

Oct. 2, 1908 - Addie Joss of Cleveland pitched the fourth perfect game in Major League Baseball history.

Oct. 2, 1914 – Confederate veteran William M. McCrory (some sources say his middle initial was “D”) passed away at the age of 72 in the Commerce community in Conecuh County, Ala. He was a native of South Carolina and a former resident of Butler County. Born in 1845, he served in Co. I of the 21^st Alabama Infantry. He was buried in the Asbury Methodist Church Cemetery in Conecuh County.

Oct. 2, 1915 – Burglars stole a “considerable quantity of goods” from the store of F.L. Riley on this Saturday night in Evergreen. Riley discovered the burglary the next morning and “set to work at once in an effort to apprehend the robbers.” Soon thereafter, he apprehended Richard Ballard, Levy Thompson and John Rogers for the crime.

Oct. 2, 1918 – During World War I, Army Pvt. Daniel Robinson of Camden, Ala. “died from disease” while overseas. He was a member Co. C of the 802^nd Pioneer Infantry and was buried in the Saint Mihiel American Cemetery in Lorraine, France.

Oct. 2, 1918 – During World War I, Army Pvt. Joshua Thomas Jordan, 21, of Opp, Ala. “died from disease.” Born on June 1, 1897, he was buried in the Mount Gilead Baptist Cemetery in Covington County, Ala.

Oct. 2, 1919 - At the White House in Washington, D.C., United States President Woodrow Wilson suffered a massive stroke that left him partially paralyzed on his left side and effectively ended his presidential career.

Oct. 2, 1920 - The Cincinnati Reds and the Pittsburgh Pirates played the only triple-header in Major League Baseball history. The Reds won two of the three games.

Oct. 2, 1927 - Author Cecil Dawkins was born in Birmingham, Ala.

Oct. 2, 1936 – Before a large crowd, in the season’s first battle between in-county teams, Frisco City High School beat J.U. Blacksher High School, 57-0, on the “lighted field” at Uriah.

Oct. 2, 1936 - The Evergreen Bulldogs dropped their second game of the football season to the Andalusia Bulldogs by the score of 12 to 0. Evergreen outplayed the boys with the pretty uniforms for three quarters and then lost in the last quarter on two long passes which were good for touchdowns.

Oct. 2, 1940 – Longtime Evergreen High School and Sparta Academy athletic booster Byron Warren Jr. was born in Evergreen, Ala.

Oct. 2, 1950 – The comic strip “Peanuts” by Charles Schulz made its debut in eight local papers in a variety of U.S. cities. The strip was an almost immediate success that expanded from its original eight newspapers to more than 2,600 papers in 75 countries at its peak.

Oct. 2, 1956 - The Atomichron, the first commercial atomic clock in the U.S., was unveiled in New York City. Its timing was based on the constant frequency of the oscillations of the caesium atom - 9,192,631,830 MHz.

Oct. 2, 1959 – The anthology series "The Twilight Zone" debuted on CBS-TV. The show ran for five years for a total of 154 episodes.

Oct. 2, 1965 – A homecoming football game between Repton High School and Lyeffion High School ended in a 6-6 tie on this Saturday night in Lyeffion. Lyeffion quarterback Homer Chaver scored Lyeffion’s only touchdown, and Repton quarterback Nickey Thompson scored Repton’s only touchdown.

Oct. 2, 1966 - The Soviet Defense Ministry newspaper, Krasnaya Zuezda, reported that Russian military experts had come under fire during U.S. raids against North Vietnamese missile sites while the Soviets were training North Vietnamese soldiers in the use of Soviet-made anti-aircraft missiles.

Oct. 2, 1967 – Army Spc. James Thomas Likely, 20, of Georgiana, Ala. was killed in action in Quang Nam, Vietnam. Born Feb. 4, 1967 in Butler County, Ala., he was serving in Co. A, 2^nd Battalion, 502^nd Infantry Brigade, 101^st Airborne Division at the time of his death. He was buried in the Friendship Cemetery in Georgiana, Ala.

Oct. 2, 1967 - The increased U.S. aerial offensive against North Vietnam that had started August 11 continued.

Oct. 2, 1968 - St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Bob Gibson struck out 17 Detroit Tigers in the first game of the World Series, breaking Sandy Koufax’s record for the most strikeouts in a Series game. Though the Cards ended up losing the Series in seven games, Gibson pitched three and struck out an unprecedented 35 batters.

Oct. 2, 1969 – Birmingham, Ala. native Al Worthington appeared in his final Major League Baseball game, taking the mound one last time for the Minnesota Twins.

Oct. 2, 1970 – A plane carrying the Wichita State University football team, administrators and supporters crashed in Colorado, killing 31 people.

Oct. 2, 1972 – Conecuh County (Ala.) Circuit Court Judge Robert E.L. Key swore in Evergreen Mayor Coy L. Harper and Evergreen’s city council, which included Tal Stuart III, Robert M. Glass, Knud Nielsen Jr., Clarence E. “Buddy” Evers (Mayor Pro Tem) and Ronnie Mullen.

Oct. 2, 1976 – NFL defensive tackle John Thornton was born in Pennsylvania, Pa. He went on to play for West Virginia, the Tennessee Titans and the Cincinnati Bengals.

Oct. 2, 1977 – “Julia,” a movie version of a portion of Alabama author Lillian Hellman's book “Pentimento,” was released.

Oct. 2, 1980 – Michael Myers became the first member of either chamber of Congress to be expelled since the Civil War.

Oct. 2, 1981 – On homecoming night in Castleberry, J.U. Blacksher High School beat Conecuh County High School, 20-14. Standout players for Blacksher in that game included Randy Blackwell, Dale Bradley, Terry Cumbie, Danny Dixon, Shannon Driskell, Allen Gunn, Craig Hales, Chris Harrison, David Kirchharr, David Peavy and Jimmy Woods. Keith Cardwell was Blacksher’s head coach.

Oct. 2, 1981 – Lyeffion High School beat Frisco City, 29-9, on this Saturday night in Frisco City. Defensively, the Yellow Jackets held the high scoring Whippets to just 64 yards rushing and 40 passing. The defense was led by Donald Lee with five solo tackles and two interceptions. Other top Lyeffion players in that game included Jeff Baggett, Bobby Blount, Michael Grace, Lee Hamrac, John Johnson, Andrew Maxwell, Leodus Mims, Jimmy Mixon, Joe Mixon, Roosevelt Mixon, Robert Riley, Eddie Ray Taylor and Freddie Taylor. Michael Bledsoe was Lyeffion’s head coach.

Oct. 2, 1981 - The Wilcox Academy Wildcats finally overcame a scrappy bunch of Sparta Academy Warriors and scored twice in the third period to win a private school football game 22-6 on this Friday night at Stuart-McGehee Field in Evergreen. Joey Johnson scored Sparta’s only touchdown on a four-yard run. Other outstanding Sparta players in that game included West Brown, Ed Carrier, Thad Ellis, Al Etheridge, Charles Floyd, Scotty Grace, Scott Lawrence, Joe McInvale, Britt McNeill, Mike Mixon, Russ Raines, Dewan Salter, Lewis Shipp and Mike Wilson.

Oct. 2, 1981 - The Evergreen High School Aggies lost their fifth football game in a row on this Friday night as the Monroeville Tigers defeated the Aggies 18-0. Evergreen players in that game included Mark Bell, Frank Likely, Henry Savage, Max Cassady, Barry Padgett, James Lee and Deatrich Wise.

Oct. 2, 1995 – John James “Coach Jack” Finklea passed away at the age of 86 at his residence in Americus, Ga. A graduate of Monroe County High School, he served as a coach and assistant principal at T.R. Miller High School in Brewton, Ala. and as the principal at Evergreen High School, before becoming the Director of Public Recreation for Americus and Sumter County in 1952, a post he held for 28 years until his retirement in 1980.

Oct. 2, 1998 - About 10,000 Turkish soldiers crossed into northern Iraq and attacked Kurdish rebels.

Oct. 2, 2002 – The Beltway sniper attacks began, extending over three weeks.

Oct. 2, 2007 – Beth Twitty’s book “Loving Natalee: A Mother's Testament of Hope and Faith” was published under the name "Beth Holloway," a name she resumed using following her December 2006 divorce from Jug Twitty.