Today in History for Oct. 6, 2018

Hernando de Soto

Oct. 6, 1539 – Spanish conquistador Hernando de Soto and his army entered the Apalachee capital of Anhaica (present-day Tallahassee, Fla.) by force.

Oct. 6, 1540 – The DeSoto Expedition stopped at the ancient Indian village of Kaxa on the Alabama River just south of the mouth of Cedar Creek in present-day Dallas County, Ala.

Oct. 6, 1600 – Jacopo Peri's “Euridice,” the earliest surviving opera, received its première performance in Florence, signifying the beginning of the Baroque period

Oct. 6, 1641 – Dutch explorer Matthijs Quast died at the age of 75. He had made several voyages for the Dutch East India Co. to Japan, China and Siam.

Oct. 6, 1683 – German immigrant families founded Germantown in the colony of Pennsylvania, marking the first major immigration of German people to America.

Oct. 6, 1723 – Benjamin Franklin arrived in Philadelphia at the age of 17.

Oct. 6, 1777 – During the American Revolutionary War, General Sir Henry Clinton led 3,000 British troops in the capture of Continental Army Hudson River defenses in the Battle of Forts Clinton and Montgomery in what is now Orange County, N.Y. Both forts were captured and then burned to the ground. The Americans lost nearly 300 men and the British lost 200 of the 3,000 men they used in the attack.

Oct. 6, 1820 – Soprano Jenny Lind was born in Stockholm, Sweden.

Oct. 6, 1824 – During his tour of the United States, the Marquis de Lafayette was escorted to Wilmington, Delaware by the Grand Lodge of Delaware Masons.

Oct. 6, 1829 - Alabama author Kittrell J. Warren was born in Clarke County, Ala.

Oct. 6, 1829 – Dugald McMillan named postmaster at “Burnt Corn Corners.” (Some sources say John Walter became postmaster on this day.)

Oct. 6, 1833 – Confederate soldier David G. (or C) Whitley was born. Whitley was elected as captain of Co. I, 53rd Alabama Partisan Rangers out of Lowndes County and was on the muster roll on Aug. 8, 1864 as a 2nd Lt. in the J.F. Clements Infantry Volunteers Home Guard. He was on the Record of Lowndes County Bonded Men on Jan. 1, 1865 and was exempt as a railroad employee. He was on the muster roll on April 3, 1865 of the Lowndes County 2nd Class Militia Home Guard and was bonded as railroad employee, exempt from CSA service. He died on Feb. 17, 1904 and was buried in the Old Evergreen Cemetery at Evergreen.

Oct. 6, 1847 - "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Bronte was first published in London.

Oct. 6, 1861 – During the Civil War, the Pony Express, after only 18 months, was discontinued.

Oct. 6, 1862 – During the Civil War, skirmishes were fought at Fair Grounds, Springfield, Burnt Crossroads, Beach Fork Grassy Mount and Bardstown, Kentucky; at Liberty and Sibley, Missouri; and at Bolivar Heights and Charlestown, West Virginia. A three-day Federal expedition from Jacksonville to Lake Beresford, Florida also began.

Oct. 6, 1863 - Confederate guerilla leader William Clarke Quantrill attacked Baxter Springs, Kansas. Although he failed to capture the Union stronghold, his men massacred a Federal detachment that happened to be traveling nearby. Quantrill and his men continued south to Texas, raiding homesteads and attacking Native American communities along the way.

Oct. 6, 1863 – During the Civil War, skirmishes were fought at Glasgow and another in Morgan County, Kentucky; at Lockhart’s Mill, on the Coldwater River, Mississippi; at Humansville, Missouri; at Christiana, near Fostersville, Readyville, and Wartrace, Tennessee; and near Catlett’s Station, Virginia.

Oct. 6, 1864 – During the Civil War, multiple skirmishes occurred in and about Florence, Ala.

Oct. 6, 1864 – During the Civil War, skirmishes were fought in Cole County, Missouri; at Kingsport, Tennessee; and near Brock’s Gap and near Forster’s Hill, Virginia.

Oct. 6, 1864 – 59^TH ALABAMA: Around 4 p.m. in the trenches at Petersburg, a detail of 15 men shot and killed James Ray of the 59^th Alabama for desertion and cowardice.

Oct. 6, 1866 – The first railroad holdup of a moving train in the United States is generally believed to have been committed on this day in Seymour, Indiana by the Reno Brothers, John and Simeon. They got away with $13,000 from an Ohio and Mississippi railroad train in Jackson County, Indiana.

Oct. 6, 1873 – Polish-English geologist and explorer Pawel Strzelecki died at the age of 76 in London of liver cancer and was buried in Kensal Green Cemetery. In 1997 his remains were transferred to the crypt of merit of St. Wojciech Church in his home town of Poznań, Poland.

Oct 6, 1876 – The American Library Association was founded.

Oct. 6, 1880 - The National League kicked the Cincinnati Reds out for selling beer.

Oct. 6, 1887 – Architect Le Corbusier was born Charles Edouard Jeanneret in Le-Chaux-de-Fonds, France.

Oct. 6, 1889 – American inventor Thomas Edison showed his first motion picture.

Oct. 6, 1890 - Polygamy was outlawed by the Mormon Church.

Oct. 6, 1891 – The Hon. G.R. Farnham returned to Evergreen, Ala. from Montgomery on this Tuesday morning where he had been assisting in the prosecution of Bradford Dunham for the killing of “young Cunningham.”

Oct. 6, 1900 – Evander Tennant McWilliams, 30, was appointed as the first postmaster of the new McWilliams post office. According to “Place Names in Alabama” by Virginia O. Foscue, the McWilliams community was probably named for the family of Evander Tennant McWilliams, who was named the community’s first postmaster when the post office was established there in 1900.

Oct. 6, 1908 - The Dual Monarchy of Austria-Hungary announced its annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, dual provinces in the Balkan region of Europe formerly under the control of the Ottoman Empire.

Oct. 6, 1909 – Ola T. Williams, the stepmother of Hank Williams, was born. She and Hank’s father, Elonzo H. Williams, are buried together in the Hopewell Methodist Church Cemetery at McWilliams in Wilcox County.

Oct. 6, 1913 - A three-week term of court was scheduled to begin in Conecuh County on this first Monday in October.

Oct. 6, 1914 – Norwegian explorer Thor Heyerdahl was born in Larvik, Norway.

Oct. 6, 1921 - C.E. Mills had the misfortune to lose his private garage at his home, together with two automobiles, shortly after midnight on this Thursday night, according to The Evergreen Courant. It was not known how the fire originated.

Oct. 6, 1921 – The organization PEN International was founded by novelist John Galsworthy and writer Catherine Dawson Scott, in London. PEN is an acronym for “poets, playwrights, editors, essayists, and novelists.”

Oct. 6, 1923 – Forest Home, Ala. native and Philadelphia Phillies catcher Douglas Woolley “Dixie” Parker played in his final Major League Baseball game, a 4-1 loss to the Boston Braves in Boston. The Butler County, Ala. native was 28 years old.

Oct. 6, 1925 – The Blacksher estate property was sold at auction by the Britt Davis Auction Co. of Monroeville, including 1,500 acres of choice farm land, much of which had already been improved and in production, including a 240-acre peach orchard, 160 acres of satsumas and 250 acres of pecan trees.

Oct. 6, 1926 - Yankee slugger Babe Ruth hit a record three homers against the St. Louis Cardinals in the fourth game of the World Series. The Yanks won the game, 10-5.

Oct. 6, 1933 – Opp High School beat Evergreen High School, 6-0, in Evergreen.

Oct. 6, 1935 – The baseball team from Bagdad (Fla.?) was scheduled to play a rematch against Evergreen at 3 p.m. in Evergreen after beating them on Sept. 29 in Bagdad. Evergreen’s projected line-up for the Oct. 6 game included Melton, Barfield, Hitchcock, Kendall, T. Seabrook, Hanna, H. Hanna, B. Lewis, Newton, Wilson, Carnathan with Hyde and Jones as pitchers.

Oct. 6, 1939 - The Chambers-Lazenby Motor Co. in Monroeville, Ala. began displaying the new 1940 Ford in their show room.

Oct. 6, 1941 – The young son of Willie Paralee was seriously injured on this Monday night when he dashed into the path of an automobile driven by Ted Bates on Highway 31 near the Montgomery Oak Flooring Co. mill in Evergreen, Ala. The child was carried to the Carter Hospital in Repton immediately after the accident and as of Oct. 8 was still living.

Oct. 6, 1942 - Author Betsy Hearne was born in Wilsonville, Ala.

Oct. 6, 1945 – Greek tavern-owner William “Billy Goat” Sianis and his pet billy goat “Murphy” were ejected from Wrigley Field during Game 4 of the 1945 World Series, resulting, some say, in the “Curse of the Billy Goat.”

Oct. 6, 1945 – German SS officer Leonardo Conti died at the age of 45 in Nuremberg, Germany.

Oct. 6, 1948 - "Summer and Smoke" by Tennessee Williams opened on Broadway.

Oct. 6, 1952 – Automobile dealer Charles W. Cole ended his term of service as Monroeville, Alabama’s mayor. He was elected in 1944, but didn’t run for re-election in 1948. However, when newly elected mayor Fred Fountain passed away in 1949, the Monroeville City Council picked Cole to fulfill Fountain’s unexpired term.

Oct. 6, 1955 – Pro Football Hall of Fame coach and safety Tony Dungy was born in Jackson, Michigan. He went on to play for the University of Minnesota, the Pittsburgh Steelers and the San Francisco 49ers and served as head coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Indianapolis Colts. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2016.

Oct. 6, 1958 – Spy novelist Joseph Finder was born in Chicago.

Oct. 6, 1961 - U.S. President John F. Kennedy urged every “prudent family” in America to build or buy bomb shelters to protect them in the event of a nuclear exchange with the Soviet Union.

Oct. 6, 1966 - Undaunted by a game-opening kickoff return by the Evergreen Aggies’ Homer Faulkner for a 90-yard touchdown, the Greenville Tigers ground out a 34-6 decision over Evergreen in Evergreen on this Friday night. The Aggies started off like a house afire with Faulkner gathering in the opening kickoff on his own 10, striking out up the middle and breaking into the clear behind good blocking and out-running the Tigers for a touchdown. Other top Evergreen players in that game included Elliott Quarles and Jack White. Top players for Greenville include Lionel Ed Rainey, Reese Rainey, Donald Coker, Maury Stead and Billy Taylor.

Oct. 6, 1966 - Coach Buck Powell’s improving Lyeffion High Yellow Jackets turned up for their Oct. 12 game with Evergreen High School by blasting the Ft. Deposit Red Devils at Lyeffion on this Friday night. The 26-6 victory was the second win for Lyeffion in five starts. Bo O’Gwynn hammered over from four yards out early in the first quarter to put the Jackets ahead. Later in the opening period, O’Gwynn went nine yards for the second Jacket score. Stanley Wilson got loose on a beautiful 72-yard run for the third Lyeffion score, and Ronnie Booker bucked over from the one for the final tally.

Oct. 6, 1967 - Alabama journalist Eddy Gilmore died in East Grinstead, England.

Oct. 6, 1967 - U.S. Navy pilots flew 34 missions as they again struck the Chien Chiang and Lang Son bridges near the Chinese border, another bridge 39 miles northeast of Hanoi, a railroad yard near Mo Trang, and two anti-aircraft sites south of Dong Hoi. Other jets attacked the Nam Dinh power plant that lay 45 miles southwest of Haiphong; a railway and highway bridge 24 miles southeast of Hanoi; and eight buildings in the Yen Bac military storage area.

Oct. 6, 1967 - The J.U. Blacksher Bulldogs came back in the last half to defeat the Frisco City Whippets, 26 to 14, on this Friday night on the Frisco City field. Halfback Tommy Cartwright led the Blacksher offense with 110 yards and quarterback Keith Cardwell followed with 73 yards. Other top Blacksher players in that game included Edwin Jeter, Gary Hilburn and Howard Metts. Top Frisco City players included Bill Grant, Andy Harrison, Randy Manning, Larry Norris, Ronnie Ray, Rex Ryder, Eddie Sawyer and Jimmy Tucker.)

Oct. 6, 1970 - South Vietnamese military officials announced the end of a three-month operation in southeastern Cambodia and the withdrawal of the 12,000-man task force involved.

Oct. 6, 1972 – J.F. Shields High School dedicated the school’s new football field during their first ever game at “The Pit” in Beatrice, Ala. They beat McIntosh, 12-0.

Oct. 6, 1973 – The Yom Kippur War began with a joint attack by Syrian and Egyptian forces — supported in part by the Soviet Union — on two fronts in Israel.

Oct. 6, 1976 – Major League Baseball pitcher Freddy García was born in Caracas, Venezuela. He went on to play for the Seattle Mariners, the Chicago White Sox, the Philadelphia Phillies, the Detroit Tigers, the New York Yankees, the Baltimore Orioles and the Atlanta Braves.

Oct. 6, 1978 – Evergreen High School won its fourth straight game by beating J.F. Shields, 14-12, in Beatrice, Ala. Quarterback Michael Adams and Sanford Moye scored touchdowns for Evergreen, and Calvin Middleton scored a two-point conversion. Wendell Parker led Evergreen’s defense with 11 tackles.

Oct. 6, 1978 – Escambia Academy beat Sparta Academy, 33-6, in Evergreen, Ala. Junior running back Ronny McKenzie led Sparta’s offense with 26 carries for 194 yards and the team’s only touchdown. Greg Anthony led Sparta’s defense with seven solos and 11 assists.

Oct. 6, 1980 – The Port Henry Village Board of Trustees passed a resolution granting protection of the serpentine creatures along the shores of 109-mile Lake Champlain in New York.

Oct. 6, 1981 – A Monroe County jury awarded $18,000 to Cornelia Dennis of Peterman, Ala., who claimed she was allowed to fall and break her hip while she was in Monroe County Hospital’s intensive coronary care unit in 1979.

Oct. 6, 1981 – Monroe County, Alabama’s fall grand jury indicted 48 people, including 47 for felonies. The grand jury, which was composed of 18 jurors chosen at random from 90 called to serve, was empaneled on Oct. 5 by Circuit Judge Robert E.L. Key and reported on Oct. 7.

Oct. 6, 1983 - The price for a single copy of The Monroe Journal newspaper increased to 35 cents from 30 cents with the Oct. 6 issue. Rates for mail subscriptions rose Oct. 1 when the $12 annual rate for local subscribers went to $15.

Oct. 6, 1985 - Joe Montana of the San Francisco 49ers set an NFL record with 57 pass attempts. He threw for five touchdowns and 429 yards.

Oct. 6, 1990 - Metallica began recording their self-titled album (also known as The Black Album).

Oct. 6, 1995 - The first discovery of a planet orbiting a star similar to the sun was announced. It was a Jupiter-sized planet around the star 51 Pegasus, some 50 light-years away.

Oct. 6, 1998 – The band “Alabama” received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Oct. 6, 2003 - The Indianapolis Colts became the first team in NFL history to win after trailing by 21 or more points with less than four minutes to play in regulation. The game went to an extra period where the Colts defeated the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 38-35.

Oct. 6, 2007 – Jason Lewis and the Expedition 360 team completed the first entirely human-powered circumnavigation of the globe.