Thread: It Happened Today in History

October 30
October 30, 1905 - To counter the spread of revolutionary movements in Russia, Czar Nicholas II took a step toward constitutional government by allowing for an elected parliament (Duma) with legislative powers and guaranteeing civil liberties.

October 30, 1938 - The War of the Worlds radio broadcast panicked millions of Americans. Actor Orson Welles and the Mercury Players dramatized the story by H.G. Wells depicting a Martian invasion of New Jersey. Their script utilized simulated radio news bulletins which many listeners thought were real.

October 30, 1990 - For the first time since the Ice Age, Britain was connected with the European continent, via a new rail tunnel under the English Channel.

Birthday - John Adams (1735-1826) the 2nd U.S. President was born in Braintree, Mass. He served from March 4, 1797 to March 3, 1801. He had been George Washington's vice president, and was the father of John Quincy Adams, the 6th President. He died on July 4, 1826, the same day as Thomas Jefferson, on the 50th anniversary of adoption of the Declaration of Independence.

Birthday - Emily Post (1872-1960) was born in Baltimore, Maryland. She wrote influential books on etiquette and a syndicated newspaper column giving advice on manners in specific situations.

Birthday - Admiral William "Bull" Halsey (1882-1959) was born in Elizabeth, New Jersey. He was the American fleet commander during World War II in the Pacific and played a leading role in the defeat of the Japanese. In 1942, he launched the Doolittle Raid, the first air raid on Japan. From 1942-44, he coordinated successful attacks on the Solomon Islands and New Guinea. In 1944, he led the U.S. fleet to victory at the Battle of Leyte Gulf, the largest naval battle in history.

October 31st

http://www.historyplace.com/specials...ar/october.htm

October 31 - Halloween or All Hallow's Eve, an ancient celebration combining the Christian festival of All Saints with Pagan autumn festivals.

October 31, 1517 - Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses to the door of Wittenberg's Palace church, denouncing the selling of papal indulgences and questioning various ecclesiastical practices. This marked the beginning of the Protestant Reformation in Germany.

October 31, 1940 - The Battle of Britain concluded. Beginning on July 10, 1940, German bombers and fighters had attacked coastal targets, airfields, London and other cities, as a prelude to a Nazi invasion of England. British pilots in Spitfires and Hurricanes shot down over 1,700 German aircraft while losing 915 fighters. "Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few," said Prime Minister Winston Churchill.

October 31, 1941 - Mount Rushmore National Memorial was completed after 14 years of work. The memorial contains 60 foot tall sculptures of the heads of Presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt - representing America's founding, political philosophy, preservation, and expansion and conservation.

October 31, 1950 - Earl Lloyd became the first African American to play in an National Basketball Association (NBA) game when he took the floor for the Washington Capitols in Rochester, New York.

October 31, 1952 - The U.S. detonated its first hydrogen bomb at the Elugelab Atoll in the Eniwetok Proving Grounds in the Pacific Marshall Islands.

October 31, 1961 - The body of Joseph Stalin was removed from the mausoleum in Red Square and reburied within the Kremlin walls among the graves of lesser Soviet heroes. This occurred as part of Russia's de-Stalinization program under his successor, Nikita Khrushchev. Stalin's name was also removed from public buildings, streets, and factories. Stalingrad was renamed Volgograd.

October 31, 1968 - During the Vietnam War, President Lyndon Johnson ordered a halt of American bombing of North Vietnam.

October 31, 1984 - Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi was assassinated by three Sikh members of her bodyguard while walking in the garden of her New Delhi home.

Birthday - Chinese soldier and statesman Chiang Kai-shek (1887-1975) was born in Chekiang. Educated at the Wampoa Military Academy, he led the KMT (nationalist) forces in the struggle against the Communist army led by Mao Zedong.

December 26th

From: December 26 Events in History

2004 Earthquake, greatest in over 40 years, strikes the Pacific Ocean near Sumatra, triggering a massive Indian Ocean tsunami, killing as many as 266,000 in coastal regions of Asia and Africa

2003 Earthquake kills more than 30,000 in Bam, Iran

1994 French commando's terminate Air France hijacking in Marseille

1993 Antonov-26 crashes at Gyumri, Armenia, 36 killed

1991 Jack Ruby's gun sells for $220,000 in auction

1991 Militant Sikhs kill 55 and wound 70 in India
1988 Anti African student rebellion in China PR
1983 U.S.S.R. performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk U.S.S.R.
1978 India's former PM, Indira Gandhi, released from jail
1975 1st supersonic transport service (U.S.S.R.-Tupolev-144)
1973 "Exorcist," starring Linda Blair and rated X, premieres
1973 2 Skylab 3 astronauts walk in space for a record 7 hours

1973 Soyuz 13 returns to Earth
1968 Arab terrorists in Athens fire on El Al plane, kills 1

1968 Led Zeppelin's concert debut in Boston as opener for Vanilla Fudge
1964 Beatles' "I Feel Fine," single goes #1 and stays #1 for 3 weeks
1963 Beatles release "I Want To Hold Your Hand"/"I Saw Her Standing There"
1963 US furnishes cereal to U.S.S.R.
1947 British transfer Heard and McDonald Is (Indian Ocean) to Australia

1947 Heavy snow blankets Northeast, buries New York City under 25.8" of snow in 16 hours That same day, LA set a record high of 84 degrees F
1933 US forswears armed intervention in Western Hemisphere
1932 Earthquake kills 70,000 in Kansu China

1931 SS-Sturmbannfuhrer Reinhard Heydrich marries Lina von Osten
1926 Prince-regent Hirohito becomes emperor of Japan

1925 Turkey adopts Gregorian calendar
1917 Fed government took over operation of American RR for duration of WW I

1916 Joseph Joffre becomes marshal of France
1899 Mafeking: Bathe-Powells failed assault up fort Game Tree: 24 killed

1872 4th largest snowfall in New York City history (18")
1865 James H Mason (Mass) patents 1st U.S. coffee percolator
1862 Battle of Dumfries, VA

1862 1st U.S. Navy hospital ship enters service

1862 38 Santee Sioux Indians hanged in Mankato Minn, due to their uprising

1860 Maiden voyage of 1st steamship owned by 1 man (C Vanderbilt)

1860 Major Robert Anderson, under cover of darkness, concentrated his small force at Ft. Sumter
1825 Erie Canal opens
1813 Zamose, Modlin, Torgau surrenders to allied armies
1809 English invasionary troop leaves Vlissingen
1805 France and Austria signs Peace of Pressburg
1776 George Washington defeats Hessians at Trenton
1773 Expulsion of tea ships from Philadelphia
1748 France and Austria signs treaty about Southern Netherlands
1659 Long Parliament reforms in Westminster

1620 Pilgrims arrived at Plymouth, MA

1492 1st Spanish settlement in New World founded, by Columbus
1481 Battle at Westbroek: Dutch army beats Utrecht

December 26th

1986 Elsa Lanchester, actress (Bride of Frankenstein), dies at 84

1985 Dian Fossey, zoologist (Gorillas in the Mist), murdered at 53

1977 Howard Hawks, director (Rio Lobo, Hatari!), dies at 81

1974 Jack Benny, comedian (Jack Benny Show), dies at 80

1972 Harry Truman, 33rd U.S. President (1945-53), dies in Kansas City, Missouri at 88