JFK JR. KILLED IN PLANE CRASH NEAR MARTHA’S VINEYARD

July 16, 1999


JFK JR.,WIFE & SISTER-IN-LAW KILLED IN PLANE CRASH NEAR MARTHA’S VINEYARD


Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts (JFK+50) The son of the late President & Mrs. John F. Kennedy, John F. Kennedy, Jr., his wife, Carolyn Bessette Kennedy & sister-in-law Lauren Bessette died this evening when their Piper Saratoga single-engine airplane crashed.


The three were going to attend the wedding of the late Robert F. Kennedy’s youngest daughter, Rory.


Mr. Kennedy, who was piloting the plane, was a graduate of Brown University & New York University Law School.


JFK Jr. was  an assistant district attorney & founder of the political magazine, “George”.*


*The article above is published as if all news were available on July 16, 1999 but the wreckage of the aircraft was not found for 2 days.  The bodies were recovered by navy divers on July 21.

                John F. Kennedy, Jr.
                 NASA Photo (1998)


July 16, 1969


CREW OF APOLLO 11 ON WAY TO HISTORY


Cape Canaveral, Florida (JFK+50) The crew of Apollo 11 was successfully launched here at 9:32 Eastern time this morning.


Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin, Neil Armstrong, & Michael Collins are now in the process of achieving the goal set by President John F. Kennedy in 1961 to “land a man on the moon & return him safely to the earth before this decade is out.”

                     Apollo 11 Lifts Off
                        July 16, 1969
                        NASA Photo


July 16, 1962


SI PUBLISHES JFK’S “THE VIGOR WE NEED”


New York, NY (JFK+50) Sports Illustrated published today it’s latest issue which includes an article written by President John F. Kennedy.


The title of the article is “The Vigor We Need”.


The President recommends proposals to overcome the disturbing fact that 60% of the nation’s school-aged children do not take part in regular physical fitness programs & millions of adults neglect regular exercise.


JFK says:


“The ultimate responsibility for the fitness of the American people rests on the cooperation & determination of school boards, town officials & millions of fathers & mothers.”

Official US Physical Fitness Brochure
                  JFK Library Image


July 16, 1945


ATOMIC BOMB TEST IN NEW MEXICO A SUCCESS


Alamogordo, New Mexico (JFK+50) The United States successfully exploded the world’s 1st atomic bomb here this morning at 5:29:45 local time.


The test follows years of work by the employees of the Manhattan Project approved by the late President Franklin D. Roosevelt.


At Los Alamos, the project was directed by Robert J. Oppenheimer with assistance from Hans Bethe, Edward Teller & Enrico Fermi.


The test bomb was detonated 120 miles South of Sante Fe with scientists positioned 10,000 yards away.


A mushroom cloud appeared 40,000 feet in the air.*


*The final cost of the Manhattan Project would be $2 billion.

        Trinity Atomic Test Site Obelisk
            Photo by Samat Jain (2010)


July 16, 1918


CZAR NICHOLAS II & FAMILY ARE EXECUTED


Yekaterinburg, Russia (JFK+50) The Romanovs of Russia were executed in the cellar of a house in this city late this evening by their Bolshevik captors.


Czar Nicholas II, who had been forced to abdicate in March 1917, was shot along with his wife, Alexandra, their 5 children & 4 servants.


They were ordered to dress & were waiting in a room in the cellar when a group of gunmen entered & shot them all.

                       Czar Nicholas II
         Portrait by H. Manizer (1905)


July 16, 1914


SIR LIPTON WRITES ROSE KENNEDY IS HIS “CUP OF TEA”


Southampton, England (JFK+50) Sir Thomas Lipton, aboard the Erin off the English coast today, wrote a reply to his good friend John Francis “Honey Fitz” Fitzgerald.


Sir Lipton, the famous tea magnate, wrote:


“My Dear Fitzgerald:


I note that (your daughter) Rose (Fitzgerald) is getting married.  Her fiance (Joseph P. Kennedy) is a very lucky chap.  He is getting a girl that is one of the best & cleverest that ever breathed.”

               Sir Thomas Lipton (1909)

JFK ACCEPTS DEMOCRAT’S NOMINATION IN LA

July 15, 1960


JFK ACCEPTS DEMOCRAT’S NOMINATION IN LA


Los Angeles (JFK+50) Senator John F. Kennedy of Massachusetts accepted the nomination of the Democratic Party for President of the United States this evening here in Los Angeles.


Senator Kennedy, who gave his acceptance speech at the Los Angeles Coliseum, is the 1st Roman Catholic candidate for President since Al Smith in 1928.


In reference to the “religious issue” that came up during the campaign, JFK said:


“I hope that no American…will…throw away his vote by voting either for me or against me because of my religious affiliation.  It is not relevant.”


And he added:


“My decisions on any public policy will be my own, as an American, as a Democrat, & as a free man.”


JFK also talked about his program which is called “The New Frontier”.  He said:


“The New Frontier of which I speak is not a set of promises.  It is a set of challenges.   It sums up not what I intend to offer the American people, but what I intend to ask of them.”

                JFK Accepts Nomination
                          July 15, 1960
                   JFK Library Photo


July 15, 1961


JFK PROPOSES TO GIVE VOTE TO D.C. RESIDENTS


Hyannis Port, Massachusetts (JFK+50) President John F. Kennedy transmitted a draft of a bill from his home here today to the US Congress in Washington, D.C.


The proposed legislation would restore to the residents of the District of Columbia “the basic right to local self-government through the elective process, a right enjoyed by all other American citizens”.*


*In July 1961, residents of the District of Columbia (originally created out of the states of Maryland & Virginia) were not permitted to vote in national elections.


July 15, 1962


JFK TALKS WITH MARSHALL OF NEW ZEALAND


Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) President John F. Kennedy conferred with New Zealand Prime Minister John R. Marshall today.


The two gentlemen discussed the possibility of Great Britain’s entrance into the European Common Market.


July 15, 1963


JFK TALKS WITH NYERERE OF TANGANYIKA


Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) President John F. Kennedy began 2 days of talks today with President Julius Nyerere of Tanganyika.


The two Presidents will be discussing political developments in Africa & relations between their countries.

          Julius Nyerere of Tanganyika


July 15, 1964


GOLDWATER NOMINATED BY REPUBLICANS


San Francisco (JFK+50) Arizona Senator Barry Goldwater was nominated tonight here at the Cow Palace by the delegates of the 1964 Republican National Convention.


Senator Goldwater, considered to be on the extreme right wing of his party, wrote of his conservative views in a newspaper column that was published in book form in 1960.  


The title is “The Conscience of a Conservative”.


In the 1964 campaign, Goldwater has been critical of the policies of Presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy & Johnson.


He is strongly opposed to civil rights legislation & is rabidly anti-communist.*


*In his 1974 book “With No Apologies”, Goldwater wrote:


“I have served in the Senate during the terms of six Presidents.  I think Eisenhower was the best & least understood.”

              Senator Barry Goldwater
                           (R) Arizona
                   September 25, 1962
           Photo by Mario S. Trikosko


July 15, 1979


PRESIDENT CARTER SAYS THERE IS A “CRISIS OF CONFIDENCE”


Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) In the midst of a national energy crisis & economic recession, President Jimmy Carter spoke to the American people tonight on national television from the White House.


President Carter said there is a lack of “moral & spiritual confidence” in the nation & that it is the cause of America’s inability to recover from its current economic crisis.


The President said a “crisis of confidence” has led to domestic turmoil as well as “the loss of unity & purpose for our nation.”

             President James Earl Carter
           Official White House Portrait


July 15, 1789


LAFAYETTE CHOSEN COLONEL-GENERAL OF THE NATIONAL GUARD OF PARIS


Paris (JFK+50) The day following the fall of the Bastille here in Paris, French aristocrat the Marquis de Lafayette was made Colonel-General of the National Guard.


Lafayette, a hero of the American Revolution & close personal friend of President George Washington, had proposed to the National Assembly just 4 days ago, a “Declaration of Rights” modeled after America’s “Declaration of Independence”*


*From 1792-1797, the Marquis was imprisoned as a traitor for his failure to support the “Reign of Terror”.

                 Marquis de Lafayette
                            July 14, 1790

LBJ NOMINATED VP BY ACCLAMATION

July 14, 1960


LBJ NOMINATED VP BY ACCLAMATION


Los Angeles (JFK50) 1960 Democratic presidential nominee, Senator John F. Kennedy, surprised many people, including members of his own staff, by offering the Vice-Presidential nomination to Senator Lyndon B. Johnson.


This evening, however, the delegates of the Democratic Convention meeting here in Los Angeles, made LBJ the Vice-Presidential nominee “by acclamation”.*


*A question still exists in the minds of some that believe JFK offered the VP slot to LBJ only as a “gesture” not expecting him to accept it.  


Regardless, it is likely JFK would have never defeated Nixon without LBJ on the ticket.

               Panoramic View of the 
       1960 Democratic Convention
                photo by Irv Brent
              Library of Congress 


July 14, 1961


JFK SAYS US WILL SEND HELP TO BRAZIL


Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) President John F. Kennedy, after meeting with Dr. Celso Furtado, director of the Developmental Agency for Northeast Brazil, issued a statement saying the United States will send economists & technicians to help reconstruct the economy of the depressed northeastern area of Brazil.


July 14, 1962


JFK WANTS TO SLOW DOWN ARMS RACE


Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) President Kennedy called upon Soviet leaders today to cooperate in a “creative search” for ways to end the arms race.*


*In June 1963 JFK will propose a Nuclear Test Ban Treaty.


July 14, 1963


DIVISION BETWEEN SOVIETS & CHINESE GROWS


Moscow (JFK+50) Representatives from the People’s Republic of China & the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics continued their discussions today here in Moscow.


Reports indicate that the division between the two communist nations is growing.


The Soviet representatives issued a statement saying that “peaceful coexistence” with the West in the atomic age is “necessary”.


July 14, 1953


SENATOR KENNEDY BACK IN HOSPITAL


Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) Senator John F. Kennedy of Massachusetts has been sent back to the hospital today.


The young senator has had a recurrence of malaria which he contracted during his service in the Solomon Islands during WWII.


Senator Kennedy is “resting comfortably” at the George Washington University Hospital in Georgetown.


July 14, 1918


QUENTIN ROOSEVELT SHOT DOWN IN FRANCE


France (JFK+50) Former President Theodore Roosevelt’s son, Quentin, was shot down over the Marne River in France today by a German aircraft.


Second Lieutenant Roosevelt of the 95th Aero Squadron, TR’s 4th son, was killed according to reports.


The young Roosevelt was engaged to Flora Payne Whitney, the granddaughter of Cornelius Vanderbilt.


TR had asked President Wilson to allow him to serve in the war but when the request was turned down, TR sent his sons in his place.


The former President is devastated by the news of his son’s passing.*


*Someone said: “Finally, the little boy in Teddy Roosevelt, died.” 

                 2nd Lt. Quentin Roosevelt
                      95th Aero Squadron


July 14, 1881


BILLY THE KID SHOT DEAD BY PAT GARRETT


New Mexico Territory (JFK+50) Henry McCarty, better known as “Billy the Kid”, was shot to death today by Sheriff Pat Garrett at the Maxwell Ranch here in the New Mexico Territory.


The “Kid” had escaped jail, killing 2 guards in the process, after he had received a death sentence for murder.

                         Henry McCarty
                     a.k.a. Billy the Kid


July 14, 1789


REVOLUTIONARIES STORM THE BASTILLE


Paris (JFK+50) The Bastille, a royal fortress that symbolizes the tyranny of the French monarchy, was stormed this morning here in Paris.


The mob of French citizens dismantled the fortress.
.
The Bastille was built in 1730 to protect the city of Paris from attack by England.  It later became a prison for political troublemakers & spies.*


*Today July 14 is celebrated throughout France as “La Fete Nationale”, a national holiday in honor of the taking of the Bastille.


To all our French visitors & those of French descent: “Happy Bastille Day!”

             Storming of the Bastille
                  July 14, 1789, Paris

KENNEDY WINS NOMINATION ON 1ST BALLOT

July 13, 1960


KENNEDY WINS NOMINATION ON 1ST BALLOT


Los Angeles (JFK+50) Senator John F. Kennedy of Massachusetts was nominated on the 1st ballot at the Democratic National Convention here this evening.


JFK defeated his closest rival, Senator Lyndon B. Johnson of Texas, by a 2 to 1 margin.  Other candidates trailed far behind.


Kennedy becomes the 1st US Senator since Warren G. Harding in 1920 to be nominated by either major party for President.


The Democratic Platform, on which JFK & his running-mate (yet to be named) will run, calls for speeding up economic growth.  It also has planks on national defense, disarmament, civil rights, immigration, foreign aid & labor & tax reform.


The “top 4” final delegate vote tally is:


Kennedy 806, Johnson 409, Symington 86, Stevenson 79.5

        On the Floor of the Convention
                     www.lib.unc.edu


July 13, 1961


JFK ADDRESSES AFS STUDENTS


Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) President John F. Kennedy spoke at the White House today to 1850 American Field Service students from 50 countries who have been living & studying in the United States over the past year.


The President told the students:


“I hope you go from here not merely as a friend but understanding our faults & our assets.”

               AFS Students in Australia
           Photo by Mick Boundy (2006)


July 13, 1959


KENNEDY WANTS TENNIS TOURNEY MOVED FROM FOREST HILLS


Spring Lake, NJ (JFK+50) Senator John F. Kennedy of Massachusetts spoke to 1500 guests here today at an Essex County Governor’s Day Picnic held at the Homestead Country Club.


In his speech, the young senator said that the US Lawn Tennis Association should move its major tournament from Forest Hills, New York because of the discrimination policies practiced by the West Side Tennis Club.


July 13, 1948


DEMOCRATS ADOPT PLATFORM SUPPORTING FDR/TRUMAN POLICIES


Philadelphia (JFK+50) The delegates to the 1948 Democratic National Convention meeting here today adopted a platform which defends the foreign policies of both President Harry S Truman & the late President Franklin D. Roosevelt.


Republicans have been critical of FDR’s negotiations reached with the Soviets the Yalta Conference & of Truman’s cold war policies.


Despite the supportive platform, the Democrats are less than enthusiastic about the chances to elect Truman to his own 4 year term.


At the Republican convention held earlier, Clare Booth Luce told the delegates that Truman is a “gone goose”.*


*Some Democrats held signs at the convention which read “I’m just mild about Harry”, a rewording of the 1921 song.

July 13, 1787


CONGRESS PASSES NORTHWEST ORDINANCE


Philadelphia (JFK+50) The Congress passed the Northwest Ordinance today.


The law will organize the Northwest Territory & provide for the adding of new states to the union.


3 to 5 states are to be created out of the territory with the appointment of a governor & council for each.  When 60,000 inhabitants settle one of the territories, they may apply for statehood.

IKE BECOMES 1ST PRESIDENT TO FLY IN CHOPPER

July 12, 1957


IKE BECOMES 1st PRESIDENT TO FLY IN CHOPPER


Dwight D. Eisenhower became the 1st President of the United States to fly in a helicopter today.


It was Ike himself who suggested to the secret service that it would be more efficient to use a helicopter, rather than motorcades, for short Presidential trips.


The HMX-1 Nighthawk Squadron is now officially in the service of the White House.*


*The Marine Corps took over helicopter service for the President in 1976.  The helicopter that the President uses at any given time is called “Marine One”.

                         “Marine One”


July 12, 1960


JFK & LBJ DEBATE AT LA DEMO CONVENTION


Senator John F. Kennedy of Massachusetts & Senator Lyndon B. Johnson of Texas, both candidates for the Democratic Presidential Nomination of 1960, faced each other today in a nationally televised debate at the Democratic National Convention in Los Angeles, California.


JFK commented on the fact that his Massachusetts delegates were badly outnumbered by the Texas delegation.


LBJ spoke about his leadership in the Senate while JFK was out campaigning.  


JFK said that he supported LBJ’s decision to remain in the Senate as Majority Leader & not enter the primaries.*


*JFK will win the Presidential nomination the following night on the 1st ballot & later announce LBJ as his Vice-Presidential running mate.

                             JFK & LBJ
                      August 12, 1960
                  LBJ Library Photo


July 12, 1961


JFK MEETS WITH UNHAPPY NAACP LEADERS


60 leaders of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People came to the White House today to meet with President Kennedy.


The group, led by Stephen G. Spotswood, Washington Chairman of the Board, & Executive Secretary Roy Wilkins, expressed displeasure with JFK’s lack of action in promoting the civil rights bill now before Congress.

     JFK Listens to Civil Rights Leaders 
                        July 12, 1961
  Washington State Historical Society
        http://www.washingtonhistory.org


July 12, 1962


NASA UNVEILS PLANS FOR APOLLO PROGRAM


NASA officials today announced details concerning the Apollo Program which intends to fulfill President Kennedy’s goal of “landing a man on the moon & returning him safely to earth before this decade is out.”


According to NASA, a command module will be flown in orbit around the moon while a lunar module or “lander” will take 2 other astronauts to the surface.


After the 2 astronauts explore the lunar surface, they will return to the command module for the return trip to earth.*


*Apollo 11 will make NASA’s 1961 plan a reality in July 1969 as Michael Collins flies the command module & Neil Armstrong & Buzz Aldrin descend to the moon’s surface in the lunar lander.  

               Apollo 16 Lunar Module
                     NASA Photo (1972)


July 12, 1984


MONDALE CHOOSES FERRARO FOR VP


Leading Democratic Presidential candidate, Senator Walter Mondale of Minnesota, announced today his choice for Vice-President.


She is Representative Geraldine Ferraro of New York State’s 9th District.


If Mondale wins the nomination as expected, Ferraro will become the 1st woman to be on a Presidential ticket & if elected in November, the 1st woman to be elected Vice-President.*


*The history making decision by Mondale was not a factor, however, against the popular incumbent Ronald Reagan who won the largest Republican landslide in US History in the Election of 1984.

                    Geraldine Ferraro

STATE DINNER HELD AT MOUNT VERNON FOR PRESIDENT KHAN OF PAKISTAN

July 11, 1961


STATE DINNER HELD AT MOUNT VERNON FOR PRESIDENT KHAN OF PAKISTAN


President & Mrs. John F. Kennedy gave a state dinner on the lawn of George Washington’s Mount Vernon estate this evening for the visiting President of Pakistan, Mohammed Ayub Khan & his wife.


The 135 dinner guests were transported to the estate on 4 yachts which sailed down the Potomac River from Washington.


The dinner was held in a tent decorated by Tiffany’s of New York.


In a toast to President Khan, JFK said:


“We recognize in you a leader who recognizes that the independence of his own country is not enough, that there is a link which binds your country & ours all the way across the globe.”*


*Khan served as Pakistan’s president from 1958 to 1969.

JFK, Mrs. Khan, Jackie, President Khan
           Mount Vernon, Virginia
                     July 11, 1961
               JFK Library Photo


July 11, 1961


JFK HONORS SENATOR GEORGE W. NORRIS


President Kennedy took part in a ceremony today honoring the 100th birthday of the late Nebraska senator, George W. Norris.


Norris was instrumental in the development of the Tennessee Valley Authority during the 1930s.


JFK joined in honoring Norris with TVA’s Board of Directors & congressmen from districts in the Tennessee Valley area.*

Congressman Rankin & Senator Norris
FDR Signs Rural Electrification Act
                       May 11, 1935


*Norris Dam, located on the Clinch River in Anderson & Campbell Counties in East Tennessee & opened in 1936, was named for Senator George W. Norris.

                          Norris Dam
                 Norris, Tennessee


July 11, 1962


JFK TO GIVE BUSINESS A TAX BREAK


In hopes of giving a boost to the economy, the Kennedy administration today announced the federal depreciation schedules will be revised to allow businesses to deduct the costs of equipment & machinery at a faster rate.


The revisions are to take place immediately.


JFK said:


“By encouraging business to replace its machinery more rapidly, we hope to make American products more cost competitive, step up our rate of recovery & growth, & provide expanded job opportunities for all American workers.”


July 11, 1962


JFK SPEAKS TO VISITING FOREIGN STUDENTS


President Kennedy today spoke to 2000 students from Western Europe, Asia, Australia & other countries on the South Lawn of the White House.


JFK spoke of the responsibility of the United States to the world after a long tradition of isolation.*


*JFK joked with the British students about their “forebears burning the White House”.


July 11, 1995


US & VIETNAM OPEN FULL DIPLOMATIC RELATIONSHIP 20 YEARS AFTER WAR’S END


President William Jefferson Clinton today established a full diplomatic relationship with Vietnam.


It has been 20 years since the Vietnam War ended with the country unified under a Communist government.


Last year President Clinton lifted the 19 year trade embargo with Vietnam.


Mr. Clinton is supported in his decision to establish the diplomatic relationship with Vietnam by Arizona Republican Senator John McCain, himself a 5 year POW in Hanoi during the war.*


*In November 2000, President Clinton will become the 1st President to visit Vietnam since Nixon’s 1969 visit.

           President Bill Clinton 
     Hanoi National University
                http://www.usvtc.org


July 11, 1945


SOVIETS GIVE UP CONTROL OF WEST BERLIN


Abiding by agreements worked out during WWII conferences, the Soviet Union today relinquished both military & civilian control of West Berlin.


By the agreements, the American & British governments will share control of West Berlin.


The former Nazi capital had been under Soviet control from the time of Berlin’s fall.*


*The US & British will later give up part of their “zones of occupation” to France.

 

       Germany Divided After WWII
                 Map by Broadbeer


July 11, 1914


BABE RUTH MAKES MAJOR LEAGUE DEBUT


George Herman “Babe” Ruth made his major league debut today pitching for the Boston Red Sox.


The Babe gave up 5 hits over his 1st 6 innings before being relieved in the 7th.


The Red Sox won by a score of 4 to 3 & the Babe got the win.*


*Babe Ruth’s career pitching record for the Red Sox would be 89-46.

        Babe Ruth Signs an Autograph
                  1937 All-Star Game
              Harris & Ewing Photo
                Library of Congress


July 11, 1804


ALEXANDER HAMILTON SHOT IN DUEL WITH AARON BURR


The long political feud between Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton & Vice-President Aaron Burr was settled today on the “field of honor”.


Hamilton, whose 1st shot missed high, was shot in the abdomen by Burr.  Doctors believe the bullet has lodged near the spine.


The former Treasury Secretary was carried from the field in critical condition.


The duel was fought at 7 this morning in Weehawken, New Jersey.*


*Hamilton, who disapproved of dueling & apparently intentionally fired high, died the next day at 2 p.m.  His remains were interred in the Trinity Churchyard Cemetery in Manhattan.

            Hamilton & Burr Duel 

TELSTAR SATELLITE LAUNCHED INTO ORBIT

 July 10, 1962


TELSTAR SATELLITE LAUNCHED INTO ORBIT


The 1st US communications satellite, Telstar, was launched into orbit today from Cape Canaveral, Florida.


Telstar, 34.5 inches long & weighing 170 pounds, is the product of AT&T.


The outer surface of the satellite is composed of solar cells which provide 14 watts of electric power.


Telstar will orbit the earth every 2.5 hours & provide 20 minutes of live television transmission across the Atlantic Ocean.

Telstar Communications Satellite


July 10, 1962


JFK THROWS OUT 1st PITCH AT ALL-STAR GAME


President John F. Kennedy, accompanied by his Presidential assistant & avid baseball fan, David Powers, threw out the 1st pitch of the All-Star baseball game at DC Stadium in Washington.


JFK threw a “fast ball” to American League catcher Earl Battey.*


*This surely surprised Republicans who might have expected a “curve”.

                   JFK & David Powers 

         1962 All-Star Baseball Game

             Photo by Cecil Stoughton

                         JFK Library 

July 10, 1962

JFK SIGNS BILL REQUIRING “UHF” FOR TV

President John F. Kennedy signed legislation today that will require new television sets sold in the US to include UHF channel reception capability.*

*In Knoxville in 1962 our black & white TV received only 2 local channels, Channel 6 (NBC) & Channel 10 (CBS).  I don’t recall when we bought a TV with a UHF antenna but when we did, we added Channel 26 (ABC). 

 Imagine today’s kids ,or adults for that matter, being limited to 2 or 3 black & white TV stations.

July 10, 1962

US PATENT ISSUED FOR 3-POINT SAFETY BELT

Today the US Patent Office issued a patent to Swedish engineer Nils Bohlin for his 3 point automobile safety belt.

This model is designed to replace the 2 point safety belt which fastened only around the waist.

The 3 point belt has 2 straps that join together at the hip.  1 strap goes around the waist, a 2nd strip crosses the shoulder.

This 3 point belt is designed to reduce injury by restraining both the upper & lower body in a crash.

                  3 Point Safety Belt


July 10, 1961


SOVIETS DISPLAY SUPERSONIC BOMBER


The Soviet Union displayed their new supersonic bomber in Moscow today while in Washington, D.C., President Kennedy called the pending US mutual security proposal the year’s “most vital piece of legislation”.


July 10, 1940


BATTLE OF BRITAIN BEGINS


Adolf Hitler’s Luftwaffe or German Air Force launched attacks today on Great Britain.


120 Nazi bombers & fighters struck a British Convoy in the English Channel while 70 other German aircraft attacked key installations in South Wales.*


*The Battle of Britain will last more than 3 months.

               German Heinke 111 Bombers


July 10, 1939


AMBASSADOR ENTERTAINS AT US EMBASSY


US Ambassador to Great Britain, Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr. & his wife, Rose, gave a dinner today at the American Embassy in London.


The dinner, in honor of Queen Mary, was attended by Lord & Lady MacMillan, the Dowager Countess of Airlie, Lord & Lady Cavendish, Mr. & Mrs. William Randolph Hearst & Mrs. Ogden Reed.


July 10, 1925


SCOPES “MONKEY” TRIAL BEGINS IN TENNESSEE


John Thomas Scopes, a high school teacher in Dayton, Tennessee, went on trial today for violating the state’s anti-evolution law.

             John Thomas Scopes
           Photo by Watson Davis
                        June 1925


The Butler Act, passed by the Tennessee State Legislature in March of this year, makes it unlawful to “teach any theory that denies the story of Divine Creation of man as taught in the Bible”.


The trial is taking place at the Rhea County Court House. 

           Rhea County Court House
                 Dayton, Tennessee
      Photo by Calvin Beale (2006)


The small, rural East Tennessee town of Dayton is located just north of Chattanooga.


Coming to Dayton, along with a host of reporters & ordinary citizens, is the 3 time Democratic candidate for President William Jennings Bryan.  Mr. Bryan, a religious fundamentalist, will be assisting the prosecution.


Defending Mr. Scopes is the renowned defense attorney Clarence Darrow.*


*The Scopes Trial was actually “set up” by the Dayton town fathers who wanted to take economic advantage of the situation by hosting a “test” of the controversial Butler Act.


July 10, 1921


EUNICE KENNEDY BORN IN BROOKLINE


Mr. & Mrs. Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr. of 51 Abbottsford Road, Brookline, Massachusetts today announced the birth of their 5th child & 3rd daughter.


The baby, named Eunice, was delivered by Kennedy family doctor, Frederick L. Good of 64 Commonwealth Avenue.*


*Eunice Kennedy Shriver died on April 11, 2009.

Eunice with Special Needs Children*
      Cape Cod, Massachusetts
            By David Lenz (2009)


*Eunice founded the Special Olympics.

DYLAN RECORDS "BLOWIN’ IN THE WIND"

July 9, 1962


DYLAN RECORDS “BLOWIN’ IN THE WIND”


Folk singer Bob Dylan recorded a song today that he says he wrote in just 10 minutes:  “Blowin’ in the Wind”.*


*It will be a year later when the recording is released on Bob Dylan’s breakthrough album Freewheelin’.  


The song will later become a hit for “Peter, Paul & Mary” & launch Dylan’s career.


“Yes, how many years can a mountain exist
   Before it’s washed to the sea?
  Yes, how many years can some people exist
    Before they’re allowed  to be free?
  Yes, how many times can a man turn his head
     And pretend that he just doesn’t see?
   The answer, my friend, is blowin’ in the wind,
     The answer is blowin’ in the wind.”

July 9, 1960


SENATOR KENNEDY ARRIVES IN LA


Senator John F. Kennedy, having won all the Democratic primaries he has entered this election year, arrived in Los Angeles today for the 1960 Democratic National Convention.


Having a big lead in committed delegates, the young Massachusetts senator is expected to win the Democratic presidential nomination.

Senator Kennedy Arrives in Los Angeles
                          July 9, 1960
                 JFK Library Photo


July 9, 1960


IKE & KHRUSHCHEV EXCHANGE HEATED WORDS


Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev & US President Dwight D. Eisenhower exchanged heated words today that will heat up the Cold War.


In Moscow, Khrushchev warned that the USSR is prepared to use nuclear missiles to protect Cuba from US intervention.


Khrushchev said:


“One should not forget that now the US is no longer at an unreachable distance from the Soviet Union as it was before.”


President Eisenhower, in response, said that the United States will not countenance…


“the establishment of a regime dominated by international communism in the Western Hemisphere.”*


*The CIA plan to train anti-Castro Cubans to attack Cuba was already underway at this time.  It would be left, however, to President Kennedy to give his approval of the plan & see that it would be carried out.

               Eisenhower & Khrushchev
          http://www.eisenhowerinstitute.org


July 9, 1962


JFK WELCOMES HOME 132nd FROM GERMANY


President John F. Kennedy welcomed troops from the 132nd Tactical Control Group on their return from Germany today.


The American forces had been sent to Germany last year in the wake of violent demonstrations in opposition to the building of the Berlin Wall.

  US military forces in Berlin (1961)


July 9, 1850


PRESIDENT TAYLOR DIES SUDDENLY


The President of the United States, Zachary Taylor, died suddenly today at the age of 65.


President Taylor has been in office only 16 months.


Taylor will be succeeded by his vice-president, Millard Fillmore.


The cause of death is given as cholera.*


*There has been some debate that Zachary Taylor might have been poisoned but this idea is just speculation.

        President Zachary Taylor Tomb
                   Louisville, Kentucky

LIBERTY BELL RINGS FOR 1ST READING OF THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE

 July 8, 1776


LIBERTY BELL RINGS FOR 1ST READING OF THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE


The citizens of Philadelphia were called to the Pennsylvania State House today by the ringing of the Liberty Bell which signaled the 1st public reading of the Declaration of Independence.


The Liberty Bell was built in 1751 to proclaim the 50th anniversary of Pennsylvania’s constitution.


The 2000 pound bell, made of copper & tin, was given the name “Liberty Bell” in a poem published in an abolitionist pamphlet.

                            Liberty Bell
                    Liberty Bell Center
          Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
          Photo by Bev Sykes (2004)*


*WC Fields liked to say “I’d rather be in Philadelphia” but I am sad to say, I have never had the opportunity to visit.  Certainly, the “City of Brotherly Love” should be seen by all Americans & I hope to get there soon.


July 8, 1853


COMMODORE PERRY SAILS INTO TOKYO BAY

US Navy Commodore Matthew C. Perry sailed his fleet of 4 ships into Tokyo Harbor today in hopes of gaining an audience with Japanese officials.


After some behind the scene negotiations, the Japanese government agreed to meet with Commodore Perry.*


*This marked the 1st time in 200 years that the Japanese opened up a relationship with a western nation.

July 8, 1938


AMBASSADOR KENNEDY HONORED IN IRELAND


Ambassador to Great Britain, Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr., was given a banquet in his honor today at Dublin Castle in Ireland.


Prime Minister Eamon de Valera welcomed Mr. Kennedy & praised both the ambassador & the United States.


July 8, 1941


BOSTON’S TED WILLIAMS LEADS AL TO VICTORY IN ALL STAR CLASSIC


With the American League All-Stars down by a run in the 9th inning, Boston Red Sox slugger Ted Williams belted a 3 run home run to lead his team to a 7-5 victory over the National League All-Stars.

                     Ted Williams Plaque
                    Fenway Park, Boston
       Photo by Bernard Gagnon (2007)


July 8, 1951


PARIS CELEBRATES 2000th BIRTHDAY


Paris, France is 2000 years old today.*


*Paris, center of commerce, culture, fashion & food, boasts a population of 2 million today with 10 million in the metro area.

                        Paris, France
          Photo by Taxiarchos228


July 8, 1960


FRANCIS GARY POWERS CHARGED AS SPY


Francis Gary Powers, the U-2 pilot who was shot down 2 months ago over the Soviet Union, was charged today with espionage by the USSR.*


*In August 1960, Powers would be sentenced to 10 years in prison, but was released in exchange for Soviet spy Rudolph Abel after 2 years.

Kelly Johnson, U2 designer & Powers


July 8, 1962


JFK UPSET BY NEWS FROM COUNCIL ON YOUTH FITNESS


President John F. Kennedy, who has championed a call for physical fitness & vigor, was upset today by the results of a report from the Council on Youth Fitness.


The report says that 60% of American children do not participate in a daily program of physical activity.


July 8, 1963


JFK FREEZES CUBAN BANK DEPOSITS


In response to the continued alliance by Fidel Castro’s Cuban government & the Soviet Union, the Kennedy Administration today froze $33 million in Cuban bank deposits.


The action follows the embargo set in February of last year which provided for trade restrictions with Cuba & the travel restrictions added to that in February of this year.*


*The basis for the action is the 1917 Trading With the Enemy Act.

MRS. SURRATT & OTHER LINCOLN CONSPIRATORS HANGED

July 7, 1865


MRS. SURRATT & OTHER LINCOLN CONSPIRATORS HANGED 

The woman who ran a boardinghouse where conspirators plotted the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln was hanged today along with 3 others implicated in the plot.

Mrs. Mary Surratt, 43 years old, becomes the 1st woman to be hanged by the government of the United States.  The anticipated pardon that might have been granted by President Andrew Johnson never came.

Her son, John, also implicated in the plot, has thus far escaped capture.

Mrs. Surratt, along with George Atzerodt, David Herold & Lewis Powell were hanged this afternoon at the Washington Arsenal Penitentiary.

Mary Surratt wore a black dress, bonnet & veil.*

                        Mary Surratt

*Director Robert Redford’s new film: “The Conspirator” tells Mrs. Surratt’s story. 

 In a recent USA Today article by Maria Puente, historian Kate Clifford Larson of Simmons College in Boston, whose research supports Surratt’s guilt, is quoted as saying: “Mary was a smart woman who made choices & she paid for those choices…but her trial was a travesty.”

Larson, who approves of Redford’s treatment of Surratt in the film, is the author of  “The Assassin’s Accomplice: Mary Surratt & the Plot to Kill Abraham Lincoln”.

             Surratt Boarding House

                     604 H Street NW

                    Washington, D.C.

     Photo by Brady/Handy (1890)

               Library of Congress

July 7, 1797

SENATOR BLOUNT CHARGED WITH MISDEMEANOR IN BRITISH CONSPIRACY

The House of Representatives broke new ground today when they voted to charge Tennessee Senator William Blount  with “a high misdemeanor”.

Senator Blount, former Governor of the Territory South of the Ohio River, has been implicated in a conspiracy with British officials to enlist American frontiersmen & Cherokees to assist in the conquest of Spanish Florida & Louisiana.*

                     William Blount

*The next day, the US Senate voted to expel Blount but 2 months later, Vice President Thomas Jefferson, who presided over the impeachment of Blount, dismissed the charges based on the fact that the Senate does not have constitutional jurisdiction in the case.

After the Treaty of Holston established the capital of the Territory South of the Ohio River at Knoxville, Governor Blount moved here & built his home, called “Blount Mansion” in 1792.  

                   Blount Mansion

             Knoxville, Tennessee

Photo by Brian Stansberry (2008)

Note:  A colorful geography professor I had for a class at UT insisted this should be called “Blount Shack”….it obviously did not impress him as a “mansion”.

July 7, 1957

FRENCH MINISTER CRITICAL OF JFK’S COMMENT

French Minister Robert Lacoste criticized Senator John F. Kennedy of Massachusetts for his recent condemnation of French policy in Algeria.

Lacoste says that if French military troops leave the country, the US & USSR will compete for superiority in North Africa.

                       Robert Lacoste

July 7, 1962

PRESIDENT’S DAD RELEASED FROM REHAB

Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr., father of President John F. Kennedy, was released today from the Institute of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation in New York.

The elder Kennedy has undergone months of therapy to improve his speech & motor functions after suffering a stroke in December of last year.

July 7, 1961

JFK GIVES NOD FOR HOME LOANS TO VETS

President John F. Kennedy signed into law today a bill which authorizes the expenditure of more than $1 billion for home loans to veterans of World War II & the Korean War.