TODAY’S HISTORY LESSON – OCT 19
202 BC Battle of Zama: Hannibal Barca and the Carthaginian army are defeated by Roman legions under Scipio Africanus, ending 2nd Punic War
439 The Vandals, led by King Gaiseric, take Carthage in North Africa.
1216 King John of England dies at Newark and is succeeded by his nine-year-old son Henry.
1466 The peace of Torun ends the war between the Teutonic knights and their own disaffected subjects in Prussia.
1739 England declares war on Spain over borderlines in Florida. The War is known as the War of Jenkins’ Ear because the Spanish coast guards cut off the ear of British seaman Robert Jenkins.
1781 Major General Lord Charles Cornwallis surrenders to George Washington and Count de Rochambeau at Yorktown, Va. Cornwallis surrenders 7,157 troops, including sick and wounded, and 840 sailors, along with 244 artillery pieces. Losses in this battle had been light on both sides. The Revolutionary War is effectively ended.
1848 John “The Pathfinder” Fremont moves out from near Westport, Missouri, on his fourth Western expedition–a failed attempt to open a trail across the Rocky Mountains along the 38th parallel.
1856 James Kelly & Jack Smith fight bareknuckle for 6h15m in Melbourne
1917 The first doughnut is fried by Salvation Army volunteer women for American troops in France during World War I.
1942 The Japanese submarine I-36 launches a floatplane for a reconnaissance flight over Pearl Harbor. The pilot and crew report on the ships in the harbor, after which the aircraft is lost at sea.
1943 Streptomycin, the first antibiotic remedy for tuberculosis, is isolated by researchers at Rutgers University
1947 The Federal Works administrator has said the minimum wage of 40 cents per hour is obsolete and should be changed to 75 cents per hour.
1950 The North Korean capital of Pyongyang is captured by U.N. troops.
1960 Canada and the United States agree to undertake a joint Columbia River project to provide hydroelectric power and flood control.
1960 The United States imposes a partial embargo on goods exported to Cuba.
1973 President Richard Nixon rejects an Appeals Court demand to turn over the Watergate tapes.
1982 Automaker John DeLorean arrested on cocaine charges (Not guilty)
1983 The Senate passed a bill (78–22) making Martin Luther King, Jr.’s, birthday a public holiday.
1983 The Prime Minister of Grenada Maurice Bishop is executed during a military coup d’état led by Bernard Coard. Following the coup d’état a four-day total curfew was put in place in which anyone seen outside their home would be subject to summary execution.
1987 In retaliation for Iranian attacks on ships in the Persian Gulf, the U. S. navy disables three of Iran’s offshore oil platforms.
1988 Senate passes bill curbing ads during children`s TV shows
1989 The 1975 conviction of the Guilford Four overturned by British courts; the 4 men had been convicted in the 1974 Guilford pub bombings.
2005 Former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein’s trail for crimes against humanity begins in Baghdad.
2007 After increases in Oil prices reach an all time high of $90.07 record, there are signs that the pressure on oil may decrease as the price decreases to $88.60 a barrel. Oil prices have quadrupled since 2002 when they were under $30.00 a barrel. (Update October 2010) current price of oil is approx $82.00. (Update October 2017) current price of oil is approx $51.00.
2015 US scientists from University of California find evidence life on earth may have begun 4.1 billion years ago, 300 million earlier than previously thought
** history.net, onthisday.com, infoplease.com, timeanddate.com, thepeoplehistory.com, on-this-day.com **
