TODAY’S HISTORY LESSON – MARCH 19
1644 200 members of Peking imperial family and court commit suicide in loyalty to the Emperor
1687 The French explorer La Salle is murdered by his own men while searching for the mouth of the Mississippi, along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico.
1702 On the death of William III of Orange, Anne Stuart, sister of Mary, succeeds to the throne of England, Scotland and Ireland.
1916 The First Aero Squadron takes off from Columbus, NM to join Gen. John J. Pershing and his Punitive Expedition against Pancho Villa in Mexico.
1917 The Adamson Act, eight hour day for railroad workers, is ruled constitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court.
1918 Congress authorizes time zones & approves daylight saving time
1920 US Senate rejects Treaty of Versailles for 2nd time refusing to ratify League of Nations’ covenant (maintaining isolation policy)
1935 The British fire on 20,000 Muslims in India, killing 23.
1942 FDR orders men between 45 & 64 to register for non military duty
1945 Adolf Hitler orders a scorched-earth policy for his retreating German armies in the west and east.
1975 Pennsylvania is 1st state to allow girls to compete with boys in High School sports
1979 House of Representatives begins live TV broadcasts via C-SPAN
1985 “Spin Magazine” begins publishing
1987 PTL leader Jim Bakker resigns after sex scandal with Jessica Hahn
1991 NFL owners strip Phoenix of 1993 Super Bowl game due to Arizona not recognizing Martin Luther King Day
1996 Winnie Mandela divorces Nelson after 38 years of marrage
2003 Airstrikes by an American and British-led coalition signal the beginning of the invasion of Iraq, without United Nations support and in defiance of world opinion
** history.net, onthisday.com, infoplease.com, timeanddate.com, thepeoplehistory.com, on-this-day.com **
