Monday, September 8, 1997
Today's events
Italian foreign affairs commissioners are scheduled to visit Turkey on a human rights tour.
The EU Multidisciplinary Scientific Committee is scheduled to meet to discuss questions related to restrictions on material that could transmit madcow disease to humans.
Presidential peace envoys Daniel Garcia and Jose
Noe Rios are due to report to President Ernesto Samper on their preliminary efforts to set up peace talks with leftist guerrilla leaders in Bogota.
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On the horizon
On Tuesday, September 9, U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright is scheduled to begin her first Middle East trip.
On Wednesday, September 10, Vietnam celebrates the anniversary of the founding of Vietnam's Fatherland
Front.
On Thursday, September 11, the World Council of Churches Central Committee is scheduled to begin a session in Geneva.
On Friday, September 12, Ireland's President Mary Robinson is scheduled to step down as head of state nearly three months before the end of her term to take up new United Nation's post.
On Saturday, September 13, the First post-war municipal elections organized by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) are scheduled to be held throughout Bosnia.
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On this day
In 1565, Spaniard Don Pedro Menendez de Aviles founded the
first Catholic settlement in America at St. Augustine, Florida.
In 1664, the settlement of New Amsterdam was seized from Dutch governor Peter Stuyvesant by the English under Colonel Richard Nicholls without a shot being fired. It was later renamed New York after James, Duke of York, the future King James II.
In 1755, in the Seven Years War in which the Indians struggled against the French for control of North America, Colonel William Johnson with his English militia defeated a combined French and Indian force in the Battle of Lake George.
In 1760, British troops under Jeffrey Amherst defeated the
French in the Battle of Montreal in the Seven Years War. The
resulting loss made the French surrender their arms throughout Canada, making the country a British dominion.
In 1831, Russians under General Paskevich defeated 30,000
Poles under General Dembinski in the battle for Warsaw in the
second Polish rising. Over 9,000 Poles died in the three-day
battle.
In 1847, Americans under General Winfield Scott defeated the
Mexicans at the Battle of Molino del Rey in the Mexican War.
In 1883, the Northern Pacific Railroad across the U.S. was
completed.
In 1888, Annie Chapman was found disemboweled in an East
London street, the second victim of "Jack The Ripper."
In 1900, a hurricane with winds of 120 m.p.h. and a following
tidal wave at Galveston, Texas, killed at least 8,000 people and destroyed over 2,500 buildings in the city.
In 1926, the League of Nations Assembly voted unanimously to
admit Germany as a member.
In 1935, Louisiana Senator Huey P. Long was shot while
attending a session of the state House of Representatives in
Baton Rouge; he died two days later.
In 1941, the blockade of Leningrad began as the German army
encircled the city, cutting it off from the rest of the country. The siege lasted until January 1944 with almost one million civilians being killed.
In 1943, General Eisenhower announced the unconditional
surrender of Italy in World War II.
In 1944, fired from The Hague, the first German flying V-2
bombs landed at Chiswick in London. Three people were killed.
In 1944, Soviet troops crossed the border into Bulgaria,
ostensibly because of Bulgaria's refusal to declare war on
Germany.
In 1945, Hideki Tojo, Japanese prime minister during most of
World War II, attempted suicide rather than face a war crimes
tribunal. The attempt failed but he was later found guilty and hanged.
In 1951, a Peace treaty was signed in San Francisco with Japan and representatives of 49 other nations. The treaty came into force in April, 1952, when Japanese sovereignty was again recognized.
In 1954, the South East Asia Defense Treaty was signed in
Manila by representatives of eight nations including New
Zealand, the U.S. and the Philippines. The treaty provided
for collective response should any signatory be attacked.
In 1967, a new constitution came into effect in Uganda, making the country a republic.
In 1974, President Ford granted Richard Nixon an unconditional pardon for all federal crimes he may have committed while he was in office.
In 1991, the Southern Yugoslav republic of Macedonia voted
overwhelmingly to become an independent state.
In 1994, a USAir Boeing 737 crashed near Pittsburgh
International Airport as it was coming in to land from Chicago; all 132 people on board were killed.
In 1995, major players in the Yugoslav crisis agreed on
principles for peace in Bosnia, taking a significant step
towards ending Europe's worst conflict since World War II.
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Newslink
Before she died, Mother Teresa asked Bongo Java owner Bob Bernstein to stop selling T-shirts with her image on them. Bernstein is the owner of the cinnamon bun that thousands think resembles the late Nobel Prize winner. To find out more, click here.
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Holidays and more
Today is a Religious Holiday in Brazil.
It's the Nativity of Our Lady in Liechtenstein.
Today is Independence Day in Macedonia.
It's Victory Day in Malta.
Today is Indra Jatra in Nepal.
It's Our Lady of the Pine in Spain.
Comedian Sid Caesar is 75.
Actor Alan Feinstein is 56.
Political activist Lyndon Larouche is 75.
U.S. Senator Sam Nunn is 59.
Actor Henry Thomas is 26.
Actress Heather Thomas is 40.
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Sources: Associated Press,
Chase's Calendar of Events 1997, J.P. Morgan
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