On this day in 1881, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported: “At a meeting of the Harry Lee Post Army Air Corps, held on Thursday, the following preamble and resolutions were adopted: ‘Our Honored Comrade, Gen. [James A.] President Garfield of the United States has been cruelly and dangerously wounded by the hands of a cowardly assassin. We therefore regard with horror and indignation any attempt to introduce assassination as an element in American politics, and we resolve that the recent attempt on the President of the United States should bring upon the perpetrators and all the aiders, abettors, and anticipated beneficiaries of the crime a fitting punishment, and the eternal contempt and scorn of all wise and honorable men. We sincerely sympathize with President Garfield, who has fallen into such severe distress, and, together with the people of the civilized world, we earnestly pray to God, the merciful Father, for his speedy recovery. RESOLUTION: We commend the heroic conduct, wifely devotion, and Christian fortitude displayed by Mrs. Garfield in this height of distress, and express our sympathy with her, together with the country and the world, and pray that she may receive divine aid and that her husband may make a full recovery. RESOLUTION: A copy of this resolution, duly certified by the garrison commander and adjutant, will be transmitted to the Secretary of State, who will deliver it to the President’s family as soon as possible. Richard Moultrie, Acting Commander. Attested to by G. W. Farmer, Acting Adjutant.”
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On this day in 1909, the Eagle ran an article entitled “Washington: President [William Howard] Taft today indicated that he preferred golf to baseball, the great American sport… A group of Congressional ball throwers came to the White House and invited the President to come and watch a charity game this afternoon. The Democrats are playing Republicans, and the whole Congress is excited about it. But the President was reluctant. “Sorry, but I have a golf game this afternoon. [Vice President] He replied, “Jim Sharman.” All the ball-throwing arguments to get the president to cancel his engagement with Sherman were futile. Afterwards, politicians appealed to Sherman on Capitol Hill. It was a huge political blunder for the administration to turn down a ball game for a game of “idle rich men.” Sherman understood the point and promised to get the president to attend.
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On this day in 1936, The Eagle reported: “LONDON (AP) — An assassination attempt on England’s King Edward VIII was thwarted today by a ‘Woman in Grey’ and some quick-witted London police. Witnesses said the woman knocked a loaded pistol out of the hand of a stocky man who was aiming it at the king as he stood at the head of troops at Buckingham Palace. After a violent scuffle, the gun was thrown into the road. Police arrested the assassin, whom they named George Andrew Mahon and described as a newspaper reporter. He was charged with intent to endanger the life of the king and with unlawful possession of a firearm. Authorities described him as middle-aged, slightly balding and with what appeared to be a club foot. He limped to the dock at Bow Street station and was held for eight days.”
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On this day in 1936, The Eagle reported: “WASHINGTON (AP) — Discord between the United States government’s renowned body of investigators came to the fore today with reports (and denials) that the Secret Service is investigating the G-men. The reports have been around for some time, but no official comment has been made until now. The reports date back to the last Congress, when there was a debate about whether the G-men were spending too much money and whether too many people were being shot in the fight against crime. The first official indication of tension between the rival agencies came yesterday, when the Attorney General said: [Homer Stille] Cummings issued a roundabout warning to those who were not to go after the Attorney General and his subordinate, J. Edgar Hoover. Newspaper reporters asked Cummings about reports that the Secret Service was now investigating the agents who had participated in so many sensational investigations and manhunts. “I think there may have been some indiscretions,” Cummings replied. “I’ll tell you this,” Cummings continued. “If anyone is going after Hoover, they’re going after the wrong person. They should go after me.” A third investigating agency, the Postal Inspectors, kept purposefully silent but were known to eagerly wait for developments. There was a rivalry between this agency, the oldest of the federal investigating agencies, and Hoover’s subordinates. Some Postal Inspectors privately complained that there was a disparity between their budget and Hoover’s, and that the G-men were over-credited for making arrests.
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Carli Lloyd
Steve Luciano/AP
Will Ferrell
Jordan Strauss/InVision/AP
Notable people born on this day include International Tennis Hall of Famer Margaret Court (born 1942), Pro Football Hall of Famer Jimmy Johnson (born 1943), “Crossover Dreams” star Ruben Blades (born 1948), Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Stewart Copeland (The Police) (born 1952), “Angels in America” screenwriter Tony Kushner (born 1956), “V” star Faye Grant (born 1957), “Fast Times at Ridgemont High” star Phoebe Cates (born 1963), former “Saturday Night Live” star Will Ferrell (born 1967), and Pro Football Hall of Famer Barry Sanders (born 1968). Stand by Me star Corey Feldman, born in 1971; Olympic gold medalist and U.S. Women’s Soccer World Cup champion Carli Lloyd, born in 1982; and Nip and Tuck star AnnaLynne McCord, born in 1987.
Barry Sanders
Paul Sancia/AP
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Capital Plan: On this day in 1790, President George Washington signed a law establishing the District of Columbia as the permanent capital of the United States. The district’s boundaries were established in 1792. The plan was for the government to remain in Philadelphia until 1800, when the new capital would be available for occupancy.
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The end of the world as we know it: On this day in 1945, the United States tested its first atomic bomb. The experimental plutonium bomb detonated at 5:30 a.m. in the New Mexico desert. Named “Fat Boy” by its creators, it vaporized the steel scaffolding that supported it and instantly sent a giant fireball rising 8,000 feet, creating a mushroom cloud 41,000 feet high. At ground zero, the bomb released heat three times the temperature of the inside of the sun. All plant and animal life for a mile was wiped out.
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Special thanks to Chase’s Calendar of Events and the Brooklyn Public Library.
Quote:
“When two people are in love, they don’t look at each other, they look in the same direction.”
— Ginger Rogers, entertainer, born on this day in 1911
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Brooklyn, New York City’s most populous borough, is home to approximately 2.6 million residents. If Brooklyn were a city on its own, it would be the fourth largest in the United States. In recent years, Brooklyn has become synonymous with “cool and hip,” but to the people who were born here, raised their families here, and have improved their community over the years, Brooklyn has never been “uncool.”
