ON THIS DAY IN 1870, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “Bostonians suggest a grand tea party on the centennial anniversary of the day on which the tea was thrown overboard, to which all native-born Bostonians shall be invited.”
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ON THIS DAY IN 1873, the Eagle reported, “Lenten services at the Catholic Cathedral, St. James, in this city, are reported to be very impressive, and on Thursday nights, especially, the edifice is crowded. The Catholic churches throughout the diocese witness a similar degree of devotional exercises. The Missions in St. Paul’s and in St. Charles Borromeo’s are reported as highly successful, the latter having been closed some days since. That of St. Paul’s will close on Palm Sunday.”
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ON THIS DAY IN 1891, the Eagle reported, “The base ball season of 1891 was opened in the metropolis on March 28 by the New York club, the team playing their first match of their exhibition campaign on March 27 at New Haven, where the reunited Giants were given quite an ovation. The Giants of 1891 will be the strongest team the New York club has ever placed in the field, and as that of the Brooklyn club is also the best ever seen in Brooklyn the promise is for a series of exciting contests between these rivals unequaled in the history of professional ball playing in the metropolitan district.”
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ON THIS DAY IN 1917, the Eagle reported, “SAG HARBOR, L.I. — A destroyer of the United States Navy, as well as several airplanes, are today patrolling the waters off Montauk Point in search of two German submarines reported to have been sighted on Monday night in the entrance to Long Island Sound, between Montauk Point and Block Island. The U-boats were seen by John Noler, the observer at the Montauk Lighthouse, at 6:15 o’clock Monday night, according to Captain Parsons, who is in charge of the lighthouse. Noler reported that while it was still light he saw the two craft, running about 300 feet apart, headed toward Block Island. The craft were flying no flag and were so high up out of the water, according to Noler, that he could make out all of the superstructures, and the upper parts of the hulls of the undersea vessels. Noler’s observations of the craft convinced him that they were German submarines. They disappeared over the horizon, in the direction of Block Island, he is said to have reported.”
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ON THIS DAY IN 1931, the Eagle reported, “From a library of 728 books and pamphlets in 1911 to a collection of 27,803 units in 1930 is the growth of the Brooklyn Botanic Garden’s botanical library, noted in its 20th annual report. Calvin M. Foss, librarian of the botanic garden, reports that during the past year alone 1,067 volumes and 844 pamphlets were added to the library. Of these more than 100 volumes were received from authors, members of the garden staff, and scientific associations, institutions and others who are interested in the work of the garden. The garden was fortunate in securing a number of rare botanical classics, as well as the issues of several periodicals needed to fill in sets. The rare books by early botanists were purchased from the income of the Benjamin Gager Memorial Fund, which was given for this special purpose.”
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ON THIS DAY IN 1946, the Eagle reported, “At least another week of intermittent disruption of transoceanic radio communications was predicted today by Robert Coles, associate curator of the Hayden Planetarium, following a day in which the nation was cut off for hours at a time from other continents because of sun-spot activity. Only cable service was maintained on any sort of schedule, and even that was slowed down by excess ground electrical impulses built up by the magnetic discharges from the sun. Radio networks canceled many of their overseas pickups, newspaper teletype machines printed
Walt Frazier. Photo: Evan Agostini/Invision/AP
garbled messages and radio telephone service to Europe was out for most of the day. A news service reported it could establish no communications in the Pacific beyond Hawaii.”
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NOTABLE PEOPLE BORN ON THIS DAY include “Ordinary People” author Judith Guest, who was born in 1936; Nobel Prize-winning astrophysicist Joseph Hooton Taylor Jr., who was born in 1941; “Monty Python’s Flying Circus” star Eric Idle, who was born in 1943; N.Y. Knicks legend and Basketball Hall of Famer Walt Frazier, who was born in 1945; Pro Football Hall of Famer Earl Campbell, who was born in 1955; “Star Trek: The Next Generation” star Marina Sirtis, who was born in 1955; Jane’s Addiction founder Perry Farrell, who was born in 1959; actress and comedian Amy Sedaris, who was born in 1961; Oakland A’s executive Billy Beane, who was
Eric Idle. Photo: Matt Sayles/AP
born in 1962; model and actress Elle Macpherson, who was born in 1964; “Xena: Warrior Princess” star Lucy Lawless, who was born in 1968; International Tennis Hall of Famer Jennifer Capriati, who was born in 1976; and “Smash” star Megan Hilty, who was born in 1981.
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A YOUNG MAN’S GAME: Cy Young was born on this day in 1867. The Ohio native is baseball’s all-time winningest pitcher, with 511 victories in a 22-year career. He was inducted into the
Lucy Lawless. Photo: Andy Kropa/Invision/AP
Baseball Hall of Fame in 1937 and died in 1955. The Cy Young Award is given annually to the best pitcher in each league.
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SAM I AM: Sam Walton was born on this day in 1918. The pioneering, charismatic business executive caused a seismic shift in the retail landscape with his discount mega-store chain Walmart, which he founded in 1962. He died in 1992.
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Special thanks to “Chase’s Calendar of Events” and Brooklyn Public Library.
Quotable:
“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will make me go in a corner and cry by myself for hours.” — actor and comedian Eric Idle, who was born on this day in 1943.