TODAY IN HISTORY

TODAY IS SATURDAY, MARCH 24, 2018

On this day:

1550 - France and England signed the Peace of Boulogne. 1827 - Work begins on Busby’s Bore to pipe water to meet the needs of the growing colony in New South Wales.

1828 - The Philadelphia & Columbia Railway was authorised as the first state owned railway.

1878 - The British frigate Eurydice sank killing 300. 1882 - In Berlin, German scientist Robert Koch announced the discovery of the tuberculosis germ (bacillus). 1904 - Vice Adm. Tojo sank seven Russian ships as the Japanese strengthened their blockade of Port Arthur. 1905 - In Crete, a group led by Eleutherios Venizelos claimed independence from Turkey. 1924 - Greece became a republic.

1938 - The U.S. asked that all countries help refugees fleeing from the Nazis.

1955 - The first oil drill seagoing rig was put into service. 1972 - Great Britain imposed direct rule over Northern Ireland.

1997 - The Australian parliament overturned the world’s first and only euthanasia law.

1998 - In Jonesboro, AR, two young boys open fire at students from woods near a school. Four students and a teacher were killed and 10 others were injured. The two boys were 11 and 13 years old cousins.

1999 - In Kenya, at least 31 people were killed when a passenger train derailed. Hundreds were injured. 2001 - Apple Computer Inc’s operating system MAC OS X went on sale.

2005 - The government of Kyrgyzstan collapsed after opposition protesters took over President Askar Akayev’s presidential compound and government offices.

2005 - Sandra Bullock received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

2006 - In Spain, the Basque separatist group ETA announced a permanent cease-fire.

2014 - It was announced that the U.S. and its allies would exclude Russia from the G8 meeting and boycott a planned summit in Sochi in response to Russia’s takeover of Crimea.