TODAY IN HISTORY

On this day in 1513

In 1513, Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon sighted present-day Florida.

In 1834, William Lyon Mackenzie was elected the first mayor of Toronto, the capital of Upper Canada.

In 1883, Pile-O’-Bones, later renamed Regina, was made capital of the Northwest Territories, which then included Alberta, Saskatchewan and what became the Northwest Territories.

In 1918, Lt. Alan McLeod of the Royal Flying Corps won a Victoria Cross during the First World War. He safely landed his burning bomber in France and dragged his crewmate to safety. But the 18-year-old from Stonewall, Man., died of influenza seven months later in a Winnipeg hospital.

In 1964, the most violent earthquake known to have struck North America hit southern Alaska. The magnitude-8.3 quake affected over 500,000 square kilometres and killed 131 people.