Today in history

On this date:

In 615, Pope St. Boniface IV, who sanctioned moral and material improvements for the lower clergy, died. He also consecrated the pagan temple of Agrippa called the Pantheon to the Blessed Virgin Mary and all the saints, thus instituting All Saints Day on Nov. 1.

In 1521, Roman Catholic Jesuit priest St. Peter Canisius, known as the “Hammer of Protestantism,” was born in Nijmegen, Holland. He led the Counter-Reformation in German lands.

In 1541, Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto reached the Mississippi River.

In 1620, Samuel de Champlain sailed for Canada, accompanied by his wife.

In 1794, Antoine Lavoisier, the father of modern chemistry, was executed on the guillotine during France’s “Reign of Terror.”

In 1828, Henri Dunant, founder of the Red Cross, was born in Geneva.

In 1882, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Assiniboia and Athabaska were formed as districts of the Northwest Territories.

In 1886, Coca-Cola was served for the first time, at Jacob’s Pharmacy in Atlanta.

In 1902, a volcanic eruption on the Caribbean island of Martinique destroyed the city of St-Pierre within minutes. Only two of the 30,000 inhabitants survived.

In 1906, the University of Alberta was founded in Edmonton.

The Canadian Press