TODAY IN HISTORY

In 1810, one of the greatest showmen of all time, Phineas T. Barnum, was born in Bethel, Conn. In 1811, Venezuela became the first South American country to declare independence from Spain.

In 1814, during the War of 1812, Canadian and British forces were defeated by an invading American army at the “Battle of Chippewa,” south of Niagara Falls.

In 1901, Sgt. Arthur Richardson, a former Mountie, braved heavy crossfire in the Boer War to save a wounded comrade within 270 metres of the enemy.

In 1905, the House of Commons passed a bill establishing Alberta and Saskatchewan as provinces effective Sept. 1.

In 1923, the big breakthrough for home movies came when Eastman Kodak introduced the 16-mm Model-A camera and projector. It achieved for home movies what the Kodak Number-One box camera did for snapshot photography in 1868. In 1923, miners and steel workers at Sydney, N.S., went on strike for higher wages and union recognition. A government investigating commission accepted their demands.

In 1930, George Stathakis died when he plummeted over Niagara Falls in a barrel. The turtle he took with him, survived.

In 1935, U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt signed into law the National Labour Relations Act, which provided for a National Labour Relations Board and authorized labour to organize for the purpose of collective bargaining.