TODAY IN HISTORY

In 1498, Christopher Columbus landed at Trinidad.

In 1556, St. Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Society of Jesus -- the Jesuit order of Catholic priests and brothers -- died in Rome.

In 1687, Fort Niagara was built by Gov. Jacques Rene de Brisay de Denonville at the mouth of the Niagara River.

In 1759, French military leader Marquis de Montcalm repulsed an attack by Gen. James Wolfe’s British troops at Montmorency Falls in Quebec.

In 1763, the British, besieged by natives at Detroit, suffered heavy losses in the battle of “Bloody Run” against Chief Pontiac. While he failed to oust the British from native lands, Ottawa chief Pontiac led one of the most successful fights against the European invasion in Canadian history and forced British authorities to recognize native rights.

In 1790, the first U.S. patent was issued to Samuel Hopkins of Vermont for the chemical formula for potash used in making soap and glass.

In 1836, the first Canadian railway opened. The track of the Champlain and St. Lawrence Railway, which ran 24 kilometres between the St. Lawrence and Richelieu rivers, was built of a wooden base and wooden rails covered with a protective metal strip. The Earl of Gosford, the governor general of Lower Canada, led 300 guests aboard for the trial run of the train.