TODAY IN HISTORY

In 1478, Sir Thomas More, lord chancellor of England during the English Reformation, was born. More, the author of “Utopia,” was executed for high treason by Henry VIII in 1535 because he refused to recognize the king as head of the church in England.

In 1758, the Governor and Council of Nova Scotia passed resolutions organizing Canada’s first legislature.

In 1792, free land was offered to U.S. citizens settling in Canada.

In 1804, the inventor of the steel plow, John Deere, was born in Vermont.

In 1812, Charles Dickens, considered the greatest writer of the Victorian period, was born in Portsmouth, England. The author of such novels as “Great Expectations,” “Oliver Twist” and “A Christmas Carol” was widely acclaimed not only for his writing but also for his attacks on social evils, injustice, and hypocrisy. Dickens’ novels remain popular today -- with at least 180 motion pictures and TV adaptations based on his works. He died in 1870.

In 1827, the first ballet to be performed in the U.S., “The Deserter,” was presented at the Bowery Theatre in New York City. It featured a ballerina in such flimsy attire that many women in the audience are reported to have walked out.

In 1837, British nurse Florence Nightingale left for the Crimean War. She paved the way for modern-day nursing and later became the first female recipient of the British Order Of Merit.