TODAY IN history

On this date: In 1707, English hymn writer Charles Wesley was born. He wrote more than 6,500 hymns, including “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing.”

In 1787, New Jersey became the third state to ratify the U.S. Constitution.

In 1865, the 13th amendment to the U.S. Constitution, abolishing slavery, went into effect.

In 1889, the first CPR telegraph junction with the Atlantic cable was made at Canso, N.S.

In 1890, the first electric underground rail line opened in London.

In 1904, Wilf Carter, the father of country music in Canada, was born in Port Hilford, N.S. His 1932 recording of “My Swiss Moonlight Lullaby” and “The Capture of Albert Johnson” was the first hit by a Canadian country performer. He died at his home in Scottsdale, Ariz., on Dec. 5, 1996.

In 1927, former governor general Romeo Leblanc was born in Memramcook, N.B. He was the first Acadian to be appointed governor general of Canada and a central figure in the Liberal party for more than two decades. He was also instrumental in establishing Canada’s 200-mile offshore economic zone and helped shape the International Law of the Sea. Leblanc became a senator in 1984, was appointed Speaker of the Senate in 1993 and became governor general in 1995. He died after a lengthy illness on June 24, 2009.