IT HAPPENED TODAY
1754: Henry Fielding (above) died aged 47. Famous for his novel Tom Jones, it is not widely known that as a Justice of the Peace he organised the detective force that became Scotland Yard.
1871: The Great Fire of Chicago started. According to popular belief, it began in Irish immigrant Catherine O’Leary’s barn when a cow kicked over a lantern. The fire burned until October 10, killing more than 250 people and making 95,000 homeless.
1891: The first street collection for charity in Britain took place in Manchester and Salford for Lifeboat Day.
1905: Charles Nessler first used a permanent waving machine on a woman’s hair. The cost for the seven-hour treatment was 10 guineas.
1908: The Wind In The Willows, Kenneth Grahame’s children’s book, was published.
1953: One of Britain’s best-loved singers, the contralto Kathleen Ferrier, died of cancer at 41.
1965: The Post Office Tower in London became operational. It was opened by Prime Minister Harold Wilson.
1967: The first breathalyser test in Britain was administered to a motorist in Somerset.
ON THIS DAY LAST YEAR: The Duke of Cambridge (above) praised the “fantastic” work of the royal Heads Together campaign as his charitable foundation announced a £2 million investment towards a new mental health start-up company.
BIRTHDAYS: (Baroness) Betty Boothroyd (below), former speaker of the House of Commons, 89; Ray Reardon, former snooker player, 86; Albert Roux, chef and restaurateur, 83; Rev Jesse Jackson, US politician, 77; Chevy Chase, actor, 75; Sigourney Weaver, actress, 69; Ardal O’Hanlon, actor and comedian, 53; Matt Damon, actor, 48.