TODAY IN HISTORY
TODAY is Thursday, April 15, the 105th day of 2021. There are 260 days left in the year. Highlights in history on this date:
1689 — France’s King Louis XIV declares war on Spain.
1789 — Presidentelect George Washington leaves Mount Vernon, Virginia, for his inauguration in New York.
1817 — The first American school for the deaf opens in Hartford, Connecticut.
1848 — Philip Laing anchors at Port Chalmers with the second group of Free Church pioneers. It had departed Greenock on November 23 with Scottish settlers bound for the Otago Association’s settlement in New Zealand.
1861 — Three days after the attack on Fort Sumter, South Carolina, United States president Abraham Lincoln declares a state of insurrection and calls out union troops.
1862 — A Bill ending slavery in the US district of Columbia becomes law.
1865 — Auckland’s business district is the first in New Zealand to have gas lighting installed; Andrew Johnson becomes the 17th US president after the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln.
1868 — The first
Maori representatives to the New Zealand Parliament, Frederick Nene Russell and Tareha Te Moananui, are elected unopposed.
1885 — Work begins at Te Awamutu on connecting the main trunk railway line through the King Country. It is a project that will take 23 years to complete.
1912 — The passenger luxury liner RMS Titanic sinks at 2.27am off Newfoundland as the band plays on, with the loss of between 1490 and 1635 people.
1923 — Insulin, discovered by Canadian doctor Frederick Banting, is made available for general use by diabetics.
1932 — Following on from a riot involving unemployed relief workers in Queen St, Auckland, the day before, there are further exchanges between demonstrators and police in Karangahape Rd.
1945 — British and Canadian troops liberate the Nazi concentration camp at BergenBelsen.
1961 — The Standard Insurance Company collapses.
1977 — Loading begins at Port Chalmers of the first shipment of woodchips bound for Japan.
1986 — Prime Minister David Lange cuts short a visit to Invermay Agricultural Centre near Mosgiel when he is greeted by a large group of angry protesters. They were protesting the government’s rural reform packages.
1989 — Ninetysix Liverpool supporters die and 766 are injured in a crowd crush at the start of the FA Cup semifinal match between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest at the Hillsborough Stadium in Sheffield. It remains Britain’s worst disaster in sporting history. The match was abandoned; students in Beijing launch a series of prodemocracy protests upon the death of former Communist Party leader Hu Yaobang; the protests culminated in the Tiananmen Square massacre.
2004 — A merino wether which had evaded annual musters for six years is discovered on a rocky outcrop on Bendigo Station. Shrek became a national identity.
2008 — Six Elim Christian College pupils and a teacher die after the group of 12 they were part of were caught out by the rapidly rising Mangatepopo Stream near Turangi. The group was part of a school camp organised by the Aucklandbased school at the Sir Edmund Hillary Outdoor Pursuits Centre in Tongariro National Park.
2010 — An enormous ash cloud from a remote Icelandic volcano causes widespread flight disruption as it drifts over northern Europe and strands travellers.
2013 — Two blasts near the finish line of the Boston Marathon kill three people and wound several hundred.
2019 — Paris cathedral Notre
Dame catches fire, its spire topples and its roof is destroyed.
2020 — The US has its deadliest day in the Covid19 pandemic, 2752 deaths being reported.
Today’s birthdays:
Leonardo da Vinci, Italian painter, engineer, sculptor and architect (14521519); Clark McConachy, New Zealand professional billiards/snooker player (18951980); Claudia Cardinale, Italian/Tunisian actress (1938); Onny Parun, New Zealand tennis player (1947); Emma Thompson, British actress (1959); Leilani Joyce, New Zealand professional squash player (1974); Seth Rogen, Canadian actor/writer (1982); Anna Harrison (nee Scarlett), New Zealand netballer (1983); Emma Watson, British actress (1990).
Quote of the day:
‘‘I’ve got 10 pairs of trainers. That’s one for every day of the week.’’ — Samantha Fox, English singer/songwriter/actress and former glamour model, who was born on this day in 1966.