This day in history
Today is Friday, Sept. 8, the 251st day of 2023. There are 114 days left in the year.
Birthdays: Ventriloquist Willie Tyler is 83. Senator Bernie Sanders is 82. Actor Alan Feinstein is
82. Pop singer Sal Valentino (The Beau Brummels) is 81. Author Ann Beattie is 76. Former secretary of defense James Mattis is
73. Cajun singer Zachary Richard is 73. Musician Will Lee is 71. Singer Aimee Mann is 63. Gospel singer Darlene Zschech is 58. Alternative country singer Neko Case is 53. Actor Martin Freeman is 52. Actor David Arquette is 52. TV-radio personality Kennedy is
51. Actor Larenz Tate is 48. R&B singer Pink is 44. Actor Jonathan
Taylor Thomas is 42. Rapper Wiz Khalifa is 36.
► In 1504, Michelangelo’s towering marble statue of David was unveiled to the public in Florence, Italy.
►In 1565, a Spanish expedition established the first permanent European settlement in North America at present-day St. Augustine, Fla.
► In 1664, the Dutch surrendered New Amsterdam to the British, who renamed it New York.
► In 1795, several Harvard students gathered in a dorm room and formed a secret social club to cultivate “friendship and patriotism.” Members agreed to take turns providing a pot of hasty pudding for meetings. (In its early years, the Hasty Pudding Club, the nation’s oldest dramatic institution, staged mock trials; it put on its first show in 1844, according to Mass Humanities.)
► In 1900, Galveston, Texas, was struck by a hurricane that killed about 8,000 people.
► In 1941, the 900-day Siege of Leningrad by German forces began during World War II.
► In 1951, a peace treaty with Japan was signed by 49 nations in San Francisco.
► In 1964, public schools in Prince Edward County in Virginia reopened after being closed for five years by officials attempting to prevent court-ordered racial desegregation.
► In 1974, President Ford granted a “full, free, and absolute pardon” to former president Nixon.
► In 1985, Pete Rose of the Cincinnati Reds tied Ty Cobb’s career record for hits, singling for hit number 4,191 during a game against the Cubs in Chicago.
► In 1986, “The Oprah Winfrey Show” began the first of 25 seasons in national syndication.
► Last year, Queen Elizabeth II, who spent more than seven decades on the British throne, died at age 96; her 73-year-old son became King Charles III.