Today in history
Today is Wednesday, March 6, the 65th day of 2019. There are 300 days left in the year.
Today’s Highlight in History
On March 6, 1857, the U.S. Supreme Court, in Dred Scott v. Sandford, ruled 7-2 that Scott, a slave, was not an American citizen and therefore could not sue for his freedom in federal court.
On this date
In 1475, Italian artist and poet Michelangelo was born in Caprese (kah-PRAY’-say) in the Republic of Florence.
In 1836, the Alamo in San Antonio, Texas, fell as Mexican forces led by General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna stormed the fortress after a 13- day siege; the battle claimed the lives of all the Texan defenders, nearly 200 strong, including William Travis, James Bowie and Davy Crockett.
In 1912, Oreo sandwich cookies were first introduced by the National Biscuit Co.
In 1933, a national bank holiday declared by President Franklin D. Roosevelt aimed at calming panicked depositors went into effect. Chicago Mayor Anton Cermak, wounded in an attempt on Roosevelt’s life the previous month, died at a Miami hospital at age 59.
In 1944, U.S. heavy bombers staged the first full-scale American raid on Berlin during World War II.
In 1953, Georgy Malenkov was named premier of the Soviet Union a day after the death of Josef Stalin.
In 1964, heavyweight boxing champion Cassius Clay officially changed his name to Muhammad Ali.
In 1970, a bomb being built inside a Greenwich Village townhouse by the radical Weathermen accidentally went off, destroying the house and killing three group members.
In 1983, in a case that drew much notoriety, a woman was gang-raped atop a pool table in a tavern in New Bedford, Massachusetts, called Big Dan’s; four men were later convicted of the attack.
In 1995, “The Jenny Jones Show” taped an episode on same-sex crushes during which Jonathan Schmitz learned his secret admirer was an acquaintance, Scott Amedure; three days later, Schmitz fatally shot Amedure, later telling police that Amedure had embarrassed him on national TV. (Schmitz was sentenced to 25 to 50 years in prison for second- degree murder but was released on parole in August, 2017; the episode was never included in the “Jenny Jones” syndication package, but did air on Court TV.)
In 2008, a Palestinian killed eight students at a Jewish seminary in Jerusalem before he was slain; Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip praised the operation in a statement, and thousands of Palestinians took to the streets of Gaza to celebrate.
In 2016, former first lady Nancy Reagan died in Los Angeles at age 94.
Ten years ago: The government reported the jobless rate reached 8.1 percent in Feb. 2009. While acknowledging an “astounding” number of job losses, President Barack Obama told critics of his $787 billion economic recovery plan in Columbus, Ohio, that it was saving jobs and said, “I know we did the right thing.” NASA’s planethunting spacecraft, Kepler, rocketed into space on a voyage to track down other Earths in a faraway patch of the Milky Way galaxy.
Five years ago: Ukraine lurched toward breakup as lawmakers unanimously declared they wanted to join Russia and planned to put the decision to voters; President Barack Obama condemned the move and the West imposed the first real sanctions against Russia. Actress-singer Sheila MacRae, 92, died in Englewood, New Jersey.
One year ago: Top economic adviser Gary Cohn announced that he was leaving the White House after breaking with President Donald Trump on trade policy.