Today in history
Today is Wednesday, October 18, the 291st day of 2017 and the 27th day of autumn.
On this date in the SCV: In 1988, The Signal reported that Wm. S. Hart Union High School District officials had ordered an investigation into reports of drug use, sexual misconduct and physical threats by bus drivers while Newhall elementary school district officials said they may not renew their contract with Laidlaw, the carrier that served both districts. Meanwhile, concerned parents had begun driving their children to and from school in order to prevent their children from being further terrorized. Board members were cautious and non-committal on the subject, some confessing ignorance of the situation. The actions come in the wake of reports in Sunday’s Signal that drivers had had sexual relations with students, sold drugs to students and other drivers, driven without proper training and driven unsafe vehicles. All of the allegations except those regarding vehicle safety had been confirmed by representatives of both the Hart district and Laidlaw. The allegations about vehicle safety had not been denied. Hart sub-contracted the busing system from Laidlaw and the Newhall district paid Hart to administrate the system for schools in the Newhall school district.
Today’s Highlights in History:
In 1767, the boundary between Delaware, Maryland and Pennsylvania (the Mason-Dixon Line) was established.
In 1962, Drs. James Watson, Francis Crick and Maurice Wilkins won the Nobel Prize in medicine/physiology for uncovering the double-helix structure of DNA.
In 2001, four al-Qaida members were sentenced to life in prison for bombing the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998.
Today’s fact: The Mason-Dixon Line surveyed by Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon in 1767 left a “wedge” of land in dispute between Delaware and Pennsylvania until 1921.
Today’s sports: In 1977, New York Yankees outfielder Reggie Jackson hit three home runs on three consecutive swings against three different Los Angeles Dodgers pitchers, leading his team to an 8-4 win (and the series win) in Game 6 of the World Series.
Today’s number: $556.37 – Herman Melville’s total earnings from the 3,715 copies of “Moby-Dick” that sold during his lifetime. The now-classic novel was first published as a threevolume edition titled “The Whale” on this day in 1851.
Today’s moon: Between last quarter moon (Oct. 12) and new moon (Oct. 19).