TODAY IN HISTORY

Today is the 299th day of 2019 and the 34th day of autumn.

Today’s history: In 1774, the first Continental Congress adjourned in Philadelphia.

▪ In 1881, the legendary shootout between lawmen and outlaw cowboys near the O.K. Corral in Tombstone, Arizona Territory, left three men dead.

▪ In 2001, President George W. Bush signed the anti-terrorism USA Patriot Act into law.

▪ In 2002, Russian special forces raided a theater in Moscow where Chechen separatists had held hundreds of patrons hostage for nearly three days. More than 130 hostages and all 40 militants were killed.

Today’s fact: Florida is the flattest state in the United States. Its highest elevation is only 345 feet above sea level.

Today’s sports: In 1997, the Florida Marlins became the youngest Major League Baseball franchise ever to win a World Series, earning the championship in its fifth year of existence. The 4-year-old Arizona Diamondbacks surpassed the Marlins’ mark with a World Series win in 2001.

Today’s quote: “I could bear the memory, but I could not bear the music that made the memory such a killing thing.” — Pat Conroy, “Beach Music”

Today’s number: $50 — advertised monthly pay for Pony Express riders and station keepers. The horseback

delivery service, which relayed mail from St. Joseph, Missouri, to Sacramento, California, officially ceased operations on this day in 1861.

Today’s moon: Between last quarter moon (Oct. 21) and new moon (Oct. 27).

BIRTHDAYS

Mahalia Jackson (1911-1972), singer; Bob Hoskins (1942-2014), actor; Pat Conroy (1945-2016), novelist; Pat Sajak (1946- ), TV personality; Hillary Clinton (1947- ), politician; Dylan McDermott (1961- ), actor; Cary Elwes (1962- ), actor; Natalie Merchant (1963- ), singer; Keith Urban (1967- ), singer-songwriter; Seth MacFarlane (1973- ), actor/ writer/TV producer; Jon Heder (1977), actor; Sasha Cohen (1984- ), figure skater.