TODAY IN HISTORY: King Kong premiere in NYC
In 1492, 800,000 Jews were banished from Spain by King Ferdinand V.
In 1699, French explorer Sieur d'Iberville located the mouth of the Mississippi River.
In 1835, Francis I — Emperor of Austria and the last Holy Roman Emperor — died. That ended an institution founded by Charlemagne more than 900 years before.
In 1836, the Republic of Texas declared independence from Mexico.
In 1863, the Union Pacific Railroad adopted a track width of four feet, eight and a-half inches (1.43 metres). It became the standard for most railroads.
In 1882, Roderick Maclean tried to assassinate Queen Victoria. It was the eighth recorded attempt on her life. Maclean shot into her carriage as she was leaving Windsor train station, but neither she nor the women travelling with her were hurt. Maclean was tried for high treason and found "not guilty, but insane."
In 1899, Mount Rainier National Washington state was established.
In 1916, Ontario passed a Temperance Act.
In 1923, "Time" magazine published its inaugural issue.
In 1930, author D.H. Lawrence died in Vence, France at age 44.
Park
in
In 1933, “King Kong,” starring Alberta-born Fay Wray, had its world premiere in New York City. In 1938, Lutheran pastor Martin Niemoller, who helped found the Confessing Church, was sentenced to seven months in prison for opposing German Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler. "First they came for the socialists and I did not speak out because I was not a socialist," he said. "Then they came for the trade unionists and I did not speak out because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews and I did not speak out because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me and there was no one left to speak for me."
In 1939, Cardinal Eugenio Pacelli was elected Pope on his 63rd birthday. He served as Pius XII until his death in 1957.
In 1943, the Second World War's “Battle of the Bismarck Sea” began. Australian and American warplanes intercepted a Japanese convoy en route to New Guinea. Most of the 16-vessel convoy was destroyed and more than 3,000 Japanese troops were killed.
In 1949, Joe Louis announced his retirement as the world heavyweight boxing champion.
In 1951, the first Canadian casualty list from the Korean War was issued. Six soldiers had been killed.
In 1958, Dr. Vivien Fuchs, a British explorer and scientist, completed the first overland crossing of the Antarctic.
In 1961, a Saskatoon team skipped by Joyce McKee won the first Canadian women's curling championship. They went 9-and-0 in the roundrobin event at the Ottawa Hunt and Golf Club. In 1962, Philadelphia 76ers centre Wilt Chamberlain scored 100 points in an NBA game against the New York Knicks in Hershey, Pa.
In 1965, accused drug trafficker Lucien Rivard escaped from the Bordeaux Jail in Montreal. Charges of bribery were raised and a royal commission into the affair criticized Justice Minister Guy Favreau, who then resigned. Rivard was caught four months later and extradited to the U.S., where he was sentenced to 20 years in prison.
In 1970, Keith Spicer was appointed Canada's first commissioner of official languages.
In 1972, wind, snow and ice combined to snap Hydro-Quebec lines from Quebec City to the Ontario border. The power outages were brief, with Quebec City waiting the longest — about three hours — for power to be restored.
In 1976, the last issue of the Canadian edition of “Time” magazine was distributed. It folded because of a loss of advertising after a change in government tax policy.
The following were the five most-read stories on The Herald’s website for the week ending Feb. 27, 2021.
1. Taxman cometh for Kaleden couple
2. Long-time Summerland RBC employee charged with fraud
3. Tears, tech problems and take-downs at Summerland council meeting
4. Crown seeks 5-6 years for one-punch attack
5. City’s north entrance going under microscope
—pentictonherald.ca