On this date in ...

1919:

In London, Her Royal Highness, Princess Alice, countess of Athlone and daughter of the duchess of Albany, General Cartheret Carey, governor of Windsor castle, Admiral Sims and members of his staff, Colonel Little commanding the American marines, and other distinguished people heaped praise on Joseph M. Tansey of Albany, N.Y., for his work in “Somewhere in Scotland,” the U.S. Navy’s musical revue. Tansey had formerly been a linotype machine operator at the Times Union and hoped to get back to it when his tour was over.

1969:

More than half of housing units in the Arbor Hill and South End sections of Albany lacked heat in every room, according to a survey of the Council on Community Concerns. Random sampling of 330 housing units showed all but six percent had housing code violations, the top of which was lack of heat. Other violations included lack of fire escapes, no fuseboxes, leaks in the roof and wet basements. The survey confirmed what people who lived in the neighborhoods already knew — “the deplorable state of Albany housing,” said Harry Hamilton, council president.

1994:

Two inmates at the state’s Coxsackie Correctional Facility had committed suicide in the past week and a half, the Department of Correctional Services confirmed. Department spokesman James Flateau declined to identify either inmate, saying he hadn’t received confirmation that their relatives had been notified. One, serving a 16-month-to-4-year term for grand larceny, died Jan. 5. The other, serving a 4-to-12-year term for assault and grand larceny, committed suicide Jan. 11. Both took their lives in similar fashion, Flateau said, hanging themselves using their sheets.

▶ Want to read more about the Capital Region’s past? Have any memories or thoughts about how our history relates to today’s events? See http:// blog.timesunion. com/history/