TODAY IN HISTORY
On March 28, 1979, an automated valve mistakenly closed at Pennsylvania’s Three Mile Island nuclear plant, which led to radioactive leakage from a partial core meltdown.
Also on this date
In 1801, the French Republic and the Kingdom of Naples ended their war with the Treaty of Florence.
In 1842, the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra performed its first concert.
In 1915, American Leon Thrasher became the first U.S. citizen killed in the European conflict that grew into World War I.
In 1920, Hollywood stars Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford married.
In 1930, Turkish city Constantinople became Istanbul.
In 1939, Nationalist Gen. Francisco Franco conquered Madrid as the three-year Spanish Civil War ended with disbanded Republican armies after Republican government officials had exiled in France.
In 1959, China’s State Council dissolved Tibet’s government.
In 1966, Bill Russell was named head coach of the Boston Celtics, becoming the first Black head coach of an NBA team.
In 1969, retired U.S. Army Gen. Dwight Eisenhower, a Republican statesman and the U.S. president from 1953-1961, died. He was commander-in-chief of Allied armies during World War II.
In 1985, Russian-born French artist Marc Chagall died at 97; French poet Guillaume Apollinaire coined the word “surrealist” to describe Chagall’s work.
In 2004, Oscar-winning British actor and playwright Peter Ustinov, one of the world’s beloved raconteurs and mimics, died aged 82. He won Academy Awards for his roles in the films “Spartacus” and “Topkapi.”
In 2005, an 8.6-magnitude earthquake killed about 1,000 people on the island of Sumatra in Indonesia.
In 2006, Duke University suspended its men’s lacrosse team amid allegations of sexual assault involving players and a stripper. This preceded rape charges against three players that were later dropped.
In 2020, to help prevent the spread of COVID-19, the White House extended all distancing measures through the following month.