TODAY IN HISTORY

Today is Tuesday, Sept. 8, the 251st day of 2015. There are 114 days left in the year.

In 1565, a Spanish expedition established the first permanent European settlement in North America at present-day St. Augustine, Florida.

In 1761, Britain’s King George III married Princess Charlotte of MecklenburgStrelitz a few hours after meeting her for the first time.

In 1900, Galveston, Texas, was struck by a hurricane that killed an estimated 8,000 people.

In 1921, Margaret Gorman, 16, of Washington, D.C., was crowned the first “Miss America” in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

In 1934, more than 130 people lost their lives in a fire aboard the liner SS Morro Castle off the New Jersey coast.

In 1935, Sen. Huey P. Long, D-La., was shot and mortally wounded inside the Louisiana State Capitol; he died two days later. (The assailant was identified as Dr. Carl Weiss, who was gunned down by Long’s bodyguards.)

In 1954, the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO) was founded in Manila by the United States, France, Britain, New Zealand, Australia, the Philippines, Thailand and Pakistan.

In 1966, the sciencefiction TV series “Star Trek” premiered on NBC; the situation comedy “That Girl,” starring Marlo Thomas, premiered on ABC.

In 1974, President Gerald R. Ford granted a “full, free, and absolute pardon” to former President Richard Nixon covering his entire term in office.

In 1985, Pete Rose of the Cincinnati Reds tied Ty Cobb’s career record for hits, singling for hit number 4,191 during a game against the Cubs in Chicago.

In 1994, USAir Flight 427, a Boeing 737, crashed into a ravine as it was approaching Pittsburgh International Airport, killing all 132 people on board.