Today in history

On April 30, 1812, Louisiana ( formerly the Territory of Orleans) became the 18th state of the Union.

In 1789, George Washington took office in New York as the first president of the United States.

In 1803, the United States purchased the Louisiana Territory from France for 60 million francs, the equivalent of about $ 15 million.

In 1900, engineer John Luther “Casey” Jones of the Illinois Central Railroad died in a train wreck near Vaughan, Miss., after staying at the controls in a successful effort to save the passengers.

In 1911, a fire broke out in Bangor, Maine, destroying much of the downtown area before it was brought under control the next morning; two deaths were blamed on the blaze.

In 1912, Universal Studios had its beginnings as papers incorporating the Universal Film Manufacturing Co. were filed and recorded in New York State.

In 1939, the New York World’s Fair officially opened with a ceremony that included an address by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

In 1945, as Russian troops approached his Berlin bunker, Adolf Hitler committed suicide along with his wife of one day, Eva Braun.

In 1958, the American Association of Retired Persons ( later simply AARP) was founded in Washington, D. C.

In 1968, New York City police forcibly removed student demonstrators occupying five buildings at Columbia University.

In 1973, President Richard M. Nixon announced the resignations of top aides H. R. Haldeman and John Ehrlichman, along with Attorney General Richard G. Kleindienst and White House counsel John Dean.

In 1980, Queen Juliana of the Netherlands abdicated; she was succeeded by her daughter, Princess Beatrix. There’s a difference between a philosophy and a bumper sticker. – Charles M. Schulz, American car

toonist ( 1922- 2000).