1675 – Plymouth Colony governor Josiah Winslow leads a colonial militia against the Narragansett during King Philip’s War.
1889 – North Dakota and South Dakota are admitted as the 39th and 40th U.S. states.
1898 – Cheerleading is started at the University of Minnesota with Johnny Campbell leading the crowd in cheering on the football team.
1917 – The Balfour Declaration proclaims British support for the “establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people” with the clear understanding “that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities”.
1920 – In the United States, KDKA of Pittsburgh starts broadcasting as the first commercial radio station. The first broadcast is the result of the United States presidential election, 1920.
1930 – Haile Selassie is crowned emperor of Ethiopia.
1947 – In California, designer Howard Hughes performs the maiden (and only) flight of the Spruce Goose or H-4 The Hercules; the largest fixed-wing aircraft ever built. It was intended as a transatlantic flight transport for use during World War II, it was not completed in time to be used in the war The winged giant made only one flight on November 2, 1947. The unannounced decision to fly was made by Hughes during a taxi test. With Hughes at the controls, David Grant as co-pilot, and several engineers, crewmen and journalists on board, the Spruce Goose flew just over one mile at an altitude of 70 feet for one minute. The short hop proved to skeptics that the gigantic machine could fly.
It was born out of a need to move troops and material across the Atlantic Ocean, where in 1942, German submarines were sinking hundreds of Allied ships. Henry Kaiser, steel magnate and shipbuilder, conceived the idea of a massive flying transport and turned to Howard Hughes to design and build it. Hughes took on the task, made even more challenging by the government’s restrictions on materials critical to the war effort, such as steel and aluminum. Six times larger than any aircraft of its time, the Spruce Goose, also known as the Flying Boat, is made entirely of wood. Originally designated HK-1 for the first aircraft built by Hughes-Kaiser, the giant was re-designated H-4 when Henry Kaiser withdrew from the project in 1944. Nevertheless, the press insisted on calling it the “Spruce Goose” despite the fact that the plane is made almost entirely of birch.
159 – Quiz show scandals: Twenty One game show contestant Charles Van Doren admits to a Congressional committee that he had been given questions and answers in advance.
1960 – Penguin Books is found not guilty of obscenity in the trial R v Penguin Books Ltd, the Lady Chatterley’s Lover case.
1963 – South Vietnamese President Ngô Đình Diệm is assassinated following a military coup.
1965 – Norman Morrison, a 31-year-old Quaker, sets himself on fire in front of the river entrance to the Pentagon to protest the use of napalm in the Vietnam war.
1984 – Capital punishment: Velma Barfield becomes the first woman executed in the United States since 1962. Margie Velma Barfield was an American serial killer, convicted of one murder, but she eventually confessed to six murders
Thank you for covering this important story. Every day, except during inclement weather, those living or working under these helicopter flights suffer from the negative effects of excessive noise pollution. Noise pollution is a health issue; studies demonstrate increased risk of cardiac disease, higher blood pressure, endocrine system disorders and lowered cognition due to exposure to noise pollution. Additionally, these nonessential tourist sightseeing helicopters are completely unnecessary. There are multiple observation decks in NYC that allow tourists to see NYC from above rather than driving to NJ locations to then fly loudly over NJ and NYC neighborhoods, parks and waterways. These gas guzzling helicopters contribute to air pollution and during this climate crises “Code Red” era it makes no sense to allow fossil fuel based joy rides simply for social media selfies! Additionally, commuter flights to the airports and the Hamptons (and other nearby locations) also needlessly pollute our skies. These 1 percenters who can afford this loud and polluting mode of transportation create suffering for the masses. This is truly a “tale of 2 cities” and Mayor DeBlasio could end the nonessential helicopter leases at our 3 Manhattan-based heliports today. Ban this low-hanging fossil fuel fruit and improve our urban air quality, end excessive noise pollution, and protect New Yorkers quality of life and safety. Regarding the West 30th Heliport, it is especially egregious as it is located inside the Hudson River Park, next to the busy bike and recreational lane, kayaking and sailing schools, and near Little Island Park. Commuters do not need to take helicopters as multiple alternatives exist that are quieter, less polluting and safer. Readers, please sign our petition to support passage of the federal bill to ban said helicopters; we are a grassroots all-volunteer nonprofit with members in NYC, NJ, Westchester, and Long Island – see http://www.stopthechopnynj.org Please join our movement!