October 16, ON THIS DAY in 1946, how 11 top Nazis died
ON THIS DAY IN 1946, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “Nuernberg, Oct. 16 — Reichsmarshal Hermann Goering succeeding in cheating the gallows of allied justice by committing suicide in his prison cell a short time before the 10 other condemned remnants of the Nazi hierarchy were hanged earlier today. Despite the fact that an American security guard was supposed to be watching his every movement, the Crown Prince of Nazidom managed to place in his mouth, chew and swallow a vial containing cyanide of potassium. The vial of poison was hidden in a copper cartridge shell. Goering swallowed the poison while Col. S. Burton Andrus, American security commandant, was walking across the prison yard to death block to read him and the 10 other condemned Nazi leaders the International Military Tribunal’s sentence of death … Goering had not previously been told that he was going to die this morning, nor had any of the other condemned men. How he guessed that this was to be his day of doom and how he managed to conceal the poison on his person is a mystery that has confounded the security forces.”
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ON THIS DAY IN 1842, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “Colt’s Submarine Battery. — A third experiment with this engine of destruction will be made in our harbor tomorrow afternoon, at 4 o’clock precisely, under the patronage and direction of the American Institute, now holding its annual fair at Niblo’s Garden. The vessel to be blown up is larger than either of those already experimented upon, and will fully test the power of the battery.”
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ON THIS DAY IN 1860, the Eagle reported, “A balloon ascension is a never-failing attractor of immense crowds of humanity. At Polytechnic Hall there are balloon ascensions nightly, and the gazer can imaginatively take a seat in the car for an aerial flight through illimitable space, the most magnificent scenery within reach of view, and no risk of broken bones. Professor Brooks’ narrative of his own and other aeronautical ascensions is worth the small admission fee; and no doubt all Brooklyn will rush to the Hall during the manager’s short stay in our city, and have a look at those beautiful balloons. He gives afternoon exhibitions Wednesdays and Saturdays.”
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ON THIS DAY IN 1896, the Eagle published the following advertisement: “E.C.M. Fitzgerald’s Brooklyn Music Hall. This Week — First appearance in Brooklyn of Edison’s Vitascope and the best show ever presented in this city. Continuous concerts Sunday from 3 to 12.”
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ON THIS DAY IN 1912, the Eagle reported, “Chicago, Oct. 16 — Col. [Theodore] Roosevelt, his family with him, and satisfied as to his condition, today rested at greater ease than at any time since the hand of John Schrank was lifted against his life in Milwaukee on Monday night. Physicians examining his wound today and making a complete clinical examination, found his pulse, respiration and temperature so nearly normal that concern over his condition vanished, and the extremely conservative conduct gave way to a desire to establish public assurance that no complications were looked for to stand in the way of rapid recovery.”
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ON THIS DAY IN 1931, the Eagle reported, “Yorktown, Va., Oct. 16 (AP) — On the battlefield where Cornwallis surrendered to Washington and Lafayette 150 years ago thousands of Americans gathered today to celebrate the sesquicentennial anniversary of the battle which made their national existence possible. Yorktown, the tiny village of history, once more resembled an armed camp. Far beyond the celebration area stretch the tents of the Army encampment, while upon the bosom of the majestic York 41 modern naval vessels ride at anchor. Speaking as governor of one of the 13 original states, Gov. Franklin D. Roosevelt of New York said: ‘The state of New York gladly shares this day with the Commonwealth of Virginia and with our other sister states whose right to self-government was won on these fields.’”
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ON THIS DAY IN 1939, the Eagle reported, “The busy sound of hammer and saw temporarily replaced the more appropriate drone of airplanes at North Beach Airport today as workmen rushed for operation by Nov. 1 New York City’s $43,000,000 streamlined link to world air travel. Actually, the field — hailed as the world’s greatest — is ready for business, but there are a number of jobs that can be completed while awaiting official designation by Civil Aeronautics Authority. Success for the magnificent project, which was dedicated yesterday under the bluest of skies, was assured … From early morning to late afternoon the spectators rambled over the field, wandering in and out of the huge hangars and walking along the flag-draped promenade which offered an excellent view of the field’s expanse. There were whole families out for a holiday … Overhead Army bombers, Navy scouting planes and Marine fighters flew in formation, putting on a show that thrilled the sightseers.”
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