History

July 26: ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

July 26, 2022 Brooklyn Eagle History

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ON THIS DAY IN 1871, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “Rockaway is as good a place to hunt for sharks as any shore on the island. A party from the Eastern District, with elaborate preparations, went for them yesterday morning, but up to noon had not ‘got a bite.’ They were, however, well repaid for their patience and trouble about 7 p.m. Following in the wake of three small pilot fish, such as usually precede a shark in his journeyings, they cast off three hooks at a time, one from the stern of the vessel, another from the bow, and the third from the starboard side, which latter showed admirable science on the part of the fishers, as by that means they were saved the ignominy of a salt water bath, as it happened to be the hook that ‘took,’ and had it been on the port side of the vessel they would undoubtedly have been capsized, as the fish weighed some 280 pounds, and nearly shook their sail boat to atoms. The lines were made fast before throwing over, and by this means no accident occurred. The shark was hauled into shallow water before unhooking.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1893, the Eagle reported, “Dr. R.C. Baker, the secretary of the health department, said today that there was at present no danger of an epidemic of smallpox. The remarkable number of cases reported within the last two weeks was due to the fact that the malady had been probably willfully concealed in thickly settled districts. The summer corps of physicians, as the Eagle intimated two weeks ago, is now engaged vaccinating in the affected neighborhoods, and the health officials believe that the disease will soon be stamped out.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1898, the Eagle reported, “At a regular meeting of the Sixteenth Ward Republican Battery held last evening, resolutions were introduced indorsing Theodore Roosevelt for governor, James R. Howe for congressman and Clarence V.O. Van Dusen as deputy to Chief Elections Superintendent McCullagh.

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ON THIS DAY IN 1945, the Eagle reported, “LONDON (U.P.) — Prime Minister Winston Churchill and his Conservative party went down to landslide defeat today at the hands of the British electorate which voted into Parliament a sweeping Labor party majority. Mr. Churchill must now request King George VI to call in Maj. Clement Attlee, leader of the Labor party, to form a new government. Mr. Attlee, who will succeed Mr. Churchill as prime minister, issued a brief statement declaring that the results ‘will enable us to implement the policy of the Socialist party. This is the first time in the history of this country that labor has a clear majority. It is a remarkable and gratifying result.’ There was no immediate statement from the leader who had guided Britain through the dark hours of war in Europe to the defeat of Nazi Germany. He was closeted in the gloomy little house at No. 10 Downing Street, which is the residence of British prime ministers. Outside in the gathering murk of a drizzling London afternoon a little knot of spectators silently waited.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1953, the Eagle reported, “TOKYO (U.P.) — The Korean war armistice will be signed at 10 a.m. Monday, informed sources said today … The truce signing was expected today, but the Communists apparently could not make up their minds who would sign the historic document for them, the sources said. The sources said that an announcement probably will be made officially late today setting 10 a.m. Monday as the time of the signing of the truce in a hut in Panmunjom. Only a few details of the final signing ceremony remain to be worked out, the sources said … The armistice could have been signed days ago — saving thousands of lives — but for the reluctance of North Korean Communist dictator Kim Il Sung to appear in public for the truce signing ceremony.”

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Dorothy Hamill
Brent N. Clarke/Invision/AP

NOTABLE PEOPLE BORN ON THIS DAY include Pro Football Hall of Famer Bob Lilly, who was born in 1939; Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Darlene Love, who was born in 1941; Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Mick Jagger (The Rolling Stones), who was born in 1943; Oscar-winning actress Helen Mirren, who was born in 1945; Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Roger Taylor (Queen), who was born in 1949; figure skater and Olympic gold medalist Dorothy Hamill, who was born in 1956; “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine” star Nana Visitor, who was born in 1957; Extreme singer Gary Cherone, who was born in 1961; Oscar-winning actress Sandra Bullock, who was born in 1964; “Fast & Furious” star Jason Statham, who was born in 1967; “The Sixth Sense” star Olivia Williams, who was born in 1968; “Underworld” star Kate Beckinsale, who was born in 1973; and snowboarder and Olympic gold medalist Kelly Clark, who was born in 1983.

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THE OLD MAN: Jean Shepherd was born on this day in 1921. The Chicago native is best known for his semi-autobiographical book “In God We Trust: All Others Pay Cash,” which inspired the classic 1983 film “A Christmas Story” and its 1994 sequel “My Summer Story,” both of which he narrated. He died in 1999.

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STEPPING UP: President George H.W. Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act on this day in 1990. The law, which went into effect two years later, required that public facilities be made accessible to people with disabilities.

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Special thanks to “Chase’s Calendar of Events” and Brooklyn Public Library.

Quotable:

“The truth will always have a market.”

— writer Jean Shepherd, who was born on this day in 1921