July 7: ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

July 7, 2023 Brooklyn Eagle History

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ON THIS DAY IN 1878, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “The women shoplifters who escaped from Raymond Street Jail got to Montreal. They were followed thither by detectives who tried to threaten, if they would not come back, with the idea that they would be extradited, and that it would go much worse with them. But they knew the law better than that; knew that shoplifting is not an offense for which extradition is possible. They have not been heard of since here.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1902, the Eagle reported, “ATLANTIC CITY — When bathing yesterday at the end of the Steeplechase pier, a quarter mile from shore, Harry M. Speerman saw a dark object, which he thought was the body of a man, and dived in after it. But the supposed dead man was an eight foot shark. It turned on Speerman with open jaws, but missed him. Speerman shrieked to men on the pier to help him. The shark rushed a second time and missed Speerman again. Shepard Calhoun and James Neill, lifeguards, rowed out at top speed, but before they reached Speerman the shark made a third rush and caught Speerman’s left arm in its jaws, making a deep wound. Speerman was being dragged under when Calhoun drove his sharp boat hook into the fish like a harpoon. Speerman was pulled into the boat and the shark was killed after a fight. Speerman intends to have it stuffed.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1905, the Eagle reported, “The feature of yesterday’s play for the All England championship at Wimbledon was the clever work of Miss May Sutton, of Pasadena, Cal., the American champion. She defeated Miss C. Wilson in the final round for the women’s singles championship in straight sets, 6-3, 8-6. This victory gives Miss Sutton the right to meet Miss D.K. Doyle, the title holder, for the championship. The challenge round is scheduled for tomorrow, and from the present form shown by the young American she is expected to make a strong bid for the honors. In the contest against Miss Wilson, who is the Welsh champion, Miss Sutton was forced to play her very best to win out. This match was by far the hardest yet played by the American champion, but she maintained her record of not losing a set. She played a fine back court game with hard, accurate drives that scored point after point. This final round was witnessed by an enormous gallery, the spectators cheering the young American most enthusiastically. Her fine record was a source of pride to the Americans present, especially as the men representatives of this country have all been beaten.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1912, the Eagle reported, “Over two-thirds of the inheritance tax of the State of New York is collected in New York City. It gets nearly all of the larger estates. During the past year it has collected the tax on the estates of Joseph Pulitzer, Richard T. Wilson, Cornelius N. Bliss and Frank Work. There was collected in New York County during the fiscal year ending September 30, 1911, $4,637,422.95, and in the city $6,000,371.56. The recent catastrophe of the Titanic will, it is thought, add from $6,000,000 to $7,000,000 to the State Treasury from the estates of John Jacob Astor, Isidor Straus and Benjamin Guggenheim alone, and probably the latter total will be reached from the estates of all the victims of the disaster. It will possibly be the cause of making 1912 the banner year in the records of the office. It is thought that the total receipts will not be far from $11,000,000.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1935, the Eagle reported, “It is during the next eight weeks that the various garden pests will do their greatest damage. Plant lice we have always with us. These pests are wee but mighty. They insert their long proboscides into the leaves and practically absorb their food through a tube. In the case of the aphid, we can smother it with nicotine, but in the case of some of the other insects, like the squash bug, this is impossible due to the hardness of its shell.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1947, the Eagle reported, “Mayor [William] O’Dwyer today put the politically explosive 8-cent (two for 15) fare before the Board of Estimate at an executive session at Gracie Mansion. It was a foregone conclusion that he sought affirmative action on the issue despite opposition by organized labor and such political groups as the American Labor, Liberal, Socialist and Communist parties. It was also known that although he himself has not yet gone ‘on the record’ in favoring the rise, he wanted a personal statement of his stand from each of the eight members of the board. There was every indication that the board would eventually go on record as favoring the increase. But there were hints that the board’s decision, which the Mayor is understood to want unanimous, would be reached with considerable difficulty. At least two of the board’s seven Democrats, Controller Lazarus Joseph and Manhattan Borough President Hugo E. Rogers, are said to feel that the proposed fare rise would be rejected at the polls, injuring the Democratic party’s prestige in New York.”

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Michelle Kwan
Luiz C. Ribiero/Invision/AP

NOTABLE PEOPLE BORN ON THIS DAY include former “Tonight Show” bandleader Doc Severinsen, who was born in 1927; Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Ringo Starr (The Beatles), who was born in 1940; “The Shining” star Shelley Duvall, who was born in 1949; “Once and Again” star Billy Campbell, who was born in 1959; “Ally McBeal” star Vonda Shepard, who was born in 1963; “Mad TV” star Mo Collins, who was born in 1965; actor and comedian Jim Gaffigan, who was born in 1966; “CSI” star Jorja Fox, who was born in 1968; “A Different World” star Cree Summer, who was born in 1969; Olympic gold medalist and Basketball Hall of Famer Lisa Leslie, who was born in 1972; and World Figure Skating Hall of Famer Michelle Kwan, who was born in 1980.

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FRONT PAIGE NEWS: Leroy “Satchel” Paige was born on this day in 1906. The Alabama native was one of the greatest stars of the Negro Leagues. In 1948, at age 42, he became the first black pitcher in the American League and helped the Cleveland Indians win the World Series. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1971 and died in 1982.

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WOMAN OF THE YEAR: Sandra Day O’Connor was announced as a nominee to the Supreme Court on this day in 1981. President Ronald Reagan, who pledged during his campaign to appoint the first woman to the court, formally nominated her on Aug. 19. She was confirmed by the Senate on Sept. 21 by a vote of 99-0 and served on the court until retiring in 2006.

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

Quotable:

“Just take the ball and throw it where you want to. Throw strikes. Home plate don’t move.”

— Baseball Hall of Famer Satchel Paige, who was born on this day in 1906