January 30: ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

January 30, 2024 Brooklyn Eagle History

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ON THIS DAY IN 1869, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “President McCosh and the Princeton professors propose to observe the total eclipse of the sun next August, at some point in the South, and yesterday asked the Senate to appropriate money to help them do it.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1883, the Eagle reported, “In this country the practice of shoplifting, called theft when perpetrated by professionals and ‘kleptomania’ when committed by those who are not professional thieves, is much more extensive than is generally supposed. Every precaution has been taken by merchants, and there are numerous apprehensions for robbery in the great stores which never made their way into the newspapers. One of the most conspicuous merchants informed the writer that in some of the larger establishments the arrests for theft average more than one a day.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1925, the Eagle reported, “SPRINGFIELD, MASS., JAN. 29 — The advantage of having as a father a college efficiency expert became obvious in the case of Ellen Elaine Kayser recently. When but six hours old she was registered at college as a candidate for admission. Mr. Kayser is efficiency expert at Wellesley and with Mrs. Kayser has agreed to have Ellen Elaine ready for entrance at least by 1942.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1929, the Eagle reported, “Cabinet members, educators and record-breaking flyers marked the progress of the aviation industry in addresses last night before a dinner gathering of 1,200 at the Hotel Commodore, Manhattan, where the United Business Interests hailed this new element in ‘the commercial trinity of land and sea and air.’ The event was sponsored for the three-fold purpose of officially recognizing business aviation, welcoming the endurance flyers of the Question Mark and opening the program of National Exchange Clubs for air safety with the establishment of airports, beacon guides and emergency landing fields. Major Carl Spatz and three of his Question Mark crew, Capt. Ira C. Eaker, Lt. Elwood R. Quesada and Sgt. Roy W. Hooe, were guests of honor with its builder, Anthony H.G. Fokker. Postmaster General Harry S. New, Edward P. Warner, Assistant Secretary of the Navy; F. Trubee Davison, Assistant Secretary of War; William B. MacCracken, Assistant Secretary of Commerce; Amelia Earhart, Clarence Chamberlin, Walter Hintin of the NC4 and Mrs. Floyd Bennett were among the speakers introduced by Dr. John H. Finley, editor of the N.Y. Times, who presided. Congratulations were received from President Coolidge, Governor Roosevelt and Commander Richard E. Byrd in the Bay of Whales, Antarctica. Mayor Walker sent a telegram regretting his ‘physical inability to attend.’”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1938, the Eagle reported, “Glad news from the Treasury Department last week was that American public will be jingling a brand new nickel in its jeans before the year is up. Present 5c-piece honors primitive America with an Indian on one side, a buffalo on the other. New piece will be a horse-and-buggy nickel carrying likenesses of Thomas Jefferson on one side; his home, Monticello, on the other. Change, says Secretary Morgenthau, is made just for esthetic novelty: Treasury isn’t planning a 3c-nickel to bring it in line with 50c-dollar. Law permits change in design of any coin only once every 25 years. Buffalo nickel comes of age Feb. 21. They’re holding a national competition now for new design, with first prize of $1,000. Winner has to agree beforehand to accept any revision asked for by Treasury. Other features of horse-and-buggy nickel: word ‘liberty’ and date will be on Jefferson side. Reverse will carry legal requirements: ‘E Pluribus Unum,’ ‘United States of America,’ and ‘Five Cents.’ Motto, ‘In God We Trust,’ will be inscribed too, though that’s not required by law.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1951 the Eagle reported, “ALBANY (U.P.) — Governor Dewey sent a record-breaking $939,000,000 budget to the Legislature today. He did not ask for any tax increases but warned that they may be necessary later. The Governor’s near-billion dollar budget program for 1951-1952 will be increased another $45,000,000. These monies he expects to spend on pay raises for State employees, on Civil Defense and for more financial aid to localities. It tops the 1950-51 budget by $113,000,000. The previous all-time high was $937,000,000 for 1949-50. In his annual budget message, Dewey asked the Republican-controlled Legislature to continue the 10 percent forgiveness deduction in personal income taxes and the 25 percent cut in levies on unincorporated businesses. He added, however, the whole program was subject to change because of the ‘rapid deterioration in international affairs.’ ‘We provide for the State services and capital improvements which are essential to the welfare of our people and to National defense,’ he said. ‘At the same time, this budget will require the utmost economy in every department so that costs of State government may be kept to a minimum. In this way we can help our citizens bear their share of the Federal tax burden which our defense effort will require.’”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1963, the Eagle reported, “MIAMI BEACH (UPI) — Commissioner Pete Rozelle of the National Football League said today ‘we are cooperating with the McClellan Committee’ investigating pro football gambling rumors, but declined to discuss specific cases. Sen. John L. McClellan had announced in Washington that a Senate Rackets Committee investigator had been investigating the San Francisco Forty Niners. ‘I made a general report on this situation to representatives of each club,’ Rozelle reiterated, ‘and there will be no further announcements at this meeting simply because there will be no further discussion of these rumors.’”

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NOTABLE PEOPLE BORN ON THIS DAY include Oscar-winning actor Gene Hackman, who was born in 1930; Oscar-winning actress Vanessa Redgrave, who was born in 1937; former Vice President Dick Cheney, who was born in 1941; former N.Y Mets manager Davey Johnson, who was born in 1943; Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Phil Collins (Genesis), who was born in 1951; “Roc” star Charles S. Dutton, who was born in 1951; World Golf Hall of Famer Curtis Strange, who was born in 1955; “Don’t You Want Me” singer Jody Watley, who was born in 1959; former NBA point guard Jalen Rose, who was born in 1973; and Oscar-winning actor Christian Bale, who was born in 1974.