February 4: ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

February 4, 2024 Brooklyn Eagle History

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ON THIS DAY IN 1897, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “What promises to be a novelty during the coming Chicago six day race is a series of motor cycle races. The automobiles will occupy a specially constructed track, inside of the circuit which will be occupied by the racers. Charles G. Reed, the Chicago representative of the autocar manufacturers, has arranged with the race promoters to have the machines keep pace with the riders in their long grind. The race will be under the direct management of Mr. Frank Hall.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1907, the Eagle reported, “The Central Labor Union yesterday afternoon indorsed an amendment to the Penal Code ‘in relation to the sale of certain drugs.’ The drugs which shall not be sold in this state without a physician’s prescription, according to the bill, are opium and chloral, or any preparation containing those drugs, or any of their derivatives. The penalty provided is imprisonment for not more than a year or a fine of not more than $1,000, or both fine and imprisonment. Senator Frawley and Assemblyman Alfred E. Smith have charge of the bill, and they will receive petitions in its behalf.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1913, the Eagle reported, “Classes in eugenics for the young men and women, with prominent physicians as instructors, weekly dancing classes, billiard and pool tables, and bowling alleys are to be a prominent part of the equipment of the Flatbush Congregational Church, according to a progressive programme outlined by the pastor, the Rev. Lewis T. Reed, and adopted at a meeting of about 250 members of the church held last night. There was some surprise and considerable opposition manifested by the more conservative members, but the progressives were too strong, and they carried their point in upholding the pastor in his advanced ideas. “

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ON THIS DAY IN 1924, the Eagle reported, “In every nook and corner of New York City today is felt the blow that has removed from life the man who led America in the war of the ages. Wednesday, which has been set aside as the day of Woodrow Wilson’s funeral, will be observed generally as a day of reverence. The schools are planning to close; courts, state, federal and city offices, as well as many department stores and other industrial concerns, will also observe the day, the whole city being united in its preparations to make Wednesday the solemn occasion for a huge tribute of appreciation. Churches and parochial schools will join in the general occasion of sorrow, each hour bringing a new announcement of the exercises to be held. A deluge of eulogy accompanies the news of events and from every home and busy mart is heard the breath of prayer for him who is departed.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1924, the Eagle reported, “The Olympic hockey rules call for 20-minute periods instead of the 15-minute sessions favored on this side of the pond. To us it seems like cruelty to dumb animals, but evidently the foreign hockey players are gluttons for punishment.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1931, the Eagle reported, “Initial steps toward the completion of the Victory Memorial Hospital, Seventh av. and 92nd st., were taken yesterday, when a small army of workmen began to place scaffolding on the top floor preparatory to erecting thereon a solarium, which will be one of the outstanding features of this hospital unit. When the work on the hospital structure is completed, probably sometime before the summer, there will be accommodations for 30 additional beds, making a total of 50. In addition to the solarium and the new bedrooms, there will be a large reception room and a number of other smaller units. A modern elevator will be installed and a refrigeration plant. There will be no interruption in the hospital service while the building operations are in progress.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1940, the Eagle reported, “LOUISVILLE, KY. (AP) — Theodore Roosevelt 3rd, grandson and namesake of the late President, took a Kentucky belle for a wife today — Miss Anne Babcock, Junior Leaguer and talented horsewoman. Col. and Mrs. Theodore Roosevelt Jr., parents of the bridegroom, and others of the Roosevelt family were present as the couple repeated vows spoken by the Rev. Teunis E. Gouwens in the Second Presbyterian Church. Cornelius Roosevelt, mining engineer in Mexico and brother of the bridegroom, was best man. Another brother, Quentin, Harvard University student, was an usher.

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ON THIS DAY IN 1945, the Eagle reported, “WASHINGTON, FEB. 3 (U.P.) — The Commerce Department reported tonight that the national birthrate, which rose 30 percent above prewar levels in the year after Pearl Harbor, is declining and will continue declining until the end of hostilities precipitates another baby boom. The department’s Census Bureau reported 9,000,000 births during the past three years.”

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Gabrielle Anwar
Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP

Natalie Imbruglia
Vianney Le Caer/Invision/AP

NOTABLE PEOPLE BORN ON THIS DAY include former New York Lt. Gov. Stan Lundine, who was born in 1939; 5th Dimension singer Florence LaRue, who was born in 1944; former U.S. Vice President Dan Quayle, who was born in 1947; Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Alice Cooper, who was born in 1948; Kansas drummer Phil Ehart, who was born in 1950; N.Y. Giants legend and Pro Football Hall of Famer Lawrence Taylor, who was born in 1959; “Burn Notice” star Gabrielle Anwar, who was born in 1970; “Hot Tub Time Machine” star Rob Corddry, who was born in 1971; boxer Oscar De La Hoya, who was born in 1973; “Torn” singer Natalie Imbruglia, who was born in 1975; “I Don’t Want to Be” singer Gavin DeGraw, who was born in 1977; and gymnast and Olympic gold medalist Carly Patterson, who was born in 1988.