May 10: ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

May 10, 2024 Brooklyn Eagle History

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ON THIS DAY IN 1896, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “Charles H. Niehaus has exhibited his equestrian statue of General Sherman at his studio in the Scotia building, New York.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1909, the Eagle reported, “Mothers’ Day was signalized at the Fenimore Street Church at the morning service yesterday by providing all comers with a white carnation, the emblem of Mothers’ Day. As the congregation assembled, Mrs. Alexander S. Snyder and Mrs. Alfred C. Pette stood at the door and presented each person with this floral badge, and when the pastor began his sermon the congregation had the appearance of quite a flower display. A strong Mothers’ Association, with Mrs. Clarence E. Shaw as president, is organized in Flatbush and was very largely in evidence at the church yesterday.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1910, the Eagle reported, “The two distinguished men who arrive on the Mauretania tomorrow noon will undoubtedly do a great deal toward arousing a great interest among the boys of America in a most healthful and fascinating interest in everything that pertains to out-of-doors life. One of these men, W.B. Wakefield, honorable secretary, boys department, Young Men’s Christian Association, England, is also standing back of the huge organization known as the Boy Scouts. In England, Scotland, Germany and Australia this Boy Scout movement has spread with great rapidity, until already three hundred thousand boys are said to be enrolled and at work. Mr. Wakefield is accompanied by Charles Heald, the national boys secretary of the Y.M.C.A., and they will tour America in the interests of the movement, opening their American trip in the Borough of Brooklyn Thursday afternoon.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1922, the Eagle reported, “The annual rally of the Brooklyn Girl Scouts will be held at the 13th Regt. Armory, Friday evening. Scout activities will be demonstrated, consisting of drilling, setting-up exercises, signaling, camp stunts, first aid and Scout songs. Five golden eaglets will be presented by Mrs. Herbert Hoover, National President of the Girl Scouts of America. Dancing will follow the program, music being furnished by the 13th Regt. Band.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1950, the Eagle reported, “Final plans and specifications for the proposed Brooklyn World War II Memorial have been approved by the War Memorial Committee’s board of directors, the committee announced today. Financed through funds raised by public subscription and designed as a tribute to Brooklyn’s 326,000 men and women who served the nation during the war against the Axis powers, the memorial will be built at a cost of approximately one-half million dollars on a site in the S. Parkes Cadman Plaza area of the Brooklyn Civic Center. The site, located north of Tillary St., between Washington and Fulton Sts., lies between Brooklyn’s century-old Borough Hall and the Brooklyn Bridge. Approval of the plans was voted at a meeting of the directors, who discussed the plans with Borough President [John] Cashmore, the memorial project’s honorary chairman. George V. McLaughlin, president of the Brooklyn War Memorial, Inc., presided.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1956, the Bay Ridge Home Reporter said, “WASHINGTON — One out of three Bay Ridge voters is in favor of building the Narrows Bridge, a poll by Congressman John H. Ray (R-15th Dist.) indicates. Bay Ridge constituents expressed themselves in opposition to the proposed bridge, 69% to 31%, in the poll just concluded, Mr. Ray’s office revealed. In a previous poll, taken by the Congressman in July 1954 in a comparable manner, the Bay Ridge vote was 61% opposed, 39% in favor. This indicates a further lessening of public support for the bridge in Bay Ridge. On the Staten Island side of his district, Mr. Ray reported 57% of the voters in favor of the bridge and 43% opposed. In a 1954 survey, 69% of Staten Islanders were for the bridge and 31% opposed. The net result of this decline in sentiment for construction of the bridge is that in Mr. Ray’s district as a whole, including both the Bay Ridge and Staten Island halves, the 1954 sentiment — 53% of all voters for the span — has been reversed. Now 56% of all voters oppose it. In this year’s poll, Mr. Ray added a second question: ‘Do you favor the announced plans for exits, approaches and expressways for such a bridge?’ Bay Ridge voters resoundingly said no, 75% to 25%, an even greater margin than that opposed to the bridge itself. In Staten Island, the vote on the approaches was identical to the vote on the span. Districtwide, the voters are against the approaches, 56% to 44%.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1962, the Brooklyn Heights Press reported, “Brooklyn Heights drew a blank from the billion dollar school building program announced Monday by Superintendent of Schools John J. Theobald. The program, expected to span a six-and-a-half-year period, would be the largest over a comparable period in the history of New York City. No new school construction was listed for Brooklyn Heights under the program. Although the plan provides for additions to existing schools, a Board of Education spokesman told this newspaper Tuesday that no such additional facilities were planned for Public School 8, 37 Hicks St. P.S. 8 is the Heights’ only elementary school. The spectre of classroom overcrowding is expected to hang heavily over the Heights if the Cadman Plaza Title I project is approved. About 4,000 new residents will live in the 980 co-operative units of the project. A small increase — at least — in student enrollment at P.S. 8 most likely will result from this influx. To further compound the overcrowding possibility, it was reported recently by an official of the Parents’ Association of the local public school that pre-registration figures for the kindergarten and first grades have shown a steady increase in the past two years. At present P.S. 8 is classified as ‘under-utilized’ by the Board of Education. However, few expect that this designation will apply in the years to come.”

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Kenan Thompson
Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP

NOTABLE PEOPLE BORN ON THIS DAY include Basketball Hall of Famer Jim Calhoun, who was born in 1942; “Airplane!” director Jim Abrahams, who was born in 1944; Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Donovan, who was born in 1946; Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Dave Mason (Traffic), who was born in 1946; Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Bono (U2), who was born in 1960; supermodel Linda Evangelista, who was born in 1965; “Saturday Night Live” star Kenan Thompson, who was born in 1978; former N.Y. Knicks and Brooklyn Nets forward Wilson Chandler, who was born in 1987; “Prodigal Son” star Halston Sage, who was born in 1993; Olympic gold medal-winning swimmer Missy Franklin, who was born in 1995; and Memphis Grizzlies point guard Tyus Jones, who was born in 1996.