
January 12: ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

ON THIS DAY IN 1849, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle said, “The Evening Post takes the same view of the Panama Railroad scheme as this paper; regarding the Panama Railroad as a matter of immediate interest but thinking that it should not be permitted to interfere with the more important measure of a road directly from the Mississippi River to Francisco bay. The time is not distant when we must have a communication to the Pacific on our own soil and the resources of the country cannot be brought out till a Railroad direct to California shall be constituted. We are therefore glad to see Senator Houston has moved in this matter, and that the subject has fairly got before the senate. If the movement were to construct a ship canal for all the nations of the world we should have a much stronger confidence in the success of the project than in a Railroad, which must be of partial operation and which will not, by any means, answer the purpose of a canal. But the proper place for a canal is not through the Isthmus of Panama, but rather through the isthmus at the bottom of the gulf of Mexico, called the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. But so far as the United States are concerned, it is evident that we want something else ― we must have a passage through our own territories and not be obliged to make a sea voyage in order to communicate with our brethren on the Pacific.”
***
ON THIS DAY IN 1875, the Eagle reported, “The regular weekly meeting of the Board of Aldermen was held yesterday afternoon, Jacob I. Bergen, President, in the chair. … Ald. Kenna, of the Fourteenth Ward, offered the following: ‘Resolved, That the members of the Legislature from the city be requested to pass an act authorizing the Common Council to make provision for a fitting celebration of the Centennial Anniversary of American Independence in this city and to direct that a sum not exceeding twenty thousand dollars to be raised by tax and appropriated to such purpose.’ In moving the adoption of the foregoing resolution, he said that he thought it was proper that Brooklyn, the third city in the Union, should befittingly celebrate the first one hundredth anniversary of our independence, and to do so it seemed to him that the action advised in his resolution was necessary. The resolution was adopted.”
***
ON THIS DAY IN 1880, the Eagle reported, “One of the sons of the late Charles Dickens, Francis J. Dickens, is an inspector in the Canadian Northwest Mounted Police, and is now stationed at Fort Walsh, where he has been for the past four years.”
***
ON THIS DAY IN 1912, the Eagle reported, “At noon today Professor Herschel C. Parker of Columbia University started from his home, 21 Fort Greene place, to make his third attempt to ascend to the summit of Mount McKinley. He will proceed from here to Seattle, the largest city near to his goal, and will start from that base on January 24 on board the Almeda, arriving at Seward, Alaska, in six days. At a point about 200 miles up the trail from Seward two dog teams with supplies for the trip are awaiting the explorer, and Belmore Brown, who is to accompany him. The dash for the summit will be commenced about the first of next month, and if everything goes well July 15 will find the party at the top of Mount McKinley.”
***
ON THIS DAY IN 1935, the Eagle reported, “The Ponderosa Way, 800-mile firebreak which runs the length of the Sierra Nevada range in California, is credited with stopping nine out of eleven large forest fires during the past year.”
***
ON THIS DAY IN 1941, the Eagle reported, “The Democratic organization of Kings County completed its arrangements yesterday to be represented as a delegation of nearly 100 prominent members at President Roosevelt’s third-term inauguration a week from tomorrow. The delegation, leaving for Washington next Sunday from the Pennsylvania Station, will be headed by Frank V. Kelly, the county leader, and will include district leaders, office holders and active party members. … Unlike President Roosevelt’s first inauguration in 1933, when the Brooklyn Democrats joined with others from New York State in the inaugural parade, the borough delegation will take no part in the parade, which will be composed entirely of military units.”
***
ON THIS DAY IN 1945, the Eagle reported, “GENERAL MacARTHUR’S HEADQUARTERS (U.P.) ― Sixth Army forces, surging across the central Luzon plains on a 20-mile front, expanded their invasion beachhead to at last 200 square miles and sent patrols probing across the Agno River only 90 miles from Manila today. Armored columns striking down three of the main highways to Manila were six to eight miles inland by Wednesday midnight and it was probable that all three now were within easy gun range of ― if not actually at ― the Agno River line, along which the Japanese may attempt their first stand.”
***
ON THIS DAY IN 1954, the Eagle reported, “New York City, groaning under a 10-inch blanket after its worst snowstorm in five years, went all out today to clear its roads before a sub-freezing cold snap from the Mid-West could make the already hazardous highways even more treacherous. Windy, icy weather, heading here from Chicago, is expected to send the mercury plummeting toward the zero mark tonight, with temperatures from 5 to 10 degrees. Despite the difficulties riding on the heels of the northeaster, New Yorkers can be thankful that Mother Nature used her woman’s prerogative and changed her mind about another storm scheduled to hit the metropolitan area about midnight. Weather Bureau officials said a second snowstorm headed here from the south blew out to sea off the Virginia coast.”
***

Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP

Rich Fury/Invision/AP
NOTABLE PEOPLE BORN ON THIS DAY include “Goldfinger” star Shirley Eaton, who was born in 1937; “Brideshead Revisited” star Anthony Andrews, who was born in 1948; Pro Football Hall of Famer Drew Pearson, who was born in 1951; country singer Ricky Van Shelton, who was born in 1952; “Devil in a Blue Dress” author Walter Mosley, who was born in 1952; radio host Howard Stern, who was born in 1954; “The Bronx is Burning” star Oliver Platt, who was born in 1960; Basketball Hall of Famer Dominique Wilkins, who was born in 1960; Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, who was born in 1964; singer-songwriter Rob Zombie, who was born in 1965; “Insecure” star Issa Rae, who was born in 1985; and former One Direction singer Zayn Malik, who was born in 1993.

Scott Roth/Invision/AP
***
UNDERDOG IS HERE: The New York Jets won Super Bowl III on this day in 1969, defeating the heavily favored Baltimore Colts, 16-7. Quarterback Joe Namath was the game’s Most Valuable Player. It was a great time to be a New Yorker at Baltimore’s expense. In October 1969 the Mets defeated the Orioles in the World Series, and in May 1970 the Knicks beat the Bullets in the NBA Finals.
***
TO THE RESCUE: On this day in 1991, Congress passed a resolution authorizing President George H.W. Bush to use force to expel Iraq from Kuwait, which was invaded on Aug. 2, 1990. It was the sixth congressional vote in U.S. history declaring war or authorizing force on another nation.
***
Special thanks to “Chase’s Calendar of Events” and Brooklyn Public Library.
Quotable:
“Nobody made a greater mistake than he who did nothing because he could do only a little.”
— statesman and philosopher Edmund Burke, who was born on this day in 1729
Leave a Comment
Leave a Comment