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January 14: ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

January 14, 2025 Brooklyn Eagle History
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ON THIS DAY IN 1868, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “The new Croton reservoir near High Bridge has an area of an acre and three quarters at the bottom, and two acres and nearly one half at the top. It has a depth of sixteen feet and a capacity of 10,794,178 gallons. The water reaches the city by aqueduct at an elevation of 120 feet above low-water-mark, while the highest point of land on the island is 271½ feet above low-water-mark. To supply this section of the city there was need of this new reservoir, the bottom of which is 205 feet above low-water-mark. It will be filled with water raised by steam power.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1885, the Eagle reported, “CHICAGO ― A Toledo (Ohio) special says: ‘Mr. and Mrs. N. B. Bacon, of Toledo, returned last evening from Buffalo, where they have been visiting Mrs. Bacon’s brother, President-elect Cleveland. In conversation today Mr. Bacon said they found Mr. Cleveland in excellent health, barring the fatigue occasioned by the many private receptions which he was attending. During the conversation the following points were brought out and may be considered as authoritative: Mr. Cleveland will not visit Toledo before the inauguration, but will go to Chicago next Thursday. He concluded that it would be impossible to come to Toledo to visit his sister’s family, and he will come no other way. He is determined to avoid the importunities of office seekers, if possible, and will not leave Albany again before the inauguration ceremonies, unless to make a brief visit to New York City. In answer to inquiries as to rumors about Cabinet appointments and other questions, Mr. Bacon said: ‘I have heard plenty of rumors, but do not put any faith in them, for I know Mr. Cleveland will say nothing about it until he is ready. All rumors, therefore, are without any foundation in fact and are as likely to be wrong as right.’”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1896, the Eagle said, “Probably the figure representing the annual loss in Pennsylvania by forest fires is not exaggerated. It is $30,000,000. If this loss was in manufactured goods, or in crops, what an outcry would go forth as to the waste and extravagance, and what quick measures would be taken to see that there was no more of it. Yet, the loss in timber and water is just as serious. Indeed, it is more so. The vegetables and the manufactured articles could be replaced. The burned forest cannot be replaced for many years. And it matters a great deal whether our woods are to be kept and replenished. Their preservation is a matter of absolutely vital importance, though it seems to be hard for the country people to believe it. The fact most important to be understood is that without woods there is no steady supply of moisture, and there is a decrease in rainfall.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1900, the Eagle reported, “WASHINGTON, JAN. 13 ― A number of New York capitalists came to Washington this week and gave the members of the House committee on interstate and foreign commerce some surprising facts in regard to general deep sea cable matters. Incidentally, they put a large sized crimp into the proposition that the government shall lay and control the new Pacific cable from San Francisco to the Hawaiian Islands, to Guam, to the Philippines and to Japan and China. Out of the large batch of bills for the construction of a Pacific cable, serious attention is now divided between a measure introduced by Representative Corliss of Michigan, providing that the government shall have charge of this undertaking, and one presented by Representative Sherman of New York, providing that the work shall be done by private enterprise. It is now generally conceded that the fight is between the two elements back of these two measures, as all other bills regarding cable measures have been dropped.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1946, the Eagle reported, “WASHINGTON (U.P.) ― Brightening prospects for settling the steel dispute raised hopes today of finding a formula to end spreading industrial strife. President Philip Murray of the United Steel Workers (C.I.O.) postponed for one week a scheduled strike against the United States Steel Corporation on wage demands. Mr. Murray’s action appeared to indicate that the steel industry might accept his union’s offer to settle its demands for a $1.46 a day increase. The union originally demanded $2. The principals in the steel picture, Mr. Murray and Benjamin Fairless, U.S. Steel president, were scheduled to meet again Wednesday at the White House.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1952, the Eagle reported, “A twin-engine Northeast Airlines plane, with 36 aboard, undershot the LaGuardia Field runway in the fog early today and plunged into the East River. At least 28 persons were injured. All passengers and crew members were rescued. Eyewitnesses reported that about 9 a.m. the plane, arriving from Boston, ‘sputtered’ and dived into the murky water about 1,000 feet from the field. A crash boat and a commercial tug were the first to arrive at the scene. Martin Byrne, 44, of 7522 Ridge Boulevard, aboard the tug, said the passengers lined the wings and tail assembly of the sinking airliner waving for help. Police, Coast Guard and Navy rescue facilities were rushed to the area and victims were taken to Flushing, Queens General and Mary Immaculate Hospitals in Queens and others were sent to Fordham Hospital in the Bronx. Police Commissioner George P. Monaghan, who directed police rescue operations at the emergency station at the foot of 14th Ave., College Point, said he was sure all the passengers were removed from the plane. Joseph Amico, 27, of Mount Vernon, who operated the crash boat at the scene, took 25 persons from the sinking plane and transferred them to the nearby tug. ‘There was no screaming, no panic,’ he said, ‘although some of the passengers seemed to be suffering from shock.’”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1963, the Eagle reported, “WASHINGTON (UPI) ― Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy reported to the President yesterday that new legislation may be necessary to give the government greater powers to crack down on gamblers who attempt to fix professional and amateur sports events. In a report to the White House on the 1962 Justice Department fight against organized crime, the Attorney General said betting on sports events remained a major problem in combatting racketeering. He said his department had investigated reported ‘fix’ attempts but that federal responsibility in this area was limited. ‘Further legislation might well be necessary,’ he said. ‘We will continue, however, to take action under present authority, should it be required.’”

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LL Cool J
Evan Agostini/AP
Jason Bateman
Chris Pizzello/AP

NOTABLE PEOPLE BORN ON THIS DAY include blues and soul singer Clarence Carter, who was born in 1936; Oscar-winning actress Faye Dunaway, who was born in 1941; astronaut Shannon Lucid, who was born in 1943; “The Practice” star Holland Taylor, who was born in 1943; musician T Bone Burnett, who was born in 1948; director and screenwriter Lawrence Kasdan, who was born in 1949; Oscar-winning director Steven Soderbergh, who was born in 1963; “Angela’s Ashes” star Emily Watson, who was born in 1967; rapper and actor LL Cool J, who was born in 1968; “Arrested Development” star Jason Bateman, who was born in 1969; Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Dave Grohl (Nirvana/Foo Fighters), who was born in 1969; former N.Y. Jets tight end Kyle Brady, who was born in 1972; former N.Y. Mets pitcher Mike Pelfrey, who was born in 1984; and “The Flash” star Grant Gustin, who was born in 1990.

Dave Grohl
Amy Harris/Invision/AP

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IT’S OFFICIAL: On this day in 1784, Congress ratified the Treaty of Paris, which officially ended the American Revolution, established the U.S. as a sovereign power and fulfilled the Declaration of Independence of 1776.

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MORNING IN AMERICA: “Today” premiered on NBC on this day in 1952. Captained by Dave Garroway, the show was segmented with bits and pieces of news, sports, weather, interviews and other features that were repeated so that viewers did not have to stop their morning routine to watch. The segments were brief and to the point. Sylvester Weaver devised this concept to capitalize on television’s unusual qualities. It is the fifth longest-running TV series in U.S. history.

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

Quotable:

“I don’t live my life in the rear-view mirror because, if you do, you’re bound to end up wrapped around a pole somewhere.”

— rapper and actor LL Cool J, who was born on this day in 1968





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