ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

ON THIS DAY IN 1862the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “KINDERHOOK, N.Y. — Former President Martin Van Buren died at his home in Lindenwold, at 2 a.m. this morning in the 79th year of his life. His health had been declining for the past year.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1905the Eagle reported: “The Forestry Bureau will be known as the Forest Service from the first of this month,” the Washington star. This change of name is not significant in itself, but it marks the development of the Bureau from a mere information headquarters to the control of all the forest reserves formerly under the responsibility of the Department of the Interior. The Forest Service is the only branch of the government department which possesses the scientific and technical knowledge necessary for the enlightened care and use of the forests. This means that the reserves should yield to the people of the country the greatest benefits that intelligent management can derive from them. Use, not reservation of use, is the essential purpose for which they exist—but use under such conditions as to make their benefits permanent. Control of the reserves was transferred to the Bureau of Forestry last February, and the necessary reorganization is now well advanced.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1927the Eagle said: “For three months of the year, Washington ceases to be a vibrant world capital. When summer settles like a steaming blanket along the Potomac, the city drops its dress-parade attitude and returns to its true character — a sleepy Southern town, stretched out in its shirt sleeves under a blazing sun. All the dramatic dynamism of capitalist life is absent — the official pomp and circumstance, the conflict of politics, the pageantry of smart society, the speeches, the refinement. ‘Everybody’ has fled to cooler climes, leaving only about 400,000 ‘nobodies’ to watch the thrones of the mighty gather dust. And yet it seems that only during this off-season heat wave is the city of Washington its honest, sincere self. Then you can catch something of its inner flavor, its reality, its small-town neighborhood feel. From September to June it is self-conscious. Concentrated in the curious gaze of the Nation, its people then play their little parts attentively to make the city worthy of its prestige on the American scene as a whole. Artificiality creeps in. Manners grow cold and formal. But summer brings a change of character. Officials, politicians, smart society men move away. Public interest shifts elsewhere. The creaking wheels of the government machine slow almost to the point of stopping. The pressures of existence are lightened.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1949the Eagle reported, “WASHINGTON, JULY 23 — A proposal that the United States call the North Atlantic Treaty nations together in a convention to explore the possibilities of forming a Transatlantic Union will be introduced in both houses of Congress early this week… Now that the pact itself has been ratified, some 10 or 12 of the most influential members of the Senate are prepared to propose that this nation go still further in developing the transatlantic area of ​​democratic nations into a bloc impregnable both against Communism and against the ravages of economic disorder. These Senators and several members of the Lower House feel that the only way to do this is to use the North Atlantic Treaty as a means of postponing war until stronger means — namely, an Atlantic union of free nations — can be brought about.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1952the Eagle reported: “COLUMBUS, OHIO (UP) — A Columbus television station interrupted its Democratic National Convention program last night to train its cameras on what were believed to be four “flying saucers.” Officials with the Weather Bureau, however, believed the “saucers” were large plastic balloons at very high altitudes.”

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NOTABLE PEOPLE BORN ON THIS DAY including “Laugh-In” star Ruth Buzziborn 1936; star of “Clueless” Then Hedayawho was born in Brooklyn in 1940; star of “Fright Night” Chris Sarandonborn 1942; star of “Seinfeld” Michael Richardsborn 1949; star of “Wonder Woman” Lynda Voermanborn 1951; National Racing Hall of Famer Julie Crownborn 1963; Basketball Hall of Famer Karl Maloneborn in 1963; all-time home run champion Barry bondsborn 1964; star of “A Different World” Kadeem Hardisonwho was born in Brooklyn in 1965; star of “Wicked” Kristin Chenowethborn in 1968; singer of “If You Had My Love” Jennifer Lopezborn 1969; star of “Firefly” Summer Glauborn 1981; star of “Mad Men” Elisabeth Mosborn 1982; Oscar-winning actress Anna Paquinwho was born in 1982; and TV personality Bindi Irwinwho was born in 1998.

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AMERICAN FLYER: Amelia Earhart was born on this day in 1897. The Kansas native trained as a nurse’s aide and cared for patients during the 1918 influenza epidemic. Her interest in aviation was sparked at a World War I flying ace exhibit. She was the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean and the first person to fly solo across the Pacific Ocean from Hawaii to California. She disappeared on July 2, 1937, during a flight from New Guinea to Howland Island in the Pacific Ocean and was declared dead in absentia in 1939.

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FURIOUS GEORGE: The “Pine Tar Game” took place at Yankee Stadium on this day in 1983. The Kansas City Royals were trailing the Yankees 4–3 in the top of the ninth inning with two outs, when Royals third baseman George Brett hit a two-run homer to give his team the lead. Yankees manager Billy Martin complained to the umpires that Brett’s bat had too much pine tar on it. The umpires called Brett out and the Yankees won, prompting an enraged Brett to storm the field. The Royals protested the game, and the American League president ruled that it would be replayed on August 18 from the point of the home run. The Royals won 5–4.

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

Quotable:

“There’s more to life than just being a passenger.”

—aviator Amelia Earhart, who was born on this day in 1897