Today in History

Today in History

Today is Monday, June 14, the 165th day of 2021. There are 200 days left in the year. This is Flag Day.

Today’s Highlight in History:

On June 14, 1993, President Bill Clinton nominated Judge Ruth Bader Ginsburg to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court.

On this date:

In 1775, the Continental Army, forerunner of the United States Army, was created.

In 1777, the Second Continental Congress approved the design of the original American flag.

In 1846, a group of U.S. settlers in Sonoma proclaimed the Republic of California.

In 1911, the British ocean liner RMS Olympic set out on its maiden voyage for New York, arriving one week later. (The ship’s captain was Edward John Smith, who went on to command the ill-fated RMS Titanic the following year.)

In 1922, Warren G. Harding became the first president heard on radio, as Baltimore station WEAR broadcast his speech dedicating the Francis Scott Key memorial at Fort McHenry.

In 1940, German troops entered Paris during World War II; the same day, the Nazis began transporting prisoners to the Auschwitz (OWSH’-vitz) concentration camp in German-occupied Poland.

In 1943, the U.S. Supreme Court, in West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette, ruled 6-3 that public school students could not be forced to salute the flag of the United States.

In 1954, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed a measure adding the phrase “under God” to the Pledge of Allegiance.

In 1972, the Environmental Protection Agency ordered a ban on domestic use of the pesticide DDT, to take effect at year’s end.

In 1982, Argentine forces surrendered to British troops on the disputed Falkland Islands.

In 1990, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld, 6-3, police checkpoints that examined drivers for signs of intoxication.

In 2017, a rifle-wielding gunman opened fire on Republican lawmakers at a congressional baseball practice in Alexandria, Virginia, wounding House Whip Steve Scalise (skuh-LEES’) and several others; the assailant died in a battle with police. Fire ripped through the 24-story Grenfell Tower in West London, killing 71 people.

Ten years ago: President Barack Obama made a four-hour visit to Puerto Rico, becoming the first president since John F. Kennedy to make an official visit to the U.S. territory. The long-delayed, problem-plagued musical “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark” officially opened on Broadway.

Five years ago: President Barack Obama angrily denounced Donald Trump’s anti-Muslim rhetoric in the wake of the Orlando nightclub shooting, blasting the views of the presumptive Republican presidential nominee as a threat to American security; Trump responded by suggesting that Obama seemed angrier at him than he was at the gunman. A 2-year-old boy was dragged into the water by an alligator near Disney’s upscale Grand Floridian Resort & Spa; the child’s remains were found the following day. Actor Ann Morgan Guilbert (Millie Helper on “The Dick Van Dyke Show”) died in Los Angeles at age 87.

One year ago: Atlanta police released video showing the sobriety check of Rayshard Brooks outside a Wendy’s restaurant that quickly spun out of control, ending in police gunfire that left Brooks dead. Police said Officer Garrett Rolfe, who fired the fatal shots, had been fired, and officer Devin Brosnan was placed on administrative duty. (Rolfe’s firing was later reversed after a review panel found the city failed to follow its own procedures for disciplinary actions.)

Today’s Birthdays: Actor Marla Gibbs is 90. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., is 82. Country-rock musician Spooner Oldham is 78. Rock singer Rod Argent (The Zombies; Argent) is 76. Former President Donald Trump is 75. Singer Janet Lennon (The Lennon Sisters) is 75. Rock musician Barry Melton is 74. Rock musician Alan White (Yes) is 72. Actor Eddie Mekka is 69. Actor Will Patton is 67. Olympic gold medal speed skater Eric Heiden (HY’-dun) is 63. Jazz musician Marcus Miller is 62. Singer Boy George is 60. Rock musician Chris DeGarmo is 58. Actor Traylor Howard is 55. Actor Yasmine Bleeth is 53. Actor Faizon Love is 53. Actor Stephen Wallem is 53. International Tennis Hall of Famer Steffi Graf is 52. Actor Sullivan Stapleton is 44. Screenwriter Diablo Cody is 43. Actor Lawrence Saint-Victor is 39. Actor Torrance Coombs is 38. Actor J.R. Martinez is 38. Actor-singer Kevin McHale is 33. Actor Lucy Hale is 32. Pop singer Jesy Nelson (Little Mix) is 30. Country singer Joel Crouse is 29. Actor Daryl Sabara is 29.

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