This Day in History – April 20, 2011

0295 8th recorded perihelion passage of Halley’s Comet 1770 Captain Cook arrives in New South Wales 1775 British begin siege of Boston 1777 New York adopts new constitution as an independent state 1792 France declares war on Austria, Prussia & Sardinia 1799 Napoleon issues a decree calling for establishing Jerusalem for Jews 1841 1st detective story (Poe’s “Murders in the Rue Morgue”) published 1853 Harriet Tubman starts Underground Railroad 1861 Colonel Robert E Lee resigns from Union army 1879 1st mobile home (horse drawn) used in a journey from London & Cyprus 1910 Halley’s Comet passes 29th recorded perihelion at 87.9 million km 1912 Boston’s famed Fenway Park (home of the Big Green Monster) officially opens 1912 Tiger Stadium in Detroit opens 1920 Tornadoes kill 219 in Alabama & Mississippi 1939 New York World’s Fair opens 1939 Ted Williams’ 1st hit (off of Yankee Red Ruffing) a double 1940 1st electron microscope demonstrated (RCA), Philadelphia PA 1944 NFL legalizes coaching from the bench 1945 Cleveland Browns organization formed by Arthur “Mickey” McBride 1962 NASA civilian pilot Neil A Armstrong takes X-15 to an altitude of 63,250 meters 1962 New Orleans Citizens Company gives free 1-way ride to blacks to move 1964 86% of black students boycott Cleveland schools 1971 US Supreme Court upholds use of busing to achieve racial desegregation 1972 Apollo 16’s Young & Duke land on Moon with Boeing Lunar Rover #2 1974 Paul McCartney releases “Band on the Run” 1977 Supreme Court rules “Live Free or Die” may be covered on New Hampshire licenses 1983 President Ronald Reagan signs a $165 billion bail-out for Social Security 1986 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site 1992 All star concert in memory of Freddie Mercury held at Wembley Stadium London 1994 Space shuttle STS-59 (Endeavour 6), lands 1996 Chicago Bulls win record 72 games in a season 1999 Deadliest school shooting in US history at Columbine High School, Littleton CO, 13 killed, 23 wounded]]]]> ]]>