Today in History for Oct. 27:
On this date:
In 1746, William Tennent, a Scottish Presbyterian pastor and theologian, obtained a charter for the College of New Jersey, later to be called Princeton University. He had founded the school 20 years earlier as a seminary for the gospel ministry.
In 1795, the United States and Spain signed the Treaty of San Lorenzo (also known as 'Pinckney's Treaty'), which provided for free navigation of the Mississippi River.
In 1806, Napoleon captured Berlin.
In 1829, a patent for the baby carriage was granted in the United States.
In 1854, Florence Nightingale began a voyage to an army hospital in the Crimea, where she brought great respect to the nursing profession.
In 1856, the Grand Trunk Railway opened its Montreal-to-Toronto line. The railway had been incorporated to build this key rail link in Eastern Canada. It was intended to serve all important cities in Quebec and Ontario and to link up with U.S. rail lines.
In 1858, Theodore Roosevelt, the 28th U.S. president, was born in New York City.
In 1883, Sir John A. Macdonald appealed for financial help for the CPR, which was then almost bankrupt.
In 1904, the first rapid transit subway, the I.R.T., was inaugurated in New York City.
In 1905, after the dissolution of the union between Sweden and Norway, King Oscar II formally abdicated the crown of Norway.
In 1914, author-poet Dylan Thomas was born in Swansea, Wales. He died in 1953.
In 1918, Canadian aviator Billy Barker won the Victoria Cross during the First World War. The Dauphin, Man.-native downed four German planes despite being wounded three times himself. Barker died in a training accident in 1930.
In 1920, the League of Nations moved its headquarters from London to Geneva.
In 1936, Wallis Simpson was granted a divorce in England. She later married King Edward VIII, who gave up the throne for her.
In 1938, Nazi Germany began the mass deportation of Polish-born Jews.
In 1938, Du Pont announced it had coined a name for its new synthetic yarn -- nylon. The first nylon stockings went on sale on May 15, 1940.
In 1950, Progressive Conservatives voted to end a 10-year coalition with Liberals in Manitoba.
In 1951, cobalt radiation treatment for cancer was used in Canada for the first time in London, Ont.
In 1959, a hurricane killed over 1,000 people in Mexico.
In 1961, the Victoria Rifles of Canada celebrated its centennial. It is the oldest regiment in Montreal.
In 1968, Canada won its only gold medal of the Mexico City Olympics. Tom Gayford, Jim Day and Jim Elder took the equestrian team jumping title on the Games' final day. It was Canada's last Summer Olympic gold for 16 years.
In 1971, La Presse, the largest French-language daily in North America, announced the suspension of publication in Montreal. The paper, with a circulation of 225,000, shut down because of the threat of increasing violence in a labour dispute. It resumed publication in February 1972.
In 1977, Canada's longest kidnapping ended when Charles Marion was released. Marion, the loans officer for a credit union in Sherbrooke, Que., spent 83 days in captivity. He was released when a $50,000 ransom was paid.
In 1978, Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin were awarded the Nobel Peace prize for their progress toward a Middle East accord.
In 1979, Quebec's $15.1-billion James Bay power project opened, becoming the second largest power producer in the world.
In 1980, Judy LaMarsh, one of Liberal Prime Minister Lester Pearson's more colourful ministers, died at age 55. Also a lawyer, broadcaster and novelist, LaMarsh was the MP for Niagara Falls for eight years beginning in 1960. While she was minister of national health and welfare from 1963-65, the Canada Pension Plan was implemented and Canada's medicare system set up. LaMarsh also established the Royal Commission on the Status of Women.
In 1981, a Soviet submarine ran aground inside Swedish waters 15 kilometres from a Swedish naval base. The Swedish government refused to free the ship until its captain had been interrogated about his actions.
In 1982, China announced its population had topped one billion.
In 1987, South Korean voters overwhelmingly approved a new constitution, establishing direct presidential elections and other democratic reforms.
In 1989, the World Series resumed in San Francisco between the Oakland Athletics and San Francisco Giants after a 10-day break following the Oct. 17th earthquake. Oakland swept the series 4-0.
In 1992, the Federal Court of Canada ruled the military's treatment of gays was unconstitutional. The Defence Department announced the same day that it would no longer discriminate against gays.
In 1995, in the biggest political rally in Canadian history, thousands of people from across Canada arrived in Montreal to urge Quebecers to vote "No" in the sovereignty referendum. Days later, Quebec voters narrowly rejected sovereignty.
In 1997, Ontario school teachers began a two-week strike over province's plans to reform the education system. It was the largest teachers' strike in Canadian history.
In 1998, hurricane Mitch cut through the western Caribbean, pummelling coastal Honduras and Belize; the storm caused several thousand deaths in Central America in the days that followed.
In 1998, the National Post, Canada's second national newspaper, made its debut.
In 1998, the United Church of Canada apologized to natives who suffered physical and sexual abuse at church-run schools.
In 1999, the Ontario government passed legislation that same-sex couples would have the same rights and responsibilities as common-law heterosexual couples.
In 1999, gunmen seized Armenia's legislature in the capital of Yerevan in a torrent of automatic-weapons fire, killing prime minister Vazgen Sarkisian and parliament Speaker Karen Demirchian and six other politicians.
In 2001, Saskatchewan Roughriders kicker Paul McCallum set a CFL record with a 62-yard field goal against the visiting Edmonton Eskimos.
In 2003, suicide bombers struck at the Red Cross headquarters and three police stations across Baghdad, Iraq, killing at least 34 people and injuring more than 200.
In 2004, the Boston Red Sox won the World Series defeating the St. Louis Cardinals in a four-game sweep. It was the club's first World Series win since 1918.
In 2006, Quebec Inuit voted overwhelmingly in favour of a massive land claim agreement that gave them ownership of 80 per cent of the small islands in the waters off their northern shore and guaranteed them a share of offshore resource royalties. The Nunavik Inuit Land Claim Agreement would also see $86 million transferred to Inuit coffers over nine years.
In 2006, the Saskatchewan government dropped its provincial sales tax two points to five per cent to share the wealth of its oil and gas boom.
In 2010, former junior hockey coach and convicted sex offender Graham James surrendered to police at Toronto's Pearson International Airport and was whisked to Winnipeg, where he had been wanted on nine charges on the sexual assault of three victims, including former NHL star Theo Fleury, who has published a tell-all autobiography alleging that James abused him starting when he was 14 years old. (He pleaded guilty and was initially given a two year sentence, but that was increased to five on the Crown's appeal.)
In 2010, the B.C. Appeal Court were unanimous in quashing Ivan Henry's convictions and entering acquittals related to 10 counts involving rapes in Vancouver between May 1981 and June 1982. Henry had spent 27 years in prison.
In 2010, Environment Canada issued a winter storm warning as a freak weather bomb muscled its way across North America from the Dakotas to the Great Lakes with tornadoes and blizzards. Weather advisories were issued for 31 states and six provinces. The Saskatchewan-Manitoba border got up to 30 cm of snow, Manitoba lakes saw storm surges while heavy rains and strong winds battered Ontario and Quebec.
In 2010, France's parliament granted final approval to a bill raising the retirement age from 60 to 62, a reform that earlier infuriated the country's powerful unions and touched off weeks of protests and strikes.
In 2011, the Conservative government introduced legislation that would give 15 additional seats to Ontario, six more each to B.C. and Alberta, and three seats to Quebec to reflect population growth. It would take the number of seats in the House of Commons from 308 to 338. (The Senate passed it in December.)
In 2011, Canada claimed its first Pan Am Games gold medal in women's soccer by beating Brazil in dramatic fashion. Christine Sinclair scored in the 88th minute to tie the score 1-1 and Canada went on to a 4-3 shootout win.
In 2014, former provincial politician John Tory won Toronto's mayoral election, defeating Doug Ford, who entered the race when his scandal-plagued younger brother dropped his bid for re-election. Rob Ford opted to run for a council seat after being diagnosed with cancer and was easily elected. (Rob Ford died March 22, 2016.)
In 2016, nine new non-partisan senators were appointed by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, the first senators to be chosen under an arm's-length process.
In 2018, eleven people were killed, including a Toronto woman, when a gunman opened fire during a baby naming ceremony at a Pittsburgh synagogue. Several others were wounded in the attack at the Tree of Life Congregation, including four police officers who dashed to the scene. The suspected gunman faced both federal and state charges. Police said Robert Bowers told them he wanted to "kill Jews."
In 2019, former Rep. John Conyers, a longtime Michigan Democrat who represented parts of Detroit for more than 50 years before his resignation in 2017, died. He was 90. Conyers was the longest-serving black member of Congress and founder of the Black Caucus.
In 2020, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau congratulated two Liberal candidates who won byelections in Ontario. Trudeau noted that the two Toronto-area seats that were vacated by men are now held by women. The new M-Ps are broadcaster Marci Ien in Toronto Centre and small businesswoman Ya'ara Saks in York Centre.
In 2020, the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Tampa Bay Rays to become World Series champions for the first time in 32 years. L.A. posted the best record in the majors during this pandemic-shortened season, then rallied in the final game to win the series. The Dodgers win was overshadowed by controversy over third baseman Justin Turner, who was removed from the game after testing positive for COVID-19. He wasn't initially on the field when the Dodgers won, but returned an hour later, hugging teammate Clayton Kershaw and sitting front-and-centre for a team photo next to manager Dave Roberts with his face mask pulled down.
In 2021, the UN's Medicines Patent Pool said Merck had agreed to let other drug makers around the world produce its COVID-19 pill. The move was aimed at helping millions of people in poorer countries get access to the potentially life-saving drug. Neither Merck nor its partner Ridgeback Biotherapeutics would receive royalties under the agreement for as long as the World Health Organization deems COVID-19 to be a global emergency.
In 2021, the Vatican issued a brief statement saying Pope Francis was willing to come to Canada as part of the process of reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples.
In 2021, the United States issued its first passport with an "X'' gender designation -- a milestone in the recognition of the rights of people who don't identify as male or female. The U.S. State Department expected to be able to offer the option to non-binary, intersex and gender-nonconforming people early next year.
In 2021, Conservative Leader Erin O'Toole said his caucus accepted a requirement that members of Parliament be vaccinated against COVID-19 or have a medical exemption to sit in the House of Commons. But he dodged multiple questions from reporters about what will happen with his MPs who are not vaccinated.
In 2021, Kyle Beach came forward as "John Doe No. 1'' in the Chicago Blackhawks' sexual assault investigation. Beach identified himself as the first accuser of former Blackhawks video coach Brad Aldrich. Beach, who is from B.C., filed a lawsuit against the Blackhawks over their handling of the alleged assault. He had previously only been identified as "John Doe No. 1'' in court filings.
In 2022, Elon Musk completed his US$44-billion purchase of Twitter.
In 2023, the CBC reported legendary musician Buffy Sainte-Marie's birth certificate, marriage certificate and a U.S. census all contradict her claim that she is Indigenous. The network said the birth certificate lists Sainte-Marie as being born in 1941 in Stoneham, Mass., and states the baby and parents were all white. Family members in the U.S., including Sainte-Marie's younger sister, told the public broadcaster that Sainte-Marie was not adopted and does not have Indigenous ancestry. The singer has called herself a proud member of the Native community with deep roots in Canada.
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The Canadian Press
