The FReeper Foxhole Remembers William Churchill Houston - Warrior Wednesday

The Battle of Princeton

On Dec. 27th General Calwalader, who had been unable to land on the Jersey shore on the 26 th due to the ice on that shore, reported he was crossing near Burlington, reinforced by militia which was turning up encouraged by the victory. Calwalader was unaware that Washington had recrossed the river. He moved into the now empty Burlington and then to Bordontown, reporting that the citizens were hastily removing the red rags nailed to their doors as symbols of loyalty to the crown. He entreated Washington to join him in advancing on the British who were in a panic.

Washington gathered all the troops he could to him, calling on the Pennsylania, Maryland, and New Jersey militia. He sent the following notice out with militia officers:

To the Friends of America in the State of New Jersey
The Army of the American States under my Command being lately greatly reinforced, and having again entered the State of New Jersey, I most warmly request the Militia of Said State at this Important Crisis to Evince their Love of their Country, by boldly Stepping forth and defending the Cause of Freedom. The Inhabitants may be Assured that by a manly or spirited Conduct they may now relieve their Distinguished State from the depredations of our Enemies-I have therefore dispatched Coll. Neilson, Majors Taylor, Van Emburgh, + Frelinghuysen together with some other Gentlemen of your State to call together and Embody your Militia, not doubting but Success will attend their Endeavors-

(signed) G. Washington

Trentown
31 Dec. 1776

Washington's troops were at the moment in no condition to advance, further, he was short of food. Also many of his New England troops enlistments were due to expire on the 1 st of Jan. By the 30 th he had improved his supply situation and recrossed the river. On the 30 th he made an impassioned plea to a regiment whose enlistments were about to expire. No one stepped forth to stay. Once again Washington spoke "My brave fellows, you have done all I asked you to do and more than could reasonably be expected. But your country is at stake, your wives, your houses, and all that you hold dear. You have worn yourselves out with fatigues and hardships, but we know not how to spare you. If you will consent to stay only one month longer, you will render that service to the cause of liberty and to your country which you probably never can do under any other circumstances. The present is emphatically the crisis which is to decide our destiny."

Again the drums rolled, calling for men to step forward, and finally about half the men step out to reenlist. Other officers speak to other regiments with the same success. With the other troops on hand, it will have to be enough. If Washington could maintain the initiative, he might save the Revolution. If he loses a battle at this critical time, it was thought the revolution would collapse.

The British General Howe orders Cornwallis to Princeton to gather all available troops for a counter attack. January 2nd Cornwallis marches on Trenton with about 6000 men, leaving 3 regiments of the 4th Brigade at Princeton as rear-guard, under Colonel. Mawhood.

At Maidenhead (now Lawrenceville) the British on Jan 2 nd meet with American units who begin a fighting withdrawal, ambushing and delaying the British. It is 4 P.M. when the British finally get to Trenton, to find Washington entrenched but out numbered and outclassed. Washington has but 5,200 men, many unreliable militia. Washington has deployed his troops to on the south side of the Assunpink Creek, a strong position, and repels several attempts of the British to take the bridge. Night fell finally. Since his troops are tired, Cornwallis decides to wait to attack until morning, when he can "bag the fox" as he says. His officers want to attack now, fearful of Washington's known ability to retreat and escape.

During the night, Washington leaves a few men to keep the campfires burning, make entrenchment noises, and keep up appearances, while the rest of the army moves around the British forces toward Princeton, where they can attack the rear of the British forces and maybe even capture the 70,000 pound sterling war treasury of Howe in New Brunswick. Washington orders silence and orders are given in whispers. Taking back roads the Americans move to the south around the British and swing towards Princeton. Main roads at this time are poor tracks-some of these back roads are little more than trails which had already become unused as the area was settled and the troops stagger along them in the dark all night. Luckily a freeze has set in with nightfall and the roads are frozen and passable for both men and cannon.

At dawn, Colonel. Mawhood has begun to follow in the wake of Cornwallis to Trenton, with his 17 th Foot of the 4 th Brigade followed by the 55 th, and the 40 th regiment ordered to remain in Princeton. Now the Americans under General Mercer who had been sent to guard the left flank and the 17 th under Mawhood discover each other at the same time, and move to attack. The 55 th moves back into Princeton. Mercer and Mawhood each believe they have encountered a patrol. Mawhood has about 276 men, and Mercer 120 with 200 following. Both race to the high ground now called Mercer heights. Mercer is surprised to run into Mawhood's men deployed in line. Captain Willie Leslie of the 17th, and nephew of General Alexander Leslie, is killed in the first fire. After exchanging fires, Mawhood's regiment charges with the bayonet. Only 20 or so of Mercers men have muskets and bayonets, most being slow reloading riflemen whose guns can not use bayonets. Mercer is mortally wounded and his troops fall back, but Cadwalader's 600 men of the Pennsylvania militia arrive. They fire and then start to fall back, even though they greatly outnumber the 17th. (Mawhood and the 17th regiment put up a terrific defense, still remembered and honored in Great Britain.)

Washington and his officers rally them, and more troops arrive and Washington himself leads them towards the British. Washington is only 30 yards from the British lines when he orders his men to fire. Both sides do fire, and Washington disappears in the smoke. When the smoke clears Washington is unharmed but Mawhood's regulars have broken. Washington orders a charge. The British troops retreat, some scattering into the woods, others turning for Cornwallis or New Brunswick.Washington also leads the pursuit, calling "Its a fine fox hunt, boys!"

In Princeton, the 40 th and 55 th regiments prepared to make a defense of the town. General Sullivan had his wing of the army moving to sweep into town from the other end, and the British sent out a platoon to outflank them. Sullivan in turn sent out 2 regiments to counter this flanking maneuver, forcing the British back. Now Sullivan's men met an equal number of British deployed behind a dike in the area of Frog hollow. Sullivan had his cannon brought up, which sent shot into the dike and drove the British into the area of Nassau hall, the main college building at the time.

The British took shelter in and around Nassau Hall in Princeton.The Americans brought up cannon, and took two shots at the building. The first bounced off, but the second entered the main room where the troops were holding, and allegedly decapitated a picture of King George the 2 nd on the wall. The British in Nassau Hall surrendered.

When the British Dragoons make a stand to defend the fleeing troops,Washington called off all pursuit. Cornwallis could move on his rear soon, and he had to keep the army together. Placing a militia unit to destroy the bridge over the Stony Brook, and gathering what supplies could be quickly loaded, he ordered the troops to march to Kingston. Here it was decided that even though New Brunswick and the British treasury were a few miles away, and lightly guarded, the exhausted troops could do no more. The American army moved north along the Millstone river to Somerset Court House, now Millstone, where he had to rest his troops.

Back at Trenton, Cornwallis, on the 3rd , at dawn had found that the Americans are gone and at first it was believed they have marched to Bordentown, but soon reports of fighting at Princeton are received. Cornwallis marches on Princeton, and his vanguard arrives as the bridge over the creek is broken up. The militia makes a short stand, forcing the British to stop and form for battle. Washington and the troops are able to get away, and Cornwallis rests his troops for a few hours, then marches to defend Brunswick, following after Washington.

At Kingston, Cornwallis heads for Brunswick and arrives at 6 am and deploys to defend the town. Washington is a few miles away at Somerset Court House ( now Millstone), but his troops are exhausted, some have hardly eaten, and Cornwallis position was not known, except that he was close. Any attack is not considered possible.

Lord Cornwallis

On the 4 th, after deciding not to attack New Brunswick, Washington continued north, and later that day they arrived in Pluckemin. Protected now by the Watchung Mountains to his east, and with Morristown units behind him, Washington was now safe. He would soon move the army into winter quarters at Morristown.

Captain Leslie of the 17th, whose body was placed in a baggage wagon which was then captured, is buried with full militiary honors in the Pluckemin churchyard. He had known Dr. Benjimen Rush of Philadelphia when the doctor studied medicine in Edinburgh. After the war the doctor put a marker on the grave in respect of the family.

The British, who lost 86 killed and wounded at Princeton and two hundred captured, were now ordered by Howe to abandon NJ, except for a line from Perth Amboy to New Brunswick.

Washington, who had about 40 killed and wounded at Princeton, had now driven the British from most of New Jersey, in what is called the Ten Crucial Days., from Dec. 25th to Jan. 3rd.

More importantly, the Revolution now had a chance, morale was improved, and the people once again believed they could stand and face the enemy troops. The British outrages in the invasion of NJ had turned many previously on the fence to the side of the rebels, paper money was acceptable once more and the rebel government and army found support again. Washington had learned to fight not the main British army, but its outposts, forcing the British to give up any effort to control the hinterlands of America. The French government, encouraged by the British defeats, released supplies to the American war effort. In England, the royal government started losing support for the war. The Crisis was past, even if severe hardship and fighting were yet ahead, in a long and bitter struggle for freedom and independence.

The Battle of Millstone

A Revolutionary War militia action near Somerset Court House, Sometimes called the battle of Van Nest's Mills, Jan. 20th 1777.

The small village of Somerset Court House in central New Jersey saw an extraordinary amount of Revolutionary war military activity, being on the road between north Jersey and Princeton, and between Princeton and New Brunswick. Not unexpectedly the militia around Somerset Court House, now Millstone, New Jersey, saw action several times, since they were in an area frequented by British troops foraging from New Brunswick.

After Washington fought the Battle of Princeton, he moved north along the Millstone River to Somerset Court House. Captain Thomas Rodney of the Delaware Line, commanding the van of the army on the march towards Somerset Court House, said: "We then marched on to a little village called Stone Brook or Summerset Court House about 15 miles from Princeton where we arrived just at dusk. About an hour before we arrived here 150 of the enemy from Princeton and 50 which were stationed in this town went off with 20 wagons laden with clothing and Linen, and 400 of the Jersey Militia were afraid to fire on them and let them go off unmolested, and there were no troops in our army fresh enough to pursue them, or the whole might have been taken in a few hours." ("Diary", Delaware Historical Society Papers, Viii, Wilmington, 1888, 32-38)

An inauspicious start, but later that month they were able, under the head of the New Jersey Militia, General Philemon Dickinson, to do much better. Washington had ordered his Continentals and the NJ Militia to engage the enemy outposts and seperate parties, in order to contain, harass and tire them them with constant patrols, so that they would not be able to leave their bases in New Brunswick and Amboy with less than 1500 or 2000 men. The Militia responded to this call with enthusiasm.

A British foraging party out of New Brunswick moved west to Somerset Court House, then north to Van Nest's Mill, which stood near Weston Canal Road in what is today Manville. Taking a large amount of flour from the mill, and gathering stock along the way, the British foragers set up a defense with 3 or more small cannon guarding the crossing of the Millstone. In the ice cold of January, the militia, assisted by some Continentals, crossed the river waist deep at some distance away, taking the British by surprise and recapturing many wagons of supplies and livestock.

One member of a local militia company, a slave named Samuel Sutphen, who was sent by his master as a replacement, said this in 1834 when he was 87, about the battle: In the spring following, probably March [Sutphin had his chronology confused, this date should be January], a party of the enemy from N[ew] B[runswick] came out to Van Ess 40 mills on the Millstone. A party of militia under Lieut. Davis was stationed near the two bridges , when an express rider on a black horse from Col. Frelinghuysen gave tidings of the enemy at V. Ess mills. I piloted Davis' Co[mpany] and as many others as we could assemble to a fording place over the S[ outh] branch , and hurried on to the mills. They had plundered the mill of grain and flour, and were on their way back to Brunswick, but had not got out of the lane leading from the mill to the great road. We headed them in the lane. The team laden with the flour was the first we fell in with; the lane, 100 yards, was filled with 4-horse teams. Davis ordered us to fire, and then we shot part of the 1st team, which stopped the whole drove. The drivers left their teams and run. A guard escorting the teams made their escape. We took, as was said, about 40 horses, and all the waggons, about 10, which were all sent off under an escort to Morristown.

A party of Hessians, about 1 company (70), an escort for these teams from Brunswick, was discovered secreted behind a hedge with some 4 or 5 field pieces. They fired upon us and retreated. We followed on a piece, but Lt. Davis ordr'd us to retreat. Davis' Capt. Westcott from Cumberland had heen left sick at Guysbert Bogert's, where he died, and was taken back to Cumberland Co[unty]. There was a large body of militia out, and Gen'l Dickinson commanded. The firing was principally across the river at the bridge. I was out on this alarm but one day. We mounted guard along the branch above the 2-bridges almost every night; nearly all this winter and spring on guard duty.

an other militia man, probably William Churchill Houston, wrote in his journal:

Staid here in peace till Monday morning [January 20] we then received an Alarm and were ordered to march to Boundbrook, we arrived there between 11 and 12, then hearing that the Enemy was plundering at Millstone, we immediately marched for that place, being joined by a considerable body at Boundbrook we marched on till we passed Raritan Bridge , hearing several Cannon fired, while on the way. After crossing the Bridge, the Battallion I was in was taken off for the left wing, I crossed Millstone, some distance below the Bridge*, wading through the water, more than knee deep. We immediately marched towards the road, and fired upon the Baggage Guard, who were retreated that way. They immediately left horses wagons and plunder, and returned with the greatest precipitation. The main body of the Enemy lay just over south of the Bridge . Before we crossed the River below, our main Body began the Attack at the Bridge with one Field piece and made the Enemy give way. They continued their fire upon the Enemy some time. Our wing, after driving the Baggage Guard, pursued on and flanked the Enemy. After a short engagement, finding ourselves greatly overpowered with numbers, we receivecl General Orders to retreat, having had 1 man killed and 2 wounded. and we had taken 2 of the Enemy prisoners. We then retreated back to the River, lest our retreat should be cut off. But finding the Enemy did not pursue, we rallied again, with as many of our men as we could collect, and marched on towards the Enemy the second time; but when we came in sight of them, they got possession of an eminence in the End of a clear Field, with one or more Field pieces and poured down theil Grape shot upon us briskly. Then finding it in vain to attack them with our little Body, under so great a disadvantage, we immediately retreated back and most of our men went over the River up into a clear field, to where our main Body had bv this time collected....

General Dickinson wrote a very brief account of the experience in a letter to Colonel John Nielson dated Raritan, New Jersey, January 23:

"I have the pleasure to inform you that on Monday last with about 450 men chiefly our militia I attacked a foraging party near V. Nest Mills consisting of 500 men with 2 field pieces, which we routed after an engagement of 20 minutes and brought off 107 horses, 49 wagons, 115 cattle, 70 sheep, 40 barrels of flour - 106 bags and many other things, 49 prisoners". General George Washington went into more detail in his letter to John Hancock written on 22 January 1777: My last to you was on the 20th instant. Since that, I have the pleasure to inform you, that General Dickinson, with about 400 Militia, has defeated a foraging Party of the Enemy of an equal number, and has taken forty Waggons and upwards of an hundred Horses, most of them of the English draft Breed, and a number of Sheep and Cattle which they had collected. The Enemy retreated with so much precipitation, that General Dickinson had only an opportunity of making nine prisoners, they were observed to carry off a good many dead and wounded in light Waggons. This Action happened near Somerset Court House on Millstone River. Genl Dickinsons behaviour reflects the highest honour upon him, for tho' his Troops were all raw, he lead them thro' the River, middle deep, and gave the Enemy so severe a charge, that, altho' supported by three field pieces, they gave way and left their Convoy.

British engineer Archibald Robertson's diary entry for 20 January 1777 agrees with Washington's account of the skirmish on that date:

Lieutenant Colonel Abercromby with 500 men went on a foraging party towards Hillsborough. Part of this Corps was attacked by the Rebels, which occasion'd such disorder Amongst the Waggon Drivers that 42 Waggons were left behind. An anonymous letter published in the Pennsylvania Journal; and the Weekly Advertiser (Philadelphia) on 29 January 1777 gives a slightly different but more detailed account: Last Monday a party of Jersey Militia, consisting of about 400, and about 50 of the Pennsylvania Rifle-Men, marched to attack a body of the enemy, consisting of about 600, who were posted at a bridge at Millstone river, near Abraham Vannest's mill, which is two miles from Somerset Court House. In order more effectually to prevent our men from crossing, the enemy had placed three field pieces on a hill, about 50 yards from the bridge; when our men found it impossible to cross there, they went down the river, broke through the ice, waded across the river up to their middles, flanked the enemy, routed them, and took 43 baggage waggons, 104 horses, 115 head of cattle, and about 60 or 70 sheep. We lost 4 or 5 men. - We took 12 prisoners, and from the best accounts the enemy had about 24 or 25 killed and wounded. A man who came from Brunswick this afternoon says, the enemy allow that they lost 35 or 36 men, but say the rebels lost 300. There were not more than 400 of our men crossed the river: The enemy report, that they were attacked by 3000 of General Washington's troops there, and were absolutely certain they were not Militia, they were sure that no Militia would fight in that way.

It is unclear to me whether the Americans waded the either the Millstone or Raritan rivers, but I suspect they waded both, in seperate parties, as the junction of the rivers is downstream of the site of the Van Veighton or Raritan bridge. By moving in from differant directions, they would have a better chance of outflanking the enemy, as they did. The British and Hessian troops evidently did not expect them to cross except at the bridge, over the Millstone near Van Nests Mills.

The Millstone is a small river, averaging a couple of feet deep, and 50 feet across (the Raritan , into which the Millstone flows, is much larger). For the water to be up to their middles the rivers would have to be running deep; even so, a crossing on foot in the middle of Winter followed by a sharp skirmish is a testimony to the determination of the troops involved. The aggressive behavior shown by the militia shows the change that had occurred after the battles of Trenton and Princeton. The belief in the invincibility of the British regulars had been shown false, and the inhabitants were not going to be robbed of their sustenance lightly. It became a strain on the British resources to send units large enough to protect themselves during foraging trips.

The Pennsylvania Continental "riflemen" were the men of Captain Durkee from the Wyoming Valley.

On this Day In History

Birthdates which occurred on February 12:
1211 Henry VII Roman catholic German king (1220-35)
1438 Adolf van Egmond duke of Gelre/earl of Zutphen
1474 Lorenzo Campeggi(o) archbishop of Bologna/diplomat
1567 Thomas Campion England, composer/poet/physician
1584 Casparus Barleaus Flemish theologist/poet (Muiderkring)
1585 Caspar Bartholin Malmö, physician, theologian, writer on anatomy
1588 John Winthrop English attorney/puritan/1st Governor of Massachusetts
1636 Herman Witsius [Wits], Dutch reformed theologist
1637 John Swammerdam Dutch anatomist/entomologist (Bible of Nature)
1663 Dr Cotton Mather witchcraft authority
1665 Rudolph J Camerarius German botanist/physician (sexuality plant)
1706 Josef Christian German sculptor
1740 Matej Sojka composer
1751 Joseph Waast Aubert Nonot composer
1753 Lambert-François Godecharle composer
1758 Christian Ignatius Latrobe composer
1760 Jan Ladislav Dussek Bohemia, pianist/composer
1768 Francis II Florence Italy, last Holy Roman emperor (1792-1806)
1775 Louisa Catherine Johnson Adams wife of John Quincy Adams
1778 Franz Joseph Volkert composer
1791 Peter Cooper industrialist/philanthropist (Cooper Union)
1791 Jan D Zocher Jr Dutch garden architect (Vondelpark Amsterdam)
1792 Ferdinand de Braekeleer Belgian painter
1809 Charles Darwin Shrewsbury England, discovered evolution (Origin of species)
1809 Abraham Lincoln Hodgenville KY, (R) 16th President (1861-65)
1818 Otto Ludwig German writer (Die Heiterethei)
1824 Arya Samaj Maha Rishi Dayanand Sarsvati Indian Hindu leader
1828 George Meredith England, poet/novelist (Shaving of Shagpat)
1828 Robert Ransom Jr Major General (Confederate Army), died in 1892
1831 John Morrissey boxer/developer of Saratoga Springs horse race track
1838 Charles Carroll Walcott Bvt Major General (Union volunteers), died in 1898
1841 Gijsbert van Tienhoven Dutch mayor (Amsterdam)/foreign minister
1850 Amaat Vyncke Flemish missionary (Flemish Flag)
1852 Hendrik Blink geographer (Van de Eems tot de Schelde)
1853 Bertram Luard-Selby composer
1857 Bobby Peel cricketer (great English lefty 1884-96)
1861 Lou [Andreas-]Salomé Russian/German author (Im Kampf um Gott)
1865 Kazimierz P Tetmajer Polish writer/poet (Young Poland)
1867 Joe Howard New York NY, singer (Gay Nineties Revue)
1867 Hedwig Courths-Mahler German author (Warbride)
1868 Johan H A Schaper Dutch MP/founder (SDAP)
1869 Hendrik P Marchant Dutch minister of Education/Arts (VVD)
1873 Jón Trausti [Gudmundur Magnússon], Icelandic writer (Heidarbylid)
1880 John Llewellyn Lewis union leader (United Mine Workers, 1920-60)
1882 Walter Vaes Flemish painter/etcher
1883 Ludwig Stossel Austria, actor (Man With a Camera)
1884 Max Beckmann German painter/graphic artist
1885 Julius Streicher German district leader (Stürmer)
1885 Licinio Refice composer
1886 Gustaf Lazarus Nordqvist composer
1886 Michel Brusselmans composer
1891 Cecil Dixon cricket off-spinner (1 Test for South Africa, 3-118, pair)
1891 Maurice Yvain composer
1891 Max Terhune actor (Arizona Stagecoach, Hit the Saddle, Range Justice)
1893 Omar Bradley General of Army WWII "The GI General"
1893 Marcel G J Minnaert Dutch astronomer
1894 Hans Guido von Bülow German conductor
1898 Leroy "Roy" Harris Oklahoma, composer (When Johnny Comes Marching Home)
1898 [Le]Roy Harris Oklahoma, composer (When Johnny Comes Marching Home)
1898 Wallace Ford [Samuel Jones Grundy], Batton England, actor (The Deputy)
1899 Albert Huybrechts composer
19-- Lillian Lehman Selma AL, actress (Tenafly, Fay, Sunset Beach)
19-- Pat St John radio DJ (WPLJ-FM NYC)
1900 Ferenc Körmendy Hungarian/US author (Budapest Kaland)
1900 Fred Emney London England, actor (Let the People Sing, Lilac Domino)
1902 William D Revelli Spring Gulch CO, band leader
1904 Ted Mack Denver CO, TV host (Original Amateur Hour)
1905 Harry Bellaver actor (Sergeant Arcaro-Naked City)
1909 Barry Wood New Haven CT, singer (Your Hit Parade)
1910 Forsyth Hardy documentary film pioneer
1910 Lee Byung Chull Korean industrialist/founder (Samsung Business)
1911 Charles Mathiesen Norway, 1500 meter speed skater (Olympics-gold-1936)
1911 Frank Hercules writer
1911 Sylvstre A Guzman Fernandez President (Dominican Republic)
1912 Ernest Clark London England, actor (Doctor in the House)
1912 Eddie J Bush golf professional
1913 Pedro Gastao de Orleans e Bragança grandson of emperor Pedro I
1914 Gordon Tex Beneke saxophonist/bandleader/vocalist (Glenn Miller Orchestra)
1914 Nello Celio Swiss President
1915 Lorne Greene Ottawa Canada, actor (Bonanza, Battlestar Galactica)
1915 Andrew J Goodpaster US, General/Supreme Commander (NATO-Europe)
1916 Joseph L Alioto (Mayor-San Francisco)
1916 Karl Hubert Rudolf Schiske Austrian composer (Vom Tode)
1917 Thomas K Scherman New York NY, conductor (Little Orchestra Society 1947-75)
1918 Dominic DiMaggio baseball outfielder (Boston Red Sox)
1918 Julian S Schwinger US physicist
1919 Forrest Tucker Plainfield IN, actor (O'Rourke-F Troop, Dusty Trail)
1923 Franco Zeffirelli Florence Italy, movie director (Romeo & Juliet)
1923 James Abdnor (Senator-R-SD, 1981-87)
1923 Mel Powell composer
1924 Hans Berghuis Dutch author/poet (3 Women, Adam)
1926 Joe Garagiola St Louis MO, sportscaster/host (Today Show)
1926 Paul Hamlyn English publisher/multi-millionaire (Octopus)
1927 Anne Gillis Little Rock AR, actress (Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Little Men)
1929 Agustin Gonzalez Acilu composer
1930 Arlen Specter (Senator-R-PA, 1981- )
1930 Gerhard Rühm writer
1931 Constance A Morella (Representative-R-MD)
1932 Lincoln Kilpatrick St Louis MO, actor (BJ-Leslie Uggams Show)
1933 Costa-Gavras director
1933 Ivan Nikolayevich Anikeyev cosmonaut
1933 Juanita [Ruth] Coulson sci-fi author (Web of Wizardry, Space Trap)
1934 Annette Crosbie Edinburgh Scotland, actress (Six Wives of Henry VIII, One Foot in the Grave)
1934 Bill Russell Monroe LA, NBA star (Boston Celtics, Olympics-gold-56)
1935 Ray Manzarek keyboardist (The Doors-Light My Fire, Unknown Soldier)
1935 Gene McDaniels US vocalist/bandleader/actor (Young Swingers)
1935 Ken Still golfer
1936 Joe Don Baker Groesback TX, actor (Eischied, Walking Tall, Fletch)
1936 Paul Shenar Milwaukee WI, actor (Carrington-Roots)
1936 Arnost Parsch composer
1936 Fang Lizhi Chinese astrophysicist/dissident
1937 Charles Everett Dumas Tulsa OK, high jumper (Olympics-gold-1956)
1938 Judy Blume Elizabeth NJ, author (Wifey, Are You There God? It's Me Margaret, Blubber, Forever)
1938 Johnny Rutherford auto racer
1939 John D Hancock actor/director (Black Marble, Traxx, Houston Knights)
1940 Hank Brown (Representative-R-CO, 1981-88)
1941 Naomi Uemura mountain climber (1st Japanese to scale Everest)
1941 Ross Morgan cricketer (New Zealand batsman in 20 Tests 1965-72)
1942 Chananjit Vohra Kenyan/British hotel magnate/multi-millionaire
1942 Lionel Grigson professor of jazz
1942 Rick Frank rocker
1944 Charles Pasarell tennis pro
1944 Desmond Nuttall English educator
1944 Jackie Torrence story teller/artist
1944 Moe Bandy Meridian MS, country vocalist (Just Good Ol' Boys)
1945 Maud Adams Lulea Sweden, actress (Octopussy, Rollerball, Tattoo)
1945 Cliff De Young Los Angeles CA, actor (F/X, Hunger, Shock Treatment)
1945 Joe Schermie Madison WI, bassist (3 Dog Night-Joy to the World)
1946 Ever Meulen [Eddy Vermeulen], Dutch designer (children stamps 1992)
1947 Guus Willemse Dutch bassist/singer (Solution)
1948 Cindy Hill LPGA golfer
1949 Stanley Knight country artist (Black Oak Arkansas-High on the Hog)
1949 Gundappa Viswanath cricketer (prolific Indian batsman of 70s)
1949 Len Randle baseball player (New York Mets)
1950 Steve Hackett rock guitarist (Genesis-Against All Odds/GTR)
1950 Michael Ironside actor, (Starship Troopers)
1951 Gil "The Bird" Moore rocker (Triumph)
1952 Dr Salvador Pineda Mexico City, doctor
1952 Simon MacCorkindale Cambridge England, actor (Counterstrike, Falcon Crest, Manimal, Jaws 3D)
1953 Joanna Kerns [de Varona], San Francisco CA, actress (Maggie-Growing Pains)
1955 Daniele Masala Italy, pentathlete (Olympics-1976)
1956 Paula Zahn Omaha NB, news anchor (ABC, CBS This Morning)
1956 Ad P Melkert Dutch minister of Social Affairs (1994- )
1958 Arsenio Hall comedian (Alan Thicke, Arsenio, Coming to America)
1958 Ruth Guerri St Louis MO, playmate (July, 1983)
1958 Ingrid Klich Whittier CA, rower (Olympics-96)
1959 Nancy Remy reporter (NYC's Shadow Traffic)
1959 Omar Hakim drummer (Dire Straits, Weather Report)
1959 Sigrid Thornton Australia, actress (Amelia Lawson-Guns of Paradise)
1959 Per Gessle rocker (Roxette-Joy Ride)
1961 Chris Heyne Offenbach Germany, WLAF General Manager (Frankfurt Galaxy)
1963 Brent Jones NFL tight end (San Francisco 49ers)
1964 Maurice Douglass NFL safety (New York Giants)
1964 Michel Petit St Malo France, NHL defenseman (Tampa Bay Lightning)
1964 Milton Small cricket pace bowler (West Indies vs Australia 1984)
1964 Raphael Sbarge actor (Glenn-Risky Business, Sherman-My Science Project, Brian-Better Days)
1965 Ruben Amaro US baseball outfielder (Cleveland Indians)
1966 Boty Goodwin artist
1967 Stephen Baldwin actor (William Cody-The Young Riders)
1967 Andrew Dunkley Kent England, golfer (1991-93 Co-Captain University of West Florida)
1968 Chynna Phillips Los Angeles CA, singer (Wilson Philips-Hold On)
1968 Josh Brolin actor (Johnny-Private Eye, Jimmy Hickok-Young Riders)
1968 Todd Fanning Saskatoon Saskatchewan, golfer (Manitoba Amateur-1984, 90, 91, 92)
1969 Josh Brolin actor (Johnny-Private Eye, Jimmy Hickok-Young Riders)
1969 Colin Keely Buffalo NY, water polo driver (Olympics-96)
1969 Shauna Lyn Searles Miss California-USA (1996)
1970 Bryan Roy Surinam/Dutch soccer star (Ajax)
1970 Dell Demps NBA guard (San Antonio Spurs)
1970 Lamar Thomas NFL wide receiver (Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Miami Dolphins)
1971 Lincoln Kennedy tackle (Oakland Raiders)
1971 Romeo Bandison NFL defensive tackle (Cleveland Browns)
1971 Shane Tonkin Australian baseball pitcher (Olympics-1996)
1971 Shante Carver NFL defensive end (Dallas Cowboys)
1971 Tracy Kennick Miss Utah-USA (1996)
1972 Andrew Cassesse actor (Wormser-Revenge of Nerds, TV 101)
1972 Dulip Samaraweera cricketer (Sri Lankan Test opening batsman 1993-)
1973 Brendon Mark Cameron Pirongia New Zealand, 4k pursuit cyclist (Olympics-96)
1974 Ian Mcintyre Montréal, NHL left wing (Vancouver Canucks)
1975 Chris Szarka CFL full back (Saskatchewan Roughriders)
1975 Matt Finkes linebacker (New York Jets)
1975 Scot Pollard NBA center (Detroit Pistons)
1975 Seth Payne defensive tackle (Jacksonville Jaguars)
1976 Christopher Pettiet Los Angeles CA, actor (Young Riders)
1980 Christina Ricci actress (Wednesday-Addams Family, Mermaids, Casper)
1980 Sarah Lancaster Kansas City KS, actress (Rachel-Saved By Bell New Class)

Deaths which occurred on February 12:
1128 Toghtekin slave/atabek of Damascus, dies
1242 Hendrik VII Roman Catholics German king (1220-35), commits suicide
1538 Albrecht Altdorfer German painter, dies at about 57
1554 Lord Guildford Dudley Jane Grey's husband, beheaded
1590 François Hotman/Hotomanus French lawyer/diplomat, dies at 65
1616 John Drusius of Driesschen, Flemish Hebraist, dies at 65
1684 Pietro Andrea Ziani composer, dies at 67
1728 Agostino Steffani Italian/German diplomat/composer, dies at 73
1738 James Sherard composer, dies at 71
1762 Laurent Belissen composer, dies at 68
1771 Adolf Frederik king of Sweden (1751-70), dies at 60
1787 Ruggiero Boscovich Italian physicist/astronomer/philosopher, dies at 75
1799 Frantisek Xaver Dusek composer, dies at 67
1804 Immanuel Kant German philosopher (Zum ewigen Frieden), dies in Königsberg, Prussia at 79
1820 Guillaume Albert Teniers composer, dies at 71
1834 Friedrich Schleiermacher German theologist/philosopher, dies at 65
1837 Ludwig Börne writer, dies at 50
1861 Hippolyte-Andre-Baptiste Chelard composer, dies at 72
1886 P J Edvard Backström Swedish writer, dies at 44
1889 Andrew Greenwood cricketer (batted in England's 1st 2 Tests 1877), dies
1896 Charles Louis Ambrose Thomas French composer (Mignon), dies at 84
1896 Isaac Murphy jockey, 628 win on 1,412 mounts (44.5%), dies at 35
1901 Ramón de Campoamor bon Campoosorio Spanish poet (Colón), dies at 83
1905 Marcel Schwob French writer/journalist (Coeur double), dies
1915 Charles Emile Waldteufel composer, dies at 77
1916 J W Richard Dedekind German mathematician, dies
1920 Emile Sauret composer, dies at 67
1920 Jean Allemane French socialist/communard (allemanisten), dies at 77
1920 Ottalee Baker Frank "Home Run" Baker's wife, dies at 31
1921 Charles Leslie cricketer (4 Tests England vs Australia 1882-83), dies
1929 Freiherr Albert von Schrenk-Notzing German para-psychologist, dies at 66
1933 Henri Duparc French composer, dies at 85
1942 Grant Wood US painter (American Gothic), dies at 49
1945 ... de Jong Dutch vicar/resistance fighter, executed
1945 Henrietta Szold founder (Hadassah, Youth Aliyah), dies
1945 Walraven [Wally] van Hall Dutch banker/resisted Nazis, executed at 39
1947 Sidney Toler actor (Charlie Chan, Dark Alibi), dies at 72
1954 Dziga Vertov [Kaufman], Russian director (3 Songs of Lenin), dies at 58
1955 Tom Moore actor (Ladies be Seated, Majority Rules), dies at 71
1957 Johannes Anker Larsen Danish writer (Martha og Maria), dies at 82
1958 Marcel Cachin 1st communist French senator, dies at 88
1959 George Antheil US pianist/composer (Ballet Mécanique), dies at 58
1960 Bobby Clark vaudevillian (World's funniest circus clown), dies at 71
1965 Henry Kulky actor (Otto-Life of Riley), dies at 53
1969 Johanna EFG Tourniaire actress (Potasch & Perlemoer), dies at 80
1970 Andre Souris composer, dies at 79
1971 George Shelton actor (It Pays to be Ignorant), dies at 86
1971 James Cash Penney US founder (J C Penney), dies at 95
1973 Benjamin Frankel composer, dies at 67
1976 James Clifton Williams composer/band master (Sinfonians), dies at 52
1976 Sal Mineo actor (Exodus, Rebel Without a Cause), stabbed at 37
1979 Jean Renoir French writer/director (Human Beast), dies at 84
1980 Floyd Taliaferro Alderson actor (Crossing Trails), dies
1981 Jean Dixon actress (Joy of Living, You Only Live Once), dies
1982 Victor Jory Dawson City Yukon Territory Canada, actor (Adventures of Tom Sawyer, 1st Lady, Jigsaw), dies at 79
1982 Cornelis Rijnsdorp Dutch writer (Culprit), dies at 87
1982 Hal Hooker cricket (307 partners with Kippax for last wicket), dies
1983 Eubie Blake ragtime-composer/pianist (Memories of You), dies at 100
1984 Anna Anderson Manahan [claimed to be Grand Duchess Anastasia] dies in Virginia
1984 Julio Cortázar Argentine writer (Final del Juego), dies at 69
1985 Nicholas Colssanto actor (Coach-Cheers), dies at 61
1986 Sid Stone comedian (Milton Berle Show), dies at 82
1986 Guy Douglas Hamilton Warrack composer, dies at 86
1987 Lang Jeffries Canadian actor (Skip-Rescue 8), dies at 55
1989 Mauritius Balfoort French/Flemish director, dies at 83
1989 Thomas Bernhard Dutch/Austrian writer (Heldenplatz), dies at 58
1991 Edward A Blatt director (Between 2 Worlds), dies at 88
1991 Robert Wagner mayor (NYC-D-1954-65), dies
1992 Bep [Lambertus] van Klaveren boxing champion (Olympics-gold-1928), dies
1992 Dorothy Tree actress (Abe Lincoln in Illinois, Nazi Agent), dies
1992 Ton Brandsteder CEO (Sony Netherlands BV), dies at 74
1993 James Bulger English child beaten to death at 2, by 10 year old boys
1994 Donald Judd US furniture maker/architect/artist, dies at 65
1995 Earring George Mayweather blues harmonica player, dies at 66
1995 L Jansma Fries publisher (Friese stamp), dies
1995 Rachid Mimouni Algerian author (L'Honneur de la Tribu), dies at 49
1995 Terence Beckles pianist/teacher, dies at 82
1995 Tony Secunda rock band manager, dies at 54
1996 Roger Omond journalist, dies at 51
1997 Nora Beloff journalist, dies at 78
1997 Walter Ritchie sculptor, dies at 77

On this day...
1049 Bruno count of Egesheim & Dagsburg crowned Pope Leo IX
1111 German King Hendry V arrives at St Peter, Rome
1130 Pope Innocent II elected
1502 Granada Moslems forced to convert to Catholicism
1528 Treaty of Dordrecht between emperor & ecclesiastical power
1577 Spanish land guardian Don Juan of Habsburg signs "Eternal Edict"
1624 English parliament comes together
1709 Alexander Selkirk, Scottish seaman is rescued after 4+ years from Fernandez Island (inspiration for Daniel Defoe's "Robinson Crusoe")
1733 Georgia founded by James Oglethorpe, at site of Savannah
1736 Maria Theresa Habsburg marries French Stefanus (emperor François I)
1762 English fleet occupies Martinique
1763 John Casteret appointed British minister of foreign affairs
1772 Yves de Kerguelen of France discovers Kerguelen Archipelago, India
1793 1st US fugitive slave law passed; requires return of escaped slaves
1797 Haydn's song "Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser" premieres in Vienna
1818 Chile gains independence from Spain
1821 Mercantile Library of the City of New York opens
1825 Creek Indian treaty signed; Tribal chiefs agree to turn over all their land in Georgia to the government & migrate west by Sept 1, 1826
1832 Ecuador annexes Galápagos Islands
1839 Boundary dispute between Maine & New Brunswick leads to Aroostook
1840 Housatonic Railroad opens
1848 Ballet "Faust" premieres, Milan
1850 Original Washington's Farewell Address manuscript sells for $2,300
1861 State troops seize US munitions in Napoleon AK
1865 Henry Highland Garnet, is 1st black to speak in US House of Representatives
1870 Official proclamation sets April 15 as last day of grace for US silver coins to circulate in Canada
1873 Congress abolishes bimetallism & authorizes $1 & $3 gold coins
1874 King David Kalakaua of Sandwich Island HI, is 1st king to visit US
1876 Al Spalding opens his sporting good shop
1877 1st news dispatch by telephone, between Boston & Salem MA
1877 US railroad builders strike against wage reduction
1878 Frederick Thayer patents the catcher's mask (pat # 200,358)
1879 1st artificial ice rink in North America (Madison Square Garden, NYC)
1879 News about slaughtering of Isandlwana reaches London
1880 National Croquet League organizes (Philadelphia)
1882 Social-Democratic Union forms in Amsterdam
1885 Carl Peters founds German East-Africa Society
1886 2nd British government of Salisbury forms
1889 César Francks Symphony in D, premieres
1889 Henrik Ibsen's "Fruen fra Haven" premieres in Oslo
1899 1st 2-man team 6-day bicycle race in US begins, Madison Square Garden, NYC
1899 -47ºF (-44ºC), Camp Clarke NB (state record)
1901 Dutch Penitentiary children's law proclaimed
1906 George M Cohans musical "George Washington" premieres in New York NY
1908 Anna Jeanes bequeathes $1,000,000 to Swarthmore to become all female
1908 New York to Paris auto race (via Alaska & Siberia) begins in New York NY; George Schuster wins after 88 days behind the wheel
1909 National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is founded
1909 Netherlands' SDAP suspends Marxist Tribune group (Gorter & Wijnkoop)
1909 Robert Fowler runs world record marathon (2:46:52.6)
1912 China adopts the Gregorian calendar
1912 Last Ch'ing (Manchu) emperor of China, Henry P'u-i, abdicates
1915 Cornerstone laid for Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC
1916 1st edition of Joseph Patterson/Sidney Smith strip "Gumps"
1920 14,000 Rotterdam/Amsterdam harbor workers strike
1920 NL votes 6-2 for 1 commissioner AL votes 6-2 to keep group commission
1921 Soviet troops invade Georgia (theirs, not ours)
1921 Winston Churchill becomes British, minister of Colonies
1924 George Gershwin's "Rhapsody In Blue" premieres at Carnegie Hall (New York NY)
1924 George Kaufman's "Beggar on Horseback" premieres in New York NY
1924 President Calvin Coolidge makes 1st presidential radio speech
1925 1st federal arbitration law approved by Congress
1925 E Thieffry departs with Handley Page for the Belgian Congo
1925 Estonia forbids Communist Party
1926 Barendrecht soccer team forms
1927 British expeditionary army lands in Shanghai
1929 Karst Leemburg wins Dutch 11 cities skate (11:30)
1932 Communist Party of Holland forms Unemployed Combat Committees
1933 German vice-chancellor von Papen demands Catholic aid for Nazis
1934 Export-Import Bank incorporates
1934 France hit by a general strike against fascists & royalists
1935 Great airship, USS Macon, crashes into Pacific Ocean
1937 Cleveland (now Los Angeles) Rams granted an NFL franchise
1938 Austrian chancellor Schuschnigg visits Hitler in Berchtesgaden
1938 German troops entered Austria
1941 Jewish Council for Amsterdam forms, under Ascher/Cohen
1941 Occupation Police arrest "Jewish Foursome"
1942 3 German battle cruisers escape via Channel to Brest N Germany
1943 General Eisenhower departs Algiers to Tebessa
1944 Wendell Wilkie (R) enters presidential race
1945 San Francisco selected for site of UN Conference
1947 Daytime fireball & meteorite fall seen in eastern Siberia
1947 Record 100.5-kg sailfish caught, C W Stewart, Galapagos Islands
1948 1st Lieutenant Nancy Leftenant becomes 1st black in army nursing corps
1949 Team Canada beats Denmark 47-0 in hockey
1949 "Annie Get Your Gun" closes at Imperial Theater NYC after 1147 performances
1949 Panic in Quito Ecuador, after "War of the World" played on radio
1949 Unidentified aircraft bomb Jerusalem
1950 Senator Joe McCarthy claims to have list of 205 communist government employees
1950 Albert Einstein warns against hydrogen bomb
1953 USSR breaks relations with Israel
1955 McGuire Sisters' "Sincerely" single goes to #1 & stays #1 for 10 weeks
1955 President Eisenhower sends 1st US advisors to South Vietnam
1955 Soviets decides space center built in Baikonur, Kazachstan
1955 WTVY TV channel 4 in Dothan, AL (CBS) begins broadcasting
1956 Fay Crocker wins LPGA Miami Beach Golf Open
1957 Researchers announce Borazan (harder than diamonds) been developed
1958 Celtic Bill Russell grabs 41 rebounds to beat Syracuse 119-101
1958 General Miguel Ydegoras Fuentes elected President of Guatemala
1960 Chinese army kills 12 Indian soldiers
1961 USSR launches Venera 1 toward Venus
1961 Celtic Bill Russell grabs 40 rebounds to beat Warriors 136-125
1961 Mickey Wright wins LPGA St Petersburg Golf Open
1961 Mushtaq Mohammad scores 1st Test Cricket century at 17 years 82 days
1962 Bus boycott starts in Macon GA
1963 Argentina asks extradition of Ex-President Peron
1964 Beatles 1st NYC concert (Carnegie Hall)
1964 End of Richie Benaud's 63-Test Cricket career
1964 US female Figure Skating championship won by Peggy Fleming
1964 US male Figure Skating championship won by Scott Allen
1965 KHFI (now KBVO) TV channel 42 in Austin TX (NBC) begins broadcasting
1965 Nuclear test at Pacific Ocean
1967 Keith Richards, Mick Jagger & Marianne Faithful busted for drugs
1967 Pirate Radio Free Harlem (NYC) begins transmitting
1967 Kees Verkerk becomes world champion all round skater
1970 Anthony Shaffers "Sleuth" premieres in New York NY
1971 Only Test Cricket for Ken Eastwood, who scored 5 & 0 Australia vs England
1973 1st US POWs in N Vietnam released; 116 of 456 flown to Philippines
1976 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1977 Toronto Maple Leafs shutout Washington Capitals 10-0
1978 "Jesus Christ Superstar" closes at Longacre Theater NYC after 96 performances
1978 Debbie Austin wins LPGA American Cancer Society Golf Classic
1978 US female Figure Skating championship won by Linda Fratianne
1978 US male Figure Skating championship won by Charles Tickner
1979 Kosmos 1076, 1st Soviet oceanographic satellite, launched
1980 New York Islanders 2nd scoreless tie, vs Winnipeg Jets
1980 "Canterbury Tales" opens at Rialto Theater NYC for 16 performances
1980 Richard Hadlee becomes New Zealand's top wicket-taker with 117
1981 Pete Squires sets record for 1575 steps of Empire State Building, 10m
1981 Admiral Bobby R Inman, USN, becomes deputy director of CIA
1981 Arbitrator Goetz declares Red Sox catcher Carlton Fisk a free agent
1981 Cape Verde amends its constitution
1982 Wayne Gretsky scores 153rd point of season, tying NHL record
1982 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1984 Cale Yarborough, becomes 1st Daytona 500 qualifier, above 200 MPH
1984 Jayne Torvill & Christopher Dean skate "Bolero" at the Olympics receiving all perfect scores for quality & the gold medal
1984 Alice Miller wins LPGA Sarasota Golf Classic
1984 West Indies beat Australia 2-0-1 to win cricket World Series Cup
1985 37th NHL All-Star Game Wales beat Campbell 6-4 at Calgary
1985 West Indies beat Australia 2-1 to win cricket World Series Cup
1986 1st-class cricket debut of Curtly Ambrose, Leeward Is vs Guyana
1987 Survivors of a black man murdered by KKK members awarded $7 million damages
1989 5 Pakistani Moslem rioters killed protesting "Satanic Verses" novel
1989 Gretzky sets 2 records, his 45th hat trick & 10th 40+ goal season
1989 Thursday's Child sets sailing record, New York-Cape Horn-San Francisco, 80 days 20 hours
1989 39th NBA All-Star Game West beats East 143-134 at Houston
1989 50th PGA Seniors Golf Championship Larry Mowry
1989 US male Figure Skating championship won by Christopher Bowman
1991 North & South Korea form a joint team for table tennis competition
1991 Iceland recognizes Lithuania's independence
1994 17th Olympics Winter games open in Lillehammer, Norway
1994 20th century premiere of 6 restored Haydn-sonatas in Boston
1994 Edvard Munch's painting "The Cry" stolen (in Oslo)
1994 Inna Lassovskaya jumps world record 14.90m
1994 Model Anna Nicole Smith hospitalized for drug overdose
1995 45th NBA All-Star Game West beats East 139-112 at Phoenix
1995 Angela Kennedy swims woman's world record 50 meter butterfly
1995 Bonnie Blair skates female world record 500 meter (38.69 seconds)
1995 Dieter Baumann runs European record 3k indoor (7 minutes 37.51 seconds)
1995 Jeff Rouse swims world record 50 meter backstroke (24.37 seconds)
1995 Moses Kiptanui runs world record 3k indoor (7 minutes 35.15 seconds)
1995 PRI loses/PAN wins Mexican regional elections
1995 Sun Cayun pole vaults indoor female world record (4.13 meters)
1995 Susan Auch skates female world record 500 meter (38.94 seconds)
1997 Fred Goldman says he will settle for a signed murder confession from O J Simpson in lieu of his $20.5 million judgement
1998 "Freak" opens at Cort Theater NYC
1998 250-car Italy pile-up due to fog, 4 die & 50 hurt
1998 Dallas Cowboys sign Chan Gailey as their 4th head coach
1998 Intel unveils its 1st graphics chip i740
1998 US district judge T Hogan declares line-item veto law unconstitutional

Holidays
Note: Some Holidays are only applicable on a given "day of the week"

Booneville Indiana : Nancy Hanks Lincoln Memorial Day
Burma : Union Day (1947)
Georgia : Georgia Day/Oglethorpe Day (1733)
US : Abraham Lincoln's Birthday (Traditional)
China : Chinese New Year-The Year of the Dog (1994/4692)
China : Chinese New Year-The Year of the Horse (2002/4700)

Religious Observances
Christian : Feast of St Eulalia
Methodist : Race Relations Sunday (2nd Sunday in February)
Orthodox : Feast of the 3 Saints-Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian
Orthodox : Commemoration of St Anthony of Cauleas, patriarch of Constantinople
old Roman Catholic : Feast of the 7 Founders of the Servite Order

Religious History
1797 Franz Haydn's AUSTRIAN HYMN was first performed for the Emperor Francis II's fifth birthday. Today, AUSTRIAN HYMN is the most common melody to which we sing the popular hymn, "Glorious Things of Thee Are Spoken."
1807 Anglican missionary to Persia Henry Martyn wrote in his journal: 'Amazing patience, He bears with this faithless foolish heart and suffers me to come, laden with sins, to receive new pardon, new grace, every day! Why does not such love make me hate sin that grieves Him and hides me from His sight?'
1948 The Pentecostal awakening known as the "Latter Rain Movement" traces its origin to this date, when students at the Sharon Orphanage and Schools in North Battleford, Saskatchewan, Canada began experiencing a mass spiritual awakening.
1952 The Roman Catholic program "Life is Worth Living" debuted on television. Hosted by (then-) Bishop Fulton J. Sheen, the half-hour program aired on Tuesday nights. It became the longest-running religious TV series of its day, and ran through February of 1957.
1962 Swiss Reformed theologian Karl Barth predicted in a letter: 'The day will come when we shall no longer speak of Roman Catholic and Protestant Christians but simply of Evangelical Christians forming one body and one people.'

Thought for the day :
" No one can feel as helpless as the owner of a sick goldfish. "

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.