The FReeper Foxhole Remembers The Mexican Punitive Expedition (1916-1917) - Apr. 13th, 2003

http://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/fall_1997_mexican_punitive_expedition_1.html ^ | Mitchell Yockelson

[SAMWolf]

Dear Lord,

There's a young man far from home,
called to serve his nation in time of war;
sent to defend our freedom
on some distant foreign shore.

We pray You keep him safe,
we pray You keep him strong,
we pray You send him safely home ...
for he's been away so long.

There's a young woman far from home,
serving her nation with pride.
Her step is strong, her step is sure,
there is courage in every stride.
We pray You keep her safe,
we pray You keep her strong,
we pray You send her safely home ...
for she's been away too long.

Bless those who await their safe return.
Bless those who mourn the lost.
Bless those who serve this country well,
no matter what the cost.

Author Unknown

.

FReepers from the USO Canteen, The Foxhole, and The Poetry Branch
join in prayer for all those serving their country at this time.

.

.................................................................................................................................

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The United States Armed Forces
and
The Mexican Punitive Expedition

Eighty years ago, in February 1917, the last of the U.S. troops serving in the Mexican Punitive Expedition recrossed the border from Palomas, Chihuahua, Mexico, into Columbus, New Mexico. Eleven months earlier the bandit Francisco "Pancho" Villa had raided Columbus. With approximately 485 men, known as Villistas,Villa had attacked the border town on March 9, 1916. According to War Department reports, ten American officers and soldiers were killed, two officers and five soldiers wounded, eight civilians killed, and two wounded. The Mexican irregulars' losses numbered approximately one hundred killed, with seven wounded and captured.

From March 16, 1916, to February 14,1917, an expeditionary force of more than fourteen thousand regular army troops under the command of Brig. Gen. John J. "Black Jack" Pershing operated in northern Mexico "in pursuit of Villa with the single objective of capturing him and putting a stop to his forays." Another 140,000 regular army and National Guard troops patrolled the vast border between Mexico and the United States to discourage further raids. The expedition generated a vast array of military records that are now held in the National Archives and Records Administration, resources that are underused and are of value to genealogists and historians.

Pancho Villa

Although the Mexican Punitive Expedition is considered a minor event in U.S. history, it is a story filled with adventure, intrigue, and confusion. The origins of the expedition are rooted in the 1910 Mexican Revolution, when a rebel faction led by Francisco I. Madero, Jr., attempted to overthrow Mexico's dictator of more than thirty years, President Porfirio Diaz. The United States was concerned that the conflict would harm American business interests in Mexico and its citizens living along the border. As a result, President William H. Taft sent about sixteen thousand troops to Texas for "war games" in April 1911. The troops, consisting of elements of several regiments, were designated as the Maneuver Division. Although officially sent to the border for training exercises, unofficially the division prepared for a possible incursion into Mexico. By June the revolution had succeeded, and Madero was elected president. The Maneuver Division was disbanded on August 7, 1911.

Madero's victory was short-lived. On February 19, 1913, Gen. Victorio Huerta arrested Madero and forced him to resign. On February 22, Madero was presumed assassinated on orders from Huerta. A civil war erupted a few days later between Huerta's forces and supporters of Madero, who were led by Governor Venustiano Carranza and Pancho Villa. With a contingent of several thousand men, Villa formed a military band known as the Division of the North and operated in the mountains of northern Mexico.

In the United States a new American President, Woodrow Wilson, took office. Like his predecessor, Wilson now faced the task of choosing a side in the ongoing Mexican Revolution. Wilson's administration refused to recognize Huerta because of the corrupt manner in which he had seized power, and it instituted an arms embargo on both sides of the civil war.



When Huerta's forces appeared to be winning the civil war in early 1914, Wilson lifted the arms embargo by offering to help Carranza. This action had volatile consequences. For several months, U.S. Navy warships had been stationed at the ports of Tampico (under the command of Rear Adm. Henry T Mayo) and Vera Cruz (under Rear Adm. Frank R. Fletcher's command) to protect American and other foreign interests associated with the rich oil fields in the area. On April 9, a group of sailors detached from the USS Dolphin went ashore at Tampico to retrieve supplies. Huerta's troops arrested and detained two of them. The sailors were released a short time later, and President Huerta offered an apology to the United States for the incident. Ultimately, Admiral Mayo demanded a twenty-one-gun salute to the U.S. flag in addition to the apology. Huerta agreed only if the Americans would return the honor. When learning of the incident, an angry President Wilson refused Huerta's request. Instead, he ordered the U.S. Navy's Atlantic Fleet to Mexico's Gulf Coast to strengthen the forces under Mayo and Fletcher and occupy Tampico. Another crisis festering down the coast in Vera Cruz, however, prevented U.S. troops from occupying the city, and the Tampico incident came to an end with no real conclusion.

The U.S. consul's office in Vera Cruz had been warned that a German ship delivering arms for Huerta was expected in the port on April 21,1914. President Wilson ordered U.S. forces in the area to seize the town's customhouse and capture the guns. On the afternoon of April 21, a contingent of 787 marines and sailors quickly went ashore and seized the customhouse. By noon of April 22, the U.S. troops had occupied the town. Although they had hoped to avoid bloodshed, U.S. forces were nevertheless fired upon by Mexican soldiers, and a violent street battle ensued. The American losses were four killed and twenty wounded on April 21 and thirteen killed and forty-one wounded on April 22. We have no accurate casualty number for the Mexican troops, but it was reported that between 152 and 172 were killed and between 195 and 250 were wounded.



On April 30, 1914, the U.S. Army's Fifth Infantry Brigade, under the command of Brig. Gen. Frederick Funston, arrived at Vera Cruz. The brigade assumed occupation duty from the marines and also organized a military government to restore order to the city. President Huerta never officially recognized the U.S. occupiers, but he made no serious attempts to resist their power. On July 15, 1914, Huerta resigned from the office of president and moved to Spain. The Fifth Infantry Brigade left Vera Cruz on November 23, and the U.S. government agreed that Carranza and his de facto government could use the city as their capital.

The United States and six Latin American nations officially recognized the Carranza government on October 19,1915, a direct insult to Pancho Villa and his followers, who had earlier parted ways with Carranza. Feeling betrayed, the Villistas set forth on a course of retaliation directed mainly at Americans. In one instance, Villa's irregulars assassinated seventeen U.S. citizens aboard a train traveling from Chihuahua City to the Cusi Mine at Santa Isabel, Chihuahua. Although this act infuriated the American public, it was the Villistas' next attack, the raid on Columbus, New Mexico, that caused the U.S. government to seek retribution.


Columbus, NM before the raid

Why Villa chose Columbus as a target for his most daring raid is unclear. The small town had only one hotel, a few stores, some adobe houses, and a population of 350 Americans and Mexicans. Most likely, Villa was enticed to attack Columbus because it was the home of Camp Furlong and the Thirteenth U.S. Cavalry Regiment under the command of Col. Herbert J. Slocum. The Thirteenth had been garrisoned at Columbus since September 1912. At the time of the attack, the regiment comprised 500 officers and men, but only about 350 men were at the camp. A local citizen warned Slocum that Villa was nearby. As a precaution, Slocum strengthened the patrols and outposts of the camp with detachments from the regiment. Since Villa had numerous sympathizers living in Columbus and the vicinity, he had no trouble obtaining information on Camp Furlong's troop strength or other bits of intelligence.

Although Villa's rationale for attacking Columbus has never been explained, the outcome is clearly documented. The secretary of war reported that "Villa's command crossed the border in small parties about 3 miles west of the border gate, concentrated for and made the attack during hours of extreme darkness after the moon had set and before daylight." After a bloody confrontation in which eighteen Americans died, two troops of the Thirteenth Cavalry under the direction of Maj. Frank Tompkins pursued the bandits. The troops chased the Mexicans south of the border for twelve miles before their ammunition and supplies were exhausted. The raid, however, could hardly be considered a victory for Villa and his men. Besides killing a small number of soldiers and civilians, his men came away with a few horses and a meager amount of loot from the stores and homes of the town.


Columbus, NM after the raid

Both public outcry and pressure from the army moved President Wilson to order the military to pursue Villa and punish him. General Funston, now commanding the Southern Department, telegraphed the War Department the day after the raid, "I urgently recommend that American troops be given authority to pursue into Mexican Territory hostile Mexican bandits who raid American territory. So long as the border is a shelter for them they will continue to harass our ranches and towns to our chagrin." Wilson responded by directing Secretary of War Newton Baker to organize a punitive expedition.

[SAMWolf]

The U.S. Army quickly made preparations to conduct the expedition. Troops and supplies poured into the newly established base command in Columbus, which was still recovering from the raid. Maj. Gen. Hugh Scott, army chief of staff, selected Brig. Gen. John J. Pershing to lead the expedition. Pershing's military record was admirable. He had served in the frontier Indian Wars, the Philippine Insurrection, and as an observer in the Russo- Japanese War. While on the western frontier, he had commanded a troop in the all-black Tenth U.S. Cavalry Regiment and earned the nickname "Black Jack." At the time of the raid, he was in command of the El Paso District. It was not Pershing's fighting record, however, that impressed Scott but the competence in diplomacy he had shown during his service in the Philippines and China, a skill necessary for the upcoming expedition.



A jealous General Funston coveted the Punitive Expedition command, and when passed by Scott, he exhibited an animosity toward Pershing that persisted throughout the expedition. Pershing was still subordinate and reported directly to Funston, who intended to manage almost every detail of the expedition, but Funston did allow the commander of the Punitive Expedition full control over troop assignments. One officer Pershing chose to serve on his staff was a young lieutenant named George S. Patton, Jr., who would later achieve glory as an army commander during World War II.

The diplomatic bargaining between the U.S. Department of State and Carranza allowed Pershing to complete preparation for the expedition. His orders, as directed by General Funston, were to lead two columns that included infantry, cavalry, field artillery, engineers, the First Aero Squadron with eight airplanes, field hospitals, wagon and ambulance companies, and signal detachments. One colunm would leave from Columbus and the other from Hachita, via the Culberson Ranch. From garrisons along the border, troops entrained for Columbus and brought the expedition up to strength.

In the coming months they advanced four hundred miles into Mexican territory, adapting their maneuvers to a hostile terrain while experimenting with new technologies in such forms as motor transport and aircraft reconnaissance.

Pancho Villa's raid on Columbus, New Mexico, on March 9, 1916, prompted the United States to organize an expedition in retaliation. While the army prepared for the expedition, Secretary of State Robert Lansing negotiated with Venustiano Carranza to allow the United States to enter Mexico without interference. Carranza balked at granting approval to the expedition. As a compromise, he insisted that his own troops would track down Villa. The United States refused his offer, and after a week of fervent bartering, Carranza reluctantly agreed to allow the Americans across the border as long as they strayed no further than the state of Chihuahua. The army was under the impression that Carranza would allow the expedition to ship supplies over the Mexican Northwestern Railway, but initially he refused. Several weeks into the expedition, Carranza made some concessions and allowed the Americans to use the railroad, but by then supplies were already moving by horse and primitive Dodge trucks, which habitually broke down. Still, Brig. Gen. John J. Pershing reported that "supplies are coming in as rapidly as transportation will permit" The army's telegraph lines also needed constant attention since the Mexicans made a sport of cutting the wires. The Punitive Expedition learned the hard way that Carranza had little interest in cooperating with the efforts to capture Villa.


Brig. Gen. John J. Pershing in front of his tent. His aide, Lieutenant J. Lawton Collins is on the right.

By April 8, General Pershing was more than four hundred miles into Mexico with a troop strength of 6,675 men. The expedition set up its headquarters in the town of Colonia Dublan and its supply base on a tract of land near the Casas Grandes River. Having no idea how long he would be in Chihuahua or how much further he would have to penetrate to locate Villa, Pershing wanted to ensure that his army was well supplied. Since the expedition was denied the full use of the Mexican railway system, Pershing turned to his motor transport companies. The only problem was that the army did not have enough trucks to transport the food, clothing, weapons, and ammunition stored at Columbus.

Logistically, the Punitive Expedition started as a nightmare. Nothing of this magnitude had ever been attempted by the U.S.Army. Word of this dilemma was forwarded to Secretary of War Newton Baker, who was somehow able to spend $450,000 of unappropriated funds to purchase new trucks. The funds were well spent as more than ten thousand tons of supplies were eventually delivered by truck to Pershing. Moving supplies by truck was no easy feat during the expedition, however, because roads depicted on available maps turned out to be nothing but trails that were impassable during wet weather. As a result, engineers had to rebuild many of the roads. The expedition also had to reply on mules and wagons to a large extent to keep supplies moving.

The airplanes sent for use by the First Aero Squadron proved to be inadequate because they did not have enough power to overcome the erratic winds or to climb high enough to cross the mountains of northern Chihuahua. Pershing complained in a report to Brig. Gen. Frederick Funston that "the aeroplanes have been of no material benefit so far, either in scouting or as a means of communication. They have not at all met my expectations. The further south Villa goes into the mountains the more difficult will be their tasks, and I have no doubt we shall soon be compelled to abandon them for either scouting the enemy or keeping in touch with the advance columns." Gradually the airplanes were replaced, and the commander of the First Aero Squadron, Benjamin Fouloius, happily reported that the "squadron rendered efficient service in reconnaissance and in maintaining communications with the troops away from the base camp."

Working airplanes were not enough to locate Villa. Although a majority of the Mexican citizens encountered by Pershing's forces wanted Villa captured as much as the Americans did, their hatred for the United States was even stronger, and they gave the U.S. forces few leads. After almost two weeks of pursuing aimless leads and fighting a few minor skirmishes, a squadron of the Seventh U.S. Cavalry fought five hundred Villistas at San Geronimo. There were no American losses, but several of the bandits were wounded. It was thought that Villa was among those wounded, but this proved false.

Even with the recent setbacks, the morale of the troops remained high. Pershing reported that "the spirit of this command is splendid and cooperation of all elements is entirely satisfactory. In fact, I have never seen such willingness and such eagerness to push forward to the task, as is shown by all members of this command. While all realize the difficulties to be undertaken, and while immediate results are not expected, there is a fixed conviction that we shall accomplish our object in the end"

Probably the most frustrating point during the entire Punitive Expedition occurred on April 13, 1916, when a detachment of troops from Carranza's army attacked the American troops at Parral. Upon receiving reinforcements, they drove back the Mexicans. One American soldier was killed, and one was wounded. The Mexicans suffered fourteen killed. Pershing kept his men at Dublan and sent out scouting parties and detachments to locate Villa without success.

At the town of Carrizal, troops from the Mexican National Army attacked two troops of the Tenth Cavalry on a scouting mission on June 21. Seven enlisted men were killed, and even more were wounded. Villa's forces captured twenty-three enlisted men and one civilian interpreter. The prisoners were sent to Chihuahua City but were released a short time later.

General John J. (Black Jack) Pershing

Tensions between the United States and Mexico were at a breaking point. Not since the Mexican-American War of 1846–1848 had the two countries come so close to all-out war. Neither country was prepared, and neither wanted war. The War Department recognized that a force of at least 200,000 was needed to invade Mexico and that Carranza did not have the troops to ward off an American invasion. To avoid further incidents like Carrizal, Funston ordered Pershing to cease sending out long-range patrols.

It was becoming increasingly obvious that Carranza's de facto government openly disliked the American presence in Mexico. Maj. Gen. Hugh Scott and Funston met with Carranza's military chief, Alvaro Obregon, at El Paso and agreed to gradually withdraw Pershing's forces if Carranza would control Villa.

The expedition learned that some of Carranza's soldiers were joining forces with the Villistas. To counter this threat, Pershing's men spent the remainder of their time operating in a limited area close to their base of operations at Dublan. By order of General Funston, the supply route was moved further north to prevent Carranza's men from cutting off the expeditionary force from Columbus. It was not really necessary for Pershing to send troops any further into Mexico. Villa's forces at this point were badly depleted by casualties and desertion, and those who remained were largely scattered. Although the Villistas were still on the loose, they were not much of a menace.

[SAMWolf]

National Guard units from Texas, Arizona, and New Mexico had been called into service on May 8, 1916. With congressional approval of the National Defense Act on June 3, 1916, National Guard units from the remainder of the states and the District of Columbia were also called for duty on the border. In mid-June President Wilson called out 110,000 National Guard for border service. None of the National Guard troops would cross the border into Mexico but were used instead as a show of force. Nonetheless, activities on the border were far from dull. The troops had to be on constant alert as border raids were still an occasional nuisance. Three of the raids were particularly bloody. On May 5, 1916, Mexican bandits attacked an outpost at Glenn Springs, Texas, killing one civilian and wounding three American soldiers. On June 15 bandits killed four American soldiers at San Ygnacio, Texas, and on July 31 one American soldier and a U.S. customs inspector were killed. In all three cases Mexican raiders were killed and wounded, but the exact numbers are unknown.



The focus of the Punitive Expedition now changed from actively seeking out Pancho Villa to a more defensive position of protecting the troops from Carranza's forces. A new enemy, boredom, now tormented the troops. During the warmer months, the troops faced an almost daily dose of dust storms and swarms of flies. Organized recreation was virtually nonexistent for the men on duty in Mexico. In the absence of a USO or YMCA, soldiers organized baseball games, boxing matches, and hunting expeditions. Gambling was also another diversion for the troops since they had nowhere to spend their army pay. As long as no disorder resulted from the gambling, Pershing and his staff made little effort to discourage it.

Another feature of the camp at Colonia Dublan were the numerous Mexican prostitutes who followed the troops. To prevent the men from leaving camp, Pershing had the prostitutes rounded up and placed under guard in a specially created barbed-wire stockade. Soldiers wishing to visit the stockade were required to show the guard on duty that they had the necessary fee that was regulated by the provost marshal. After completing business with one of the visiting ladies, a soldier was required to take a prophylactic provided by the army. The result of this strict sanitary measure was one of the lowest venereal disease rates an army has ever known.



On January 18, 1917, General Funston informed Pershing "that it was the intention of the Government to withdraw from Mexico at an early date." Pershing "recommended that the date of the beginning of the movement from Dublan, Mexico, be not later than January 28, 1917, the withdrawal to be entirely by marching, and the command to assemble at Palomas, Chihuahua, and march across the border together." The recommendation was approved, and the Punitive Expedition officially ended on the afternoon of February 5, 1917. Shortly after the withdrawal, various units of the National Guard were returned to their homes. Small forces were maintained in Texas, Arizona, and New Mexico to "prevent further trouble from scattered bands of outlaws"

As a token of appreciation, the United States Congress approved the issuing of the Mexican Service Badge, then the Mexican Border Service Medal. Eligibility for the Mexican Service Badge, according to War Department General Order 155, December 1917, was authorized by the President for issue "to all officers and enlisted men who are now, or may hereafter be, in the military service . . . in Mexico as members of the Vera Cruz expedition . . . in Mexico as members of the punitive or other authorized expeditions . . . those who participated in an engagement against Mexicans . . . and those who were present as members of the Mexican border patrol." Individuals not eligible for the Mexican Service Badge were authorized by Congress on July 9, 1918, to receive the Mexican Border Service Medal. Its purpose was to recognize the National Guardsmen and regular army troops mobilized to patrol the Mexican border between 1916 and 1917.



Despite its failure to capture Pancho Villa, the Mexican Punitive Expedition can be deemed a success. Secretary of War Baker praised the efforts of Pershing and his men by stating that "its objective, of course was the capture of Villa, if that could be accomplished, but its real purpose was a display of the power of the United States into a country disturbed beyond control of the constituted authorities of the Republic of Mexico as a means of controlling lawless aggregations of bandits and preventing attacks by them across the international frontier. This purpose is fully and finally accomplished."

Most important, the Mexican Punitive Expedition provided military training experience for the eleven thousand regular soldiers who made up the expedition. Pershing's experience during the Punitive Expedition and the death of Funston on February 19, 1917, made him the obvious choice as commander of the American Expeditionary Forces during World War I. Many of the same men who served with Pershing in Mexico accompanied him to France.

Hostilities in Mexico continued well after the Americans left. On March 11, 1917, Carranza was officially elected the new president of Mexico but continued to fight off overthrow attempts by Villa and Emiliano Zapata. On April 10, 1919, Carranza had Zapata assassinated. A year later Carranza himself was assassinated after fleeing Mexico City during a rebellion. Pancho Villa met a similar fate on July 20, 1923. Around the same time, the army disbanded troops stationed along the Mexican border, thus bringing to a close a turbulent period in Mexican-American relations.

Additional Sources:

htg-is.vianet.net
www.qmmuseum.lee.army.mil
www.probertencyclopaedia.com
www.texancultures.utsa.edu
www2.powercom.net
www.ku.edu
www.americaslibrary.gov
www.army.mil
16thinfantry-regiment.org
www.lib.msu.edu
www.hsgng.org
www.sp.utexas.edu
www.cavalry.org

[SAMWolf]

On 9 March 1916, the Mexican insurgent, Francisco Pancho Villa, attacked Columbus, New Mexico, killing several U.S. soldiers and civilians. The next day Brigadier General John J. ("Black Jack") Pershing was directed to launch a two-pronged attack into northern Mexico to capture and punish Villa. To support the so-called Punitive Expedition, he looked to the Quartermaster Corps, and the creation of the Army’s first motorized truck companies. Even though the European armies were already employing thousands of trucks in World War I, the U.S. Army only had about 100 vehicles, located at widely scattered posts and depots throughout the country. On 14 March 1916 the Quartermaster General purchased 54 one-and-a-half ton trucks from companies in Cleveland, Ohio, and Kenosha, Wisconsin. They left the Great Lakes region on a special southbound freight train on the 16th, and arrived at El Paso on March 18th, having covered 1,500 miles in 48 hours. Loaded and crossed the border into Mexico that same night.

From March to July 1916, QM Truck Companies delivered over 4,000 tons of supplies and hundreds of troops to Pershing’s mobile force, validating the truck’s worth. And in the process revolutionized the U.S. Army’s transport.

-- U.S. QuarterMaster Museum

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[SAMWolf]

[SAMWolf]

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[Soaring Feather]

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[Northern Yankee]

Good Morning, Sweetie!

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6 POWs found overnight.

The United States continues to quell disturbances in Iraq, and News media is busy trying to paint the new foreign policy a neo-conservative.

Can't these idiots get anything right?!

[manna]

Present!

[E.G.C.]

BTTT!!!!!!

[Valin]

On this Day In History


Birthdates which occurred on April 13:
1519 Catherine de Médici Queen of Spain/daughter of Henry II
1545 Elisabeth van Valois French queen of Spain/daughter of Henri II
1593 Thomas Wentworth London, earl of Strafford/Viceroy of Ireland
1626 Aert Jansz van Nes Lieutenant-Admiral, baptised
1648 Jeanne-Marie Bouvier de la Mothe-Guyon French mystic (quiétisme)
1713 Pierre de Jelyotte composer
1729 Thomas Percy English literary/bishop of Dromore
1732 Frederick Lord North (C) British PM (1770-82)
1733 Johann Heinrich Zang composer
1743 Thomas Jefferson Shadwell VA, (D-R) 3rd US President (1801-09)
1749 Frederik Sigismund van Bylandt Dutch count/Vice-Admiral
1756 Louis H J Condé French prince
1762 Johanna C Wattier-Ziesenis Dutch actress (Phaedra, Lady Macbeth)
1762 Karl Friedrich Horn composer
1771 Adam FJA van der Duyn Dutch Governorernor (South Holland)
1771 Richard Trevithick Illogan Cornwall England, inventor (steam locomotive)
1784 Cornelis Smit Dutch ship builder
1791 Félix Earl de Merode Belgian minister of War/Finance
1799 Heinrich F L Rellstab German music theorist
1799 Joseph Rastrelli composer
1810 Félicien C David French composer (Perle du Brésil, Désert)
1816 William Sterndale Bennett composer
1817 Alphonse Wauters Belgian historian/archivist (Brussels)
1822 Leroy Augustus Stafford Brigadier General (Confederate Army), died in 1864
1822 William Stephen Walker Brigadier General (Confederate Army), died in 1899
1828 Joseph B Lightfoot English theologist/bishop of Durham
1830 Eduard Lassen composer
1832 James Wimshurst British designer/inventor (electricstatic generator)
1847 Cornelis Pijnacker Hordijk Governor-General (Netherlands East-Indies)
1849 Enrique José Varona Cuban sociologist/psychologist
1852 Frank W Woolworth 5¢ & 10¢ King (Woolworths)
1854 Richard T Ely US economist (Hard Times)
1860 James Ensor Flemish painter/etcher (De lampenjongen)
1865 Heinrich Reinhardt composer
1867 Sammy Woods cricket bowler (Australia & England Rugby wing-forward)
1868 John Blackwood McEwen composer
1872 A Roda Roda writer
1873 Theodore Morse composer
1881 Ludwig Binswanger Swiss psychiatrist (Über Ideenflucht)
1883 Alexander Alexandrov composer
1883 Demjan Bednyi writer
1885 György Lukács Hungarian philosopher (Zerstörung der Vernunft)
1885 Pieter S Gerbrandy Dutch lawyer/premier in London (1940-45)
1886 Ethel Leginska composer
1892 Arthur Harris Cheltenham, Marshal of the RAF
1892 Robert A Watson-Watt England, physicist (radar)
1894 Ludvig Irgens Jensen composer
1895 Olga Rudge violinist
1895 Olof R Jändel Swedish poet
1899 Alexander Alexandrovich Davidenko composer
1899 Alfred Moser Butts game inventor (Scrabble)
1899 Alfred Schutz Austrian/US architect/philosopher
19-- Jean Carol Hillsdale NJ, actress (Nadine-Guiding Light)
19-- Michael Leon actor (Pete Jannings-Days of Our Life)
19-- Richard Karron New York NY, actor (Fatso, Charlie & Company, Teacher's Only)
19-- Ruben Rabassa Havana Cuba, Spanish personality
1901 René-Jean Pleven French premier (1950-52)
1902 Philippe de Rothschild Paris France, manager (Bordeaux Vineyard)
1902 Godfrey Kenton actor (Well's Theater)
1903 Rex Evans actor (Frankenstein meets the Wolfman, Zara, Matchmaker)
1904 Georges Yves Marie Congar dominican Theologian cardinal
1906 Samuel Beckett Irish playwright (Waiting for Godot/Nobel 1969)
1906 Budd [Lawrence] Freeman US jazz saxophonist (Eel)
1907 Harold Stassen West St Paul MN, (Governor-Republican-MN) perennial presidential candidate
1909 Eudora Welty Jackson MS, novelist (Optimist's Daughter-Pulitzer 1973)
1909 Jan Veldkamp Dutch geophysicist/director (KNMI)
1909 Mervyn Hugh Cowie willife conservationist
1911 Nino Sanzogno composer
1912 Roy Winsor Chicago IL, producer (Search for Tomorrow, Love of Life)
1913 Bernard Chacksfield Air Vice-Marshal
1913 David Donald Albritton Danville AL, high jumper (Olympics-silver-1936)
1915 Bert [Albert L F] Peleman [Dirk Dyckmans], Flemish writer
1915 R N Coote Bishop (Colchester)
1915 Stephan Hermlin writer
1915 Stephen Roberts CEO (British Milk Marketing Board)
1915 Tom Greenshields sculptor
1918 Audrey Barker writer
1919 Howard Keel [Harry Clifford Leek] Gillespie IL, actor/singer (7 Brides for 7 Brothers, Kiss Me Kate)
1919 Madalyn Murray O'Hair American atheist (opppsed prayer in school)
1920 Liam Cosgrave leader (Fine Gael Party)
1921 Baron Thyssen-Bornemisza industrialist
1921 Carlo Prosperi composer
1921 James Wilson British Lieutenant-General
1921 Maxwell Henley Harris Australian poet/publisher (Gift of Blood)
1922 John Braine English novelist (Life at the Top)
1922 John George Vanderbile Henry Spencer-Churchill [11th Duke of Marlborough] English large landowner
1924 Stanley Donen Columbia SC, film director/producer (Bedazzled, Damn Yankees)
1925 Frank Chamberlain CEO (Test & County Cricket Board)
1925 Frank Neville Hosband Robinson physicist
1925 Hilda Dianda composer
1926 Don [James Yarmy] Adams New York NY, actor/comedian (Maxwell Smart-Get Smart, Check it Out)
1926 Godfrey Kenton actor
1927 Mari Blanchard Long Beach CA, actress (Kathy-Klondike)
1927 Lord Wedderburn of Charlton QC
1927 Maurice Ronet Nice France, actor (Frantic, Sphinz, Circle of Love)
1927 Rosa Joyce Plesters Brommelie conservation scientist
1929 Marilynn Smith Topeka KS, LPGA golfer (1972 Pabst Open)
1930 Justice Harman
1931 Beverley Cross playwright
1931 Michael Burchill actor
1932 Barney Simon theatre director/writer
1932 Karl Kroeger composer
1933 Shani Wallis Ireland, singer/actress (Oliver)
1933 Ben Nighthorse Campbell (Senator-D-CO)
1934 Horace Kay US singer (Tams-You Lied to Your Daddy)
1934 Siegfried Matthus composer
1935 Erich von Däniken author (Chariots of the Gods)
1935 Lyle Waggoner Kansas City KS, actor (Carol Burnett Show, Wonder Woman)
1935 Kenneth Hayr air marshal
1935 Peter Heap diplomat
1937 Lanford Wilson US playwright (Hot L Baltimore)
1937 Edward Fox London England, actor (M-Never Say Never Again)
1937 Peter M Harris Official Solicitor (Supreme Court)
1938 Frederic Rzewski Westfield MA, composer (Spacecraft)
1938 John Weston diplomat
1939 Paul Sorvino Brookyn NY, stage/screen actor, (Law and Order, Reds, Goodfellas, A Touch of Class, That Championship Season, An American Millionaire, The Mating Dance, Skyscraper, King Lear)
1939 Barbara-Rose Collins (Representative-Democrat-MI)
1939 Seamus Heaney poet
1939 Wijnie Jabaaij Dutch MP (PvdA)
1940 Lester Chambers Flora MS, vocalist (Chambers Brothers-Time Has Come Today)
1941 Margaret Price Tredegar Wales, soprano (Pamlina-Die Zauberflöte)
1942 Bill Conti Providence RI, composer (For Your Eyes Only, Rocky IV)
1943 Bill Koch US skier
1943 Eve Graham rocker (New Seekers)
1944 Brian Pendleton Wolverhampton West Midlands England, rocker (The Pretty Things)
1944 Charles Burnett director (When it Rains, Glass Shield)
1944 Jack Casady Washington DC, rock bassist (Hot Tuna, Jefferson Airplane)
1944 Michael Saunders barrister
1945 Lowell George rock vocalist/guitarist (Little Feat-Time is a Hero)
1945 Tony Dow Hollywood CA, actor (Wally-Leave it to Beaver)
1945 Carlos Gimenez Argentina/Venezuela, founder (Theater festival of Caracas)
1945 Edward J Caruthers Jr Troy AL, high jumper (Olympics-silver-1968)
1945 Raymond van Geytenbeek Dutch singer/drummer (Les Baroques)
1945 Stacy Johnson US singer (Sharpees-Tired of Being Alone)
1946 Al Green Forest City AR, singer (Lets Stay Together)
1946 Jim Pons rocker (Mothers Of Invention)
1946 Roy Loney rocker (Flaming Groovies)
1948 Amy Robinson Trenton NJ, writer/actress (Mean Streets)
1948 Kathleen Battle US soprano (Tannhäuser)
1948 Peter Swevel rocker
1949 Philippe Petit Nemours France, juggler/aerialist
1949 Jean-Jacques Favier Kehl Germany, astronaut (STS 78)
1950 Terry Lester Indianapolis IN, actor (Royce Keller-As The World Turns, Mason Capwell-Santa Barbara, Jack Abbott-Young & Restless)
1950 Riff West rock bassist (Molly Hatchet)
1950 Ron Perlman Bronx NY, actor (Quest for Fire, Beauty & the Beast)
1951 Beatrix "Trixie" Schuba Austria, figure skater (Olympics-gold-1972)
1951 Jack Quinn (Representative-Republican-NY)
1951 Max Weinberg rock drummer (E Street Band, Conan O'Brien Show)
1951 Peabo Bryson Greenville SC, R&B vocalist (I'm So into You)
1951 Peter Davison actor (Dr Who, Sink or Swim, Fiddlers Three)
1952 Jonjo O'Neill racehorse trainer
1953 Stephen Byers MP
1954 Barbara Roche MP
1954 Jimmy Destri rock keyboardist (Blondie-Heart of Glass, Rapture)
1955 Kabaka of Buganda
1955 Louis Johnson Los Angeles CA, rock bassist/vocalist (Brothers Johnson)
1956 Michael Nikolay German Democratic Republic, gymnast (Olympics)
1957 Saundra Santiago Bronx NY, actress (Gina-Miami Vice)
1957 Wayne Lewis keyboardist, (Atlantic Star-Touch a 4 Leaf Clover)
1957 Gary Kroeger Cedar Falls IA, comedian (Saturday Night Live, Return of Shaggy Dog)
1958 Randy Piper heavy metal rocker (Wasp-Wildchild)
1959 Vicki Witt Lansing MI, playmate (August 1978)
1961 Tammy Stephens Arlington TX, singer (Girls Next Door-Don't Be Cruel)
1963 Gary Kimovich Kasparov USSR, world chess champion (1985- )
1963 Jan Willem van Ede Dutch soccer player (FC Utrecht, PSV)
1963 Mark Leiter Joliet IL, pitcher (San Francisco Giants)
1964 Bill D'Angelo heavy metal rocker
1964 Page Hannah Chicago IL, actress (Kate Riley-Fame)
1964 Davis Milton Love III Charlotte NC, PGA golfer (1987 MCI Heritage)
1964 Doug Strange Greenville SC, infielder (Seattle Mariners)
1964 Jose Rijo pitcher (New York Yankees, Cincinnati Reds)
1965 Quinn Early NFL wide receiver (New Orleans Saints, Buffalo Bills)
1966 Rodney Smith Washington DC, 149½ lbs greco-roman wrestler (Olympics-92, 96)
1967 Dana Barros NBA guard (Boston Celtics)
1968 Tami Lyn Jameson Minneapolis MN, team handball goalie/twin sister of Toni (Olympics-92, 96)
1968 Ted Washington NFL nose tackle (Buffalo Bills)
1968 Toni Lee Jameson Minneapolis MN, team handball back court/twin sister of Tami (Olympics-96)
1969 Harold Pruett rocker (Outsiders-Time Won't Let Me)
1970 Rick Schroder Staten Island NY, actor (Ricky-Silver Spoons, Champ, Earthling)
1970 Eddie Robinson NFL linebacker (Houston Oilers, Jacksonville Jaguars)
1970 Monty Brown NFL linebacker (Buffalo Bills)
1970 Ramona Reuter Miss New York-USA (1997)
1971 Corey Yothers Los Angeles CA, actor (Off the Rock)
1971 Charles Outlaw NBA forward (Los Angeles Clippers, Orlando Magic)
1972 Dave Wohlabaugh NFL center/guard (New England Patriots)
1972 Jeroen Thesseling pop bassist (Pestilence, Spheres)
1972 Mariusz Czerkawski Radomsko Pol, NHL right wing (Edmonton Oilers)
1972 Mike Kennedy Vancouver British Columbia Canada, NHL left wing (Dallas Stars)
1973 Aaron Hayden NFL running back (San Diego Chargers, Green Bay Packers-Superbowl 31)
1973 Dave Wohlabaugh corner (New England Patriots)
1974 Sergei Gonchar Chelyabinsk Russia, NHL defenseman (Capitals, Olympics-silver-1998)
1976 Everton Matambanadzo Zimbabwean cricket pace bowler (vs Pakistan 1996)
1976 Jonathan Brandis Danbury CT, actor (Lucas Wolenczak-seaQuest DSV, Never Ending Story II)
1978 Grace Murray Tubbs Miss Montana Teen-USA (1996)
1979 Monica Ivey Miss Hawaii Teen-USA (1996)
1991 Dylan Frances Penn Los Angeles CA, daughter of Sean Penn & Robin Wright
1992 Jet Travolta daughter of John Travolta & Kelly Preston

---

Deaths which occurred on April 13:
0799 Paulus Diaconus Warnafridi Longobardisch writer, dies
1475 Matteo Palmieri Italian writer (Città di Vita), dies at 69
1517 Tuman Bey last Mamelukken sultan of Egypt, hanged
1638 Henri II duke of Rohan-Gié, French hugenot leader, dies at 58
1695 Jean de La Fontaine poet, dies
1722 Charles Leslie Irish controversialist, dies
1728 Johann Christoph Schmidt composer, dies at 63
1742 Giovanni Veneziano composer, dies at 59
1756 Johann T Gottlieb Goldberg German klavecinist/composer, dies at 29
1794 Sébastien-Roch-Nicolas Chamfort French playwright, commits suicide at 53
1806 Jean-Jacques Bachelier French painter, dies at about 82
1822 Gaetano Valeri composer, dies at 61
1825 Josef Gelinek composer, dies at 66
1826 Franz Danzi composer, dies at 62
1831 Ferdinand Kauer composer, dies at 80
1864 Johann Schneider composer, dies at 74
1868 Theodorus [Kasa] emperor of Abyssinia, commits suicide
1873 Carlo Coccia composer, dies at 90
1886 Karoly Thern composer, dies at 68
1903 Derk J A Haspels Dutch actor, dies at 65
1904 Vasili Vereshtshagin Russian painter (War & Peace), dies
1910 William Orchardson British painter, dies
1928 Luis Iruarrizaga Aguirre composer, dies at 36
1932 Johannes T de Visser 1st Dutch minister of Education, dies at 75 [or 14th]
1936 Demertzis Greek premier, dies
1941 Annie Jump Cannon US astronomer (Henry Draper catalogues), dies at 77
1942 Henk Sneevliet leader of Dutch RSAP/Spartacus, executed at 58
1944 Cecile Chaminade composer, dies at 86
1944 Paul Hazard French literature historian, dies at 65
1946 William Henry Bell composer, dies at 72
1949 C V France dies at 80
1952 [Rosalie] Julia Cuypers Flemish actress (Adelaarsjong), dies at 79
1959 Eduard A van Beinum Dutch musician/conductor, dies at 57
1959 Rigardus "Rijn" Rijnhout Giant of Rotterdam (2.375 meters tall), dies at 38
1967 Luis Somoza Debayle President of Nicaragua (1956-63), dies at 44
1973 Alexandre A M Stols publisher/typographer (Schoone Book), dies at 73
1974 Stanley Smith actor (Honey, King of Jazz, Soup to Nuts), dies at 71
1975 Larry Parks actor (Jazz Singer), dies at 60
1975 N'garta Tombalbaye President Chad, dies
1978 Paul McGrath actor (The Witness, No Time for Love), dies at 74
1984 Christopher Wilder FBI's "most wanted man", accidentally kills self
1986 Stephen Stucker actor (Trading Places, Airplane), dies
1990 Luis Trenker dies at 97
1990 Ronald Ibbs dies
1992 Brian Oulton dies at 84
1992 Wallace Stegner novelist (Pulitzer 1972), dies at 84
1992 Walter Stuart Surridge cricketeer (Captain of Surrey), dies at 74
1993 Barry Karas dies of leukemia at 49
1993 Henny Budie Dutch director/producer (Sterrenslag), dies
1993 Max Tripels Dutch attorney/MP, dies at 72
1994 Donald Benjamin Harden archaeologist, dies at 92
1994 Nikolai Afanassyevich Kryuchkov actor (Telegram), dies at 83
1994 P J Engels Dutch MP (KVP), dies at 70
1994 Robert O van Gennep Dutch publisher (Guevara, Mandèl), dies at 56
1994 Rudolf Hrusinsky Czechoslovakia, actor (Short Cut, Golden Eels), dies at 72
1994 Taleb Ali al-Suheil Iran sheik, murdered in Lebanon at 64
1995 Edward Firth Henderson arabist, dies at 77
1995 Lawrence Allan Laurie Scott script writer, dies at 87
1996 Denis Sargan econometrician, dies at 71
1996 George Mackey Brown poet, dies at 74
1996 James "Jimmy the Gent" Burke criminal, dies at 64
1997 Ann Craft researcher/writer, dies at 53
1997 George Wald scientist (Nobel Prize, vitamin A in retina), dies at 80

---

Reported: MISSING in ACTION

1966 MAPE JOHN CLEMENT DUBLIN CA.
REMAINS IDENTIFIED 03/17/99

1968 STISCHER WALTER MORRIS SAN ANTONIO TX.
03/28/73 RELEASED BY PL (LAOS) ALIVE AND WELL 98

1969 PIERSON WILLIAM C. MADISON WI.

1972 CHRISTENSEN JOHN MICHAEL OGDEN UT.
RADIO CONTACT LOST

1972 LEET DAVID LAVERETT KENOSHA WI.


POW / MIA Data & Bios supplied by the
P.O.W. NETWORK. Skidmore, MO. USA.

---

On this day...
0837 Best view of Halley's Comet in 2000 years
0989 Battle at Abydos Byzantine emperor Basilius II beats Bardas Phocas
1055 Bishop Gebhard van Eichstätt named Pope Victor II
1111 Pope Paschalis II crowns Roman catholics-German king Hendrik II
1180 Republic day of Gelnhausen
1204 Crusaders occupy Constantinople
1241 Battle at Theiss Mongols beat Hungarian King Béla IV
1346 Pope Clemens VI declares German emperor Louis of Bavaria, envoy
1367 Battle at Nájera Spain Castilië & England beat Aragón & France
1517 Osmaanse army occupies Cairo
1556 Portuguese Marranos who revert back to Judaism burned by order of Pope
1598 Edict of Nantes grants political rights to French Huguenots
1640 English Short Parliament forms (- May 5)
1668 John Dryden (36) becomes 1st English poet laureate
1741 Dutch people protest bad quality of bread
1741 Royal Military Academy forms at Woolwich
1742 George Frideric Händel's "Messiah" performed for 1st time (Dublin)
1759 French beat European Allies in Battle of Bergen
1796 1st elephant arrives in US from Bengal India
1796 Battle at Millesimo Italy Napoleon beats Austrians
1808 William Henry Lane ("Juda") perfects the tap dance
1829 English Emancipation Act grants freedom of religion to Catholics
1834 HMS Beagle anchors at river mouth of Rio Santa Cruz, Patagonia
1842 Lord Rosse successfully casts 72" (183-cm) mirror for a telescope
1849 Hungarian Republic proclaimed
1860 1st Pony Express reaches Sacramento CA
1861 After 34 hours of bombardment, Fort Sumter surrenders to Confederates
1863 Battle of Irish Bend LA (Fort Bisland)
1863 Hospital for Ruptured & Crippled in New York is 1st orthopedic hospital
1865 Battle of Raleigh NC
1869 Steam power brake patented (George Westinghouse)
1870 Metropolitan Museum of Art forms in NYC
1873 Colfax Massacre in Grant Parish LA (60 blacks killed)
1882 Anti-Semitic League forms in Prussia
1883 Alfred Packer convicted of cannibalism
1895 Start of Sherlock Holmes "Adventure of the Solitary Cyclist" (BG)
1902 JC Penney opens his 1st store in Kemmerer WY
1904 Congress authorizes Lewis & Clark Expo $1 gold coin
1904 Battle at Oviumbo Africa Herero's chase away German army
1906 Mutiny on Portuguese battleships Dom Carlos & Vasco da Gama
1908 Groundbreaking on Philadelphia's Shibe Park (home of A's & Phillies)
1911 Polo Grounds grandstand & left field bleachers go up in flames
1912 Royal Flying Corps forms (later RAF)
1914 1st Federal League Game Baltimore Terrapins beat Buffalo 3-2
1918 Electrical fire kills 38 mental patients at Oklahoma State Hospital
1919 Amritsar Massacre - British Army fires on hundreds of Indian Nationalist rioters in India
1920 1st woman US Civil Service Commissioner, Helen Hamilton appointed
1923 Army wins the 1st college three-weapon fencing championship
1924 Greek plebiscite for a republic
1925 Virginia Theater (ANTA, Guild) opens at 245 W 52nd St New York NY
1926 At 41, Walter Johnson pitches his 7th opening day shutout
1926 Bicyclists without bicycle-tax-stamp rounded up in Amsterdam
1927 Stanley Cup Ottawa Senators beat Boston Bruins, in 2 games & 2 ties
1928 1st trans atlantic flight Europe-US (Fitzmaurice-von Hünefeld-Köhl)
1932 Kozakken Boys soccer team forms in Werkendam forms
1933 1st flight over Mount Everest (Lord Clydesdale)
1933 Stanley Cup New York Rangers beat Toronto Maple Leafs, 3 games to 1
1934 4.7 million US families report receiving welfare payments
1934 US Congress passes Johnson Debt Default Act
1936 Metaxas proclaims himself dictator of Greece
1938 Clifford Goldsmith' "What a Life", premieres in NYC
1939 W Saroyan's "My Heart's in the Highlands", premieres in NYC
1940 Cornelious Warmerdam becomes the 1st man to pole vault 15 feet, Berkeley CA
1940 2nd battle of Narvik-8 German destroyers, destroyed
1940 Stanley Cup New York Rangers beat Toronto Maple Leafs, 4 games to 2
1941 Heavy German assault on Tobruk
1941 Russian-Japan no-attack treaty goes into effect
1943 FDR dedicates Jefferson Memorial
1943 Catholic University Nijegen closes
1943 Nazi's discover mass grave of Polish officers near Katyn
1944 South Carolina rejects black suffrage
1944 Stanley Cup Montréal Canadiens sweep Chicago Blackhawks in 4 games
1944 Transport nr 71 departs with French Jews to Nazi-Germany
1945 Allies occupy Wien (Vienna)
1945 Canadian army liberates Teuge & Assen Netherlands from Nazi's
1945 US marines conquer Minna Shima off Okinawa
1946 Belgian premier Acker proclaims wage & price freeze over
1946 Eddie Klepp, a white pitcher signed by defending Negro League champion Cleveland Buckeyes, is barred from field in Birmingham AL
1948 75 scientists ambushed on way to Mount Scopus
1949 Minneapolis beats Washington, 4 games to 2, for the NBA championship
1949 3rd NBA Championship Minneapolis Lakers beat Washington Capitals, 4 games to 2
1953 1st game of Milwaukee Braves, they beat Cincinnati Reds 2-0
1954 Baltimore Orioles 1st game, lose to Tigers in Detroit 3-0
1954 Milwaukee Braves' Hank Aaron's 1st game
1954 Robert Oppenheimer accused of being a communist
1955 20.33" (51.64 cm) of rainfall, Axis AL (state record)
1956 KETA TV channel 13 in Oklahoma City OK (PBS) begins broadcasting
1957 Due to lack of funds, Saturday mail delivery in the US is temporarily halted
1957 "Shinbone Alley" opens at Broadway Theater NYC for 49 performances
1957 11th NBA Championship Boston Celtics beat St Louis Hawks, 4 games to 3
1957 11th Tony Awards Long Days Journey into the Night & My Fair Lady win
1958 12th Tony Awards Sunrise at Campobello & Music Man win
1959 Vanguard SLV-5 launched for Earth orbit (failed)
1959 Vatican edict forbids Roman Catholics from voting for communists
1959 USAF launches Discoverer II into polar orbit
1960 France becomes the 4th nuclear nation exploding an A-Bomb in Sahara
1960 Transit 1B, 1st navigational satellite, placed in Earth orbit
1961 UN General Assembly condemns South Africa for apartheid
1961 "Carnival!" opens at Imperial Theater NYC for 719 performances
1962 Stan Musial scores his 1,869th run, a new National League record
1962 US steel industry forced to give up price increases
1963 Pete Rose triples for his 1st major league base hit
1963 Pittsburgh Pirate's Bob Friend balks 4 times in a game
1964 New Zealand Colin Bosher shears a record 565 sheep in 1 work day
1964 Sidney Poitier becomes 1st black man to win Oscar for best actor
1964 36th Academy Awards - "Tom Jones", Sidney Poitier & Patricia Neal win
1964 Ian D Smith becomes premier of Rhodesia
1965 Beatles record "Help"
1965 Lawrence Bradford Jr (age 16), of NYC became 1st black congressional page
1965 1st US Senate black page, Lawrence W Bradford Jr, 16, appointed by New York Senator Jacob Javits
1966 Pan Am places $525,000,000 order for 25 Boeing 747s
1969 33rd Golf Masters Championship George Archer wins, shooting a 281
1970 Apollo 13 announces "Houston, we've got a problem!" as Beech-built oxygen tank explodes en route to Moon
1970 34th Golf Masters Championship Billy Casper wins, shooting a 279
1970 Greek composer Mikis Theordorakis is freed
1970 Oakland uses gold-colored bases during the club's home opener; Rules Committee subsequently bans this innovation
1972 1st baseball players' strike ends after 13 days
1975 Pittsburgh Penguins 5-New York Islanders 4-Quarterfinals-Penguins hold 1-0 lead
1975 39th Golf Masters Championship Jack Nicklaus wins, shooting a 276
1975 Chad military coup by General Odingar
1975 Christian Falange kills 27 Palestinians, begins Lebanese civil war
1976 1st NBA playoff game for Cleveland Cavliers, they lose 100-95 to Washington
1976 Federal Reserve begins issuing $2 bicentennial notes
1978 New York Yankees defeat White Sox 4-2 in home opener on Reggie Candy Bar Day; Jackson slugs a 3-run homerun in the 1st inning, & the field is showered
1979 Longest doubles ping-pong match ends after 101 hours
1979 Christian Turks occupy St Jansbasiliek
1979 Yusuf Lule becomes premier of Uganda
1980 "Grease" closes at Broadhurst Theater NYC after 3,388 performances
1980 "Reggae" closes at Biltmore Theater NYC after 21 performances
1980 44th Golf Masters Championship Seve Ballesteros wins, shooting a 275
1980 Amy Alcott wins LPGA American Defender/WRAL Golf Classic
1980 Emmy News & Documentaries Award presentation
1980 "TASS" denounced US boycott of the Moscow Summer Olympics
1981 Washington Post's Janet Cooke wins Pulitzer Prize for "Jimmy's World" (later admits story was a hoax and returns prize)
1981 Pulitzer prize awarded to Beth Henley for "Crimes of the Heart"
1982 Pittsburgh Penguins 3-New York Islanders 4 (OT)-Preliminary-Islanders win series (3-2)
1983 Undefeated middleweight boxer Tony Ayala gets 35 years on sex assault
1983 Harold Washington elected 1st black mayor of Chicago
1983 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1984 11th Space Shuttle Mission (41C)-Challenger 5-returns to Earth
1984 Pete Rose becomes 1st National League to get get 4,000 hits in a career
1984 India beats Pakistan by 58 runs to win 1st Asia Cricket Cup in Sharjah
1985 Atlantis ferried to Kennedy Space Center via Ellington AFB, Texas
1985 Washington Capitals 1-New York Islanders 2-Patrick Division Semifinals- Capitals hold 2-1 lead
1985 Katrin Dörre wins 1st female World Cup marathon (2:33:30)
1985 Ramiz Alia succeeds Enver Hoxha as party leader of Albania
1986 Boston Celtics end season with a 40-1 home win record
1986 Pope John Paul II met Rome's Chief Rabbi Elio Toaff at Rome synagogue
1986 Spanish Grand Prix decided by 0.014 of a second
1986 50th Golf Masters Championship Jack Nicklaus wins, shooting a 279
1986 Patty Sheehan wins LPGA Kyocera Inamori Golf Classic
1987 1st 3 San Diego Padres hit homeruns off San Francisco starter Roger Mason
1987 Portugal signs agreement to return Macau to China (in 1999)
1988 Italy government of De Mita forms
1989 "Welcome to the Club" opens at Music Box Theater NYC for 12 performances
1990 4th largest NBA crowd (45,458) see Orlando play at Minneapolis
1990 Final episode of Pat Sajak's late night TV show on CBS
1990 New York Rangers beat New York Islanders 6-5, Rangers win preliminary, 4-1
1991 BPAA US Open by Pete Weber
1992 "Two Trains Running" opens at Walter Kerr Theater NYC for 160 performances
1992 American Airlines reduces its 1st-class fares 20%-50%
1992 Crystal Pepsi begins test marketing in Providence, Denver & Dallas
1992 Great Chicago Flood - Chicago's underground tunnels flood
1992 Lou Conaseca retires as coach of St John's basketball team
1992 5.5 earthquake hits Netherlands
1992 Longest 2 undefeated baseball teams to meet (New York Yankees 5-0 vs Toronto Blue Jays 6-0); Yankees score 3 in top of 9th to win 5-2
1992 Nelson Mandela announces he will seek divorce from Winnie
1993 "3 Men on a Horse" opens at Lyceum Theater NYC for 40 performances
1993 14th Emmy Sports Award presentation
1993 Tom Stoppard's "Arcadia", premieres in London
1994 President guard at Kigali Rwanda, chops 1,200 church members to death
1994 Target date for Israeli complete withdrawal, doesn't occur
1994 United Arab Emirates' 1st official ODI, losing to India
1995 Yankees beat the Mets 2-0
1996 En route to NHL record 62 victories Detroit Red Wings win #61
1996 Ottawa Senators eliminate Stanley Cup champions New Jersey Devils from playoff
1997 1st time since 1961 that 2 doubleheaders are played in the same city - San Francisco Giants vs New York Mets & Oakland A's vs New York Yankees in New York
1997 "American Daughter" opens at Cort Theater NYC for 88 performances
1997 48th time opposing pitchers hit homeruns, Carlos Perez (Mon)/Darren Holmes
1997 61st Golf Masters Championship Tiger Woods at 21 (270-18 under par)
1997 Hartford Whalers last NHL game
1997 NHL Pittsburgh Penguin Mario Lemieux's last NHL regular game
1997 Travis Fryman homers off R Hernandez in both games of double header

---

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

Alabama, Oklahoma : Thomas Jefferson's Birthday (1743)
Maryland : John Hanson Day
US : Huguenot Day (1598)
Thailand : Songkran Day-honors monks

---

Religious Observances
Buddhist : New Year (Thailand)
Roman Catholic : Commemoration of St Hermenegild, martyr
Roman Catholic : Memorial of St Martin I, pope, martyr (optional)
Buddhist : Songkran Day; honors monks (Thailand)
France 1598, England 1829 : Religious Freedom Day

---

Religious History
1059 Pope Nicholas II decreed that future popes could be elected by cardinals only.
1598 The Edict of Nantes was promulgated by France's King Henry IV (of Navarre), granting his Huguenot (Protestant) subjects a large measure of religious freedom. (The Edict remained in effect for 87 years.)
1853 Loyola College in Baltimore was chartered under Roman Catholic auspices.
1939 Delegates from independent Baptist churches in Shafter, Oildale, Lamont and Taft organized the first association of Southern Baptists in California.
1948 At the Antioch Baptist Church of Portland, representatives of 15 local congregations organized the Baptist General Convention of Oregon-Washington, the first organization of its kind in the Pacific Northwest.

---

Thought for the day :
" Communism will work when love, not greed, inspires it. "

[WaterDragon]

I'd have to go dig out the book The Zimmerman Telegram, but I think one of the things that turned Wilson against Carranza was discovering he was playing footsies with the Germans, and the Germans were hoping to stir up continued war between the U.S. and Mexico to keep the U.S. out of the Great War. The Germans were also at this time trying to talk the Japanese into attacking the U.S.

[larryjohnson]

I suspect there were no more attacks from Mexicans on U.S.soil because next time our aeroplanes would workout better.

[Valin]

Given Mexicos actions in the UN recently, and G. Bushs emphasis on loyality between friends there will be a payback. Maybe not today, maybe not tommorrow but it will happen.

[SAMWolf]

Good Morning Jen

[SAMWolf]

Morning Feather

[SAMWolf]

1912 Royal Flying Corps forms (later RAF)

The birth of "The Few"

[gwmoore]

Good Afternoon, AntiJen... It's great to be here today!! BTW, I completely forgot to answer your query about MARS.

While the traffic to the troops is less than it was years ago, we still are able to handle messages the same way as we always have.

The big change, is that we are now much more involved with emergency comms, and backing up "official" comlinks, especially with the emphasis on Homeland Security.

Rest assured, though, that we still provide the same services that we always have, phone patches, messages, and communications with our deployed personnel.

As a matter of fact, I have to be on the air in about 10 mins, so I better close out here....

Have a great weekend, and watch out for those Squirrelz on the bird feeder LOL

Keep the Faith for Freedom!!

Greg Moore