What do John Jacob Astor, Oscar Wilde and Mohandas Gandhi have in common? All 3 share an important anniversary today on April 6th.
- 1652 – At the Cape of Good Hope, Dutch sailor Jan van Riebeeck establishes a supply camp that eventually becomes Cape Town.
- 1712 – The New York Slave Revolt of 1712 begins near Broadway in New York.
- 1808 – John Jacob Astor incorporates the American Fur Company, which would eventually make him America's first millionaire.
- 1830 – The Church of Christ, the original Mormon church is organized by Joseph Smith, Jr. and others in New York. Just 30 years later, the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (renamed yet again as Community of Christ) is organized by Joseph Smith III and other church elders at Amboy, Illinois. After another 33 years, the Salt Lake Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is dedicated by Wilford Woodruff.
- 1869 – Celluloid is patented.
- 1895 – Oscar Wilde is arrested in the Cadogan Hotel, London after losing a libel case against the Marquess of Queensberry.
- 1896 – In Athens, the opening of the first modern Olympic Games is celebrated, 1,500 years after the original games are banned by Roman Emperor Theodosius I.
- 1909 – Robert Peary and Matthew Henson reach the North Pole.
- 1917 – The U
nited States declares war on Germany as part of World War I. (See President Woodrow Wilson's address to Congress.) - 1919 – Indian pacifist Mohandas Gandhi orders a general strike. Eleven years later in 1930, Gandhi raises a lump of mud and salt and declares, "With this, I am shaking the foundations of the British Empire," beginning the Salt Satyagraha.
- 1924 – The First round-the-world flight commences.
- 1926 – Varney Airlines makes its first commercial flight (Varney would later become United Airlines).
- 1947 – The first Tony Awards are presented for theatrical achievement.
- 1965 –Early Bird, the first communications satellite, is launched into in geosynchronous orbit.
- 1973 – The American League of Major League Baseball begins using the designated hitter.
- 1998 – Travelers Group agrees to a $76 billion merger with Citicorp. The merger completes on October 8, 1998, and the new entity is named Citibank.
While these interesting items are intriguing, they have nothing to do with my real estate business, helping people like you buy and sell homes in San Jose, Saratoga and Cupertino in Silicon Valley, Calif. But these facts sure do add fun and enjoyment to life.
Image courtesy of www.wikipedia.org.
Thank you for reading "16 Odd But True Facts From April 6".
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