Today in History for July 23: On this date: In 1621, the Virginia colony was granted the New World’s first written constitution. In 1767, the Prince Edward Island land lottery was held in London, England.
Today in History for July 23:
On this date:
In 1621, the Virginia colony was granted the New World’s first written constitution.
In 1767, the Prince Edward Island land lottery was held in London, England. The Earl of Egmont had asked King George III to grant him Prince Edward Island forever. The Earl wanted to build armed castles and moats for himself and about 400 lesser lords. His request was turned down, and instead the land was divided up for colonization among people who had claims for military or other public service.
In 1829, William Austin Burt of Mount Vernon, Mich. received a patent for his “typographer” — a forerunner of the typewriter.
In 1840, the British Parliament passed the “Act of Union,” providing for the union of Upper and Lower Canada under a single government.
In 1904, Charles Menches of St. Louis is said to have conceived the ice cream cone. The walk-away cone debuted at that year’s St. Louis World’s Fair. (Note: the same fair also saw the premiere of another hot-weather staple. Richard Blechyden, an Englishman who had a tea concession at the fair, invented and sold iced tea.)
In 1908, Hamilton’s Bobby Kerr won the gold medal in the 220-yard sprint at the Olympic Games in London.
In 1935, the Liberals under Walter Lea won all 30 seats in the P.E.I. legislature. It was the first Commonwealth parliament elected without any sitting opposition. Frank McKenna’s New Brunswick Liberals repeated the feat in 1987.
In 1942, MPs approved a measure allowing the Canadian government to impose conscription by cabinet order, rather than having to call Parliament into session. The Liberals under William Lyon Mackenzie King, who had been elected on a promise not to impose conscription, held a plebescite in April asking voters to release them from that promise. In Quebec, the vote was 72.9 per cent against, while in the rest of Canada, the Yes side won 80 per cent of the votes. King then promised that none of the conscripts would be sent overseas. Due to a manpower shortage in 1944, however, and the pro-conscript mood in his own government, King announced Nov. 22 that they would indeed be sent to war. Only 12,908 conscripted soldiers were actually sent abroad during the Second World War.
In 1943, Trans-Canada Air Lines inaugurated transatlantic service.
In 1944, the Canadian Army went into action in northern France during the Second World War as a separate unit for the first time. Until then, it had been under British command.
In 1945, Marshal Petain, France’s hero of the First World War, went on trial as a traitor to France during the Second World War.
In 1962, the first live TV broadcast linking North America and Europe via the “Telstar” satellite included programming from the CBC.
In 1962, an agreement was signed settling Saskatchewan’s medicare dispute between the provincial government and doctors. Canada’s first universal health care plan had come into effect in Saskatchewan on July 1, but its implementation was delayed by controversy, including a strike by the province’s doctors. The problem was solved when a special session of the legislature passed amendments satisfactory to both parties.
In 1967, the Pan-American games opened in Winnipeg. Canada won 92 medals, including 12 gold. On the same day in 1999, the 13th Pan Am Games also opened in Winnipeg.
In 1967, a week of deadly race-related rioting that claimed 43 lives erupted in Detroit after police raided a black-owned night spot.
In 1975, Saskatchewan Roughriders fullback George Reed set a pro football record by scoring his 127th career touchdown against the Calgary Stampeders. Reed retired after the season with 137 TDs. Edmonton Eskimos running back Mike Pringle tied the record in the last game of the 2004 regular season before retiring in 2005.
In 1982, the International Whaling Commission voted overwhelmingly to phase out commercial whaling by 1985.
In 1982, actor Vic Morrow and two child actors died when they were struck by a helicopter during filming of the movie “The Twilight Zone.” Director John Landis and four others were acquitted of charges in the deaths.
In 1983, an Air Canada 767 made an emergency glide landing on an airstrip in Gimli, Man. The plane ran out of fuel in mid-air due to confusion over the metric system and fuel metering problems. None of the 61 passengers were hurt during the landing but some suffered minor injuries during the emergency evacuation. The infamous incident gained the aircraft the nickname — the “Gimli Glider.”
In 1984, Vanessa Williams, the first black Miss America, became the first Miss America to relinquish her title when it was revealed she had earlier posed nude. Penthouse magazine published the photos.
In 1986, Prince Andrew married Sarah Ferguson at Westminster Abbey. The Duke and Duchess of York divorced 10 years later.
In 1988, Burmese leader Ne Win, who served as chairman of the country’s only political party for 26 years, resigned after bloody riots in the country.
In 1989, Manitoba declared a general state of emergency as 16,000 people were transferred to temporary shelters to escape 250 forest fires. It was the largest evacuation in the province’s history.
In 1992, Naamah Kelman became the first woman rabbi at an ordination ceremony in Jerusalem.
In 1993, Carlos Costa, 20, a swimmer with both legs amputated above his knees, became the youngest man and first person with disabilities to complete the 52-km swim across Lake Ontario.
In 1999, Eileen Collins became the first woman to command a U.S. space flight when space shuttle “Columbia” blasted off.
In 1999, King Hassan of Morocco died at age 70. His son, Crown Prince Sidi Mohammed, was formally enthroned.
In 2000, Tiger Woods, 24, became the fifth — and youngest — golfer to win the sport’s Grand Slam when he scored a runaway, eight-stroke victory at the British Open in St. Andrews, Scotland.
In 2002, the Pope John Paul II arrived in Toronto for the World Youth Day festival.
In 2003, Canada recalled its ambassador to Iran to protest the burial of photojournalist Zahra Kazemi in Shiraz, Iran, against Canada’s and her family’s wishes. Kazemi died after suffering a brain hemorrhage during custody.
In 2005, at least 88 people died when three car bombs exploded in the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheik, ripping through a hotel and a coffeeshop packed with European and Egyptian tourists.
In 2010, the Supreme Court of Canada unanimously decided that people whose charter rights are breached can sue for damages, even when authorities have acted in good faith. The ruling marked the first time the high court looked at monetary damages for violations of rights.
In 2010, a CF-18 Hornet jet crashed and exploded in a ball of flames during a training run for an airshow in Alberta. Capt. Brian Bews was able to eject from the plummeting craft before it hit the runway at the Lethbridge County Airport. He suffered fractures to three vertebrae in his back.
In 2017, Jordan Spieth won the British Open by three strokes, giving him the third leg of a career Grand Slam.
In 2017, defending champion Chris Froome won his fourth Tour de France title.
In 2019, Boris Johnson won the race to lead Britain’s governing Conservative Party to become the country’s next prime minister. He defeated his rival Jeremy Hunt overwhelmingly in a vote of Conservative Party members. He took office the next day.
In 2019, boxer Maxim Dadashev (dah-DAH’-shev) died after suffering a brain injury in a fight in Maryland. He was 28. The Russian Boxing Federation said Dadashev died “as a result of the injuries he sustained” in a light-welterweight fight with Subriel Matias. He was hospitalized shortly after July 19 fight, which was stopped by his corner following the 11th round after Dadashev took numerous shots to the head. Footage from the fight showed Dadashev shaking his head as his trainer pleaded with him to stop the fight. Both fighters were 13-0 before the fight.
In 2020, Ottawa and Nova Scotia appointed a three-person panel to review the cause and circumstances of a mass shooting that left 22 victims dead in April. The panel’s terms of reference said all documents and information collected in the preparation of its report would be kept “confidential.” Family members of victims had called for a full public inquiry that would include a comprehensive look at how the RCMP handled the shootings.
In 2020, the Privy Council Office said it would launch an independent review of allegations that Gov. Gen. Julie Payette mistreated past and current employees at Rideau Hall. The CBC reported that Payette had yelled at, belittled and publicly humiliated employees, reducing some to tears or prompting them to quit. Payette said she is “deeply concerned” with the reports and welcomes an independent review.
In 2021, the Queen conferred several honours on incoming Gov. Gen. Mary Simon. She and the Queen had a virtual meeting on Facebook. Simon was now an extraordinary companion of the Order of Canada, an extraordinary commander of the Order of Military Merit and a commander of the Order of Merit of the Police Forces.
In 2022, the World Health Organization declared an expanding monkeypox outbreak in 74 countries to be a global emergency.
In 2023, Warner Brothers’ movie “Barbie” broke the year’s opening weekend record, and also shattered the first-weekend record for a film directed by a woman, Greta Gerwig. Studio totals showed the film made $162 million in North American ticket sales.
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The Canadian Press