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Today in History - Jan. 14
[January 04, 2013]

Today in History - Jan. 14


(Canadian Press DataFile Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Today in History for Jan. 14: On this date: In 1529, Spanish diplomat and writer Juan de Valdes published his Dialogue on Christian Doctrine. It paved the way for Protestant ideas in Spain.



In 1645, the Company of New France gave up trading rights in Canada to colonists living in the new land.

In 1671, over 300 years before El Nino became a household word, Canada had its shortest winter on record. The first snow of the winter fell in Quebec on this date in 1671. The ice and snow had nearly all melted away by the middle of March. But homesteaders weren't rejoicing at the lack of chill in the air -- they depended on the cold to keep food supplies from spoiling. Many starved because of the short winter.


In 1742, English astronomer Edmond Halley, who observed the comet that bears his name, died at 85.

In 1784, the United States ratified a peace treaty with England, ending the Revolutionary War.

In 1858, Italian revolutionist Felice Orsini attempted to assassinate French Emperor Napoleon III.

In 1875, Albert Schweitzer was born in Kaysersberg, Alsace -- at that time part of the German Empire. The humanitarian and medical missionary was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1952.

In 1875, the first issue of the "Halifax Herald" hit the streets.

In 1878, Alexander Graham Bell demonstrated the telephone to Queen Victoria, who spoke with her friend, Sir Thomas Biddulph.

In 1914, the Ford Motor Company improved efficiency by employing an "endless" chain to transport each chassis along the assembly line.

In 1943, U.S. president Franklin D. Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and French General Charles de Gaulle opened a wartime conference in Casablanca.

In 1947, Canada was elected to the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations.

In 1949, the first non-stop trans-Canada flight, from Vancouver to Halifax, was completed.

In 1952, an underground gas explosion at the McGregor coal mine at Stellarton, N.S., killed 19 men.

In 1952, NBC's "Today" show premiered, with Dave Garroway as the host, or "communicator," as he was officially known. It is television's longest-running weekday program.

In 1954, retired baseball great Joe DiMaggio married actress Marilyn Monroe. They divorced nine months later.

In 1964, in her first public statement since the assassination of her husband two months before, former U.S. first lady Jacqueline Kennedy appeared on TV to thank the 800,000 people who sent her messages of sympathy.

In 1969, 27 people aboard the aircraft carrier "USS Enterprise," stationed off Hawaii, were killed when a rocket warhead exploded, setting off a fire and additional explosions that ripped through the ship.

In 1974, Jules Leger was sworn in as Canada's 21st governor general.

In 1976, the T. Eaton Co. announced the end of its catalogue sales operation, citing losses for more than 10 years, laying off 9,000 employees.

In 1979, FLQ suspect Jean-Pierre Charette returned to Canada after 10 years in Cuba. He was sentenced to jail in March for bombing incidents in 1969.

In 1980, Iran's Revolutionary Council ordered all U.S. journalists expelled from the country because of their 'biased reporting' and demanded that American news organizations in Tehran cease operations immediately.

In 1982, Clifford Robert Olson was sentenced to life in prison after he pleaded guilty in Vancouver to 11 counts of first-degree murder. The victims, three boys and eight girls, were aged between nine and 18 and died between November, 1980 and August, 1981. Olson's family was paid $100,000 by the RCMP after he gave information on the location of the victims' bodies. Olson died of cancer in prison in September, 2011.

In 1984, Ray Kroc, founder of the McDonald's fast food empire, died in San Diego at age 81.

In 1990, "The Canadian," Via Rail's legendary passenger train, made its final trip across Canada after 34 years of service on the world's longest rail line, a 4,645-km route. Along with this, and the shutdown of other trains, 2,716 jobs were gone.

In 1992, the Canadian government announced it would extend patent protection to 20 years for all new, brand-name drugs by multinational pharmaceutical manufacturers -- a move that would restrict the ability of Canada's generic drug manufacturers to enter the marketplace.

In 1994, Arkansas-based Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world's largest retailer, announced plans to buy 120 Woolco stores in Canada.

In 1996, King Moshoeshoe II of Lesotho died in a car accident.

In 1999, Graham Coughtry, one of Canada's best known and most highly regarded abstract painters, died at 67.

In 2000, doctors at Toronto's St. Michael's Hospital announced they had performed Canada's first gene therapy trial for heart disease as an alternative for patients who cannot undergo surgical bypasses.

In 2001, legendary Canadian sports columnist Jim Coleman died at 89.

In 2002, Industry Minister Brian Tobin announced he was leaving politics.

In 2003, Toronto Mayor Mel Lastman announced he would retire from politics at the end of the year after a 34-year run.

In 2004, J.P. Morgan Chase and Company struck a deal to buy Bank One Corporation for US$58 billion.

In 2004, Libya ratified a nuclear test ban agreement.

In 2004, former Enron Chief Financial Officer Andrew Fastow pleaded guilty to securities-related charges in the spectacular collapse of the energy trading company. He was given a 10-year jail term.

In 2005, Immigration Minister Judy Sgro resigned from Paul Martin's Liberal cabinet amid influence-peddling allegations that she promised asylum to a Toronto man after he worked on her re-election campaign. She was later cleared.

In 2005, former New Brunswick premier Frank McKenna was named Canada's ambassador to the United States. He resigned the post Jan. 25, 2006, two days after Stephen Harper's Tories won a minority government.

In 2005, Earl Cameron, who anchored the "CBC National News" from 1959-1966, died at age 89 after a lengthy illness.

In 2008, Alvaro Colom was sworn in as Guatemala's first leftist president in more than 50 years.

In 2008, Republican Bobby Jindal, the first elected Indo-American governor in the United States, took office in Louisiana.

In 2009, former telecom giant Nortel Networks filed for bankruptcy protection from creditors.

In 2010, Canadian literary grand dame P.K. Page, long renowned for her poetry and other writing, died in Victoria, B.C., at the age of 93. British-born and Canadian-reared, she was considered among Canada's most esteemed writers. Since her poems were first published in periodicals in the 1930's, she had completed more than a dozen books, spanning poetry, fiction, non-fiction and children's literature.

----- (The Canadian Press) (c) 2013 The Canadian Press

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