ED DANAHUE

On this is day in 1845, President James Polk and signed legislation making Texas the 28th state of the United States.

Boundaries of Texas after the annexation in 1845.

Depiction of Anson Jones lowering Republic flag following
annexation by the United States.

The U.S. and Texas flags at the Texas State Capitol.

The first American Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) was organized, in Boston, MA. on this day in 1851. 

A group of evangelicals from several Boston churches, led by retired sea
captain  and lay preacher Thomas Valentine Sullivan, founded the first
YMCA in the United States. Modeled on the original YMCA established in
London in 1844 by George Williams, this new organization offered a safe
gathering place, opportunities for socializing, bible-study classes and
prayer meetings.

 
Thomas Valentine Sullivan                        George Williams

ROSS SIMPSON

Actor Denzel Hayes Washington Jr. is 63 years old today.

Denzel Washington won an Academy Award for Best Actor for
his role in the 2001 film Training Day. He has starred in several
films based on true events such as Remember the Titans (2000), 
Cry Freedom (1987), American Gangster (2007), Flight (2012), 
and Malcolm X (1992). 

2004

2012

Capt. McBroom was the Pilot of United
Airlines Flight 173. He said he tried to
aim the plane at a dark spot.

A United Airlines Douglas DC-8 similar to the one involved in the
crash.

The crash site as it looks today.

ROSS SIMPSON

On this day in 1831, Charles Darwin (above) set out on a
voyage to the Pacific aboard the HMS Beagle. Darwin’s
discoveries during the voyage helped him form the basis
of his theories on evolution.

The British naval vessel HMS Beagle.

James Barrie’s play "Peter Pan" premiered in London
on this day in 1904.

Sir James Matthew Barrie, 1st Baronet (May 9, 1860 – June 19, 1937)  

Historical newspaper report on “Peter Pan”.

Peter Pan statue by Sir George Frampton in Kensington
Gardens, London.

ROSS SIMPSON

Under the Indian Ocean, a 9.0 magnitude earthquake sent 500-mph
waves across the Indian Ocean and Bay of Bengal on this day in
2004. The tsunami killed more than 200,000 people in a dozen
countries, including Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Sumatra, Thailand and
India.

On this day in 1996, six-year-old beauty queen JonBenet Ramsey
was found beaten and strangled to death in the basement of her
family’s home in Boulder, CO. It was reported in September 2016
that the investigation into JonBenét’s death continues to be an
active homicide case, per Boulder Police Chief Greg Testa.

Patsy Ramsey and her husband John Ramsey, parents of JonBenet.

John Mark Karr, 41, was being charged by police for child porn in
California when out of nowhere, he confessed to killing JonBenet,
but his DNA didn’t match the DNA found on JonBenet Ramsey,
and he wasn’t charged with her death.