On This Day in History - May 10

Once again, it should be reiterated, that this does not pretend to be a very extensive history of what happened on this day (nor is it the most original - the links can be found down below). If you know something that I am missing, by all means, shoot me an email or leave a comment, and let me know!


http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/transcontinental-railroad-completed


May 10, 1869: Transcontinental railroad completed

On this day in 1869, the presidents of the Union Pacific and Central Pacific railroads meet in Promontory, Utah, and drive a ceremonial last spike into a rail line that connects their railroads. This made transcontinental railroad travel possible for the first time in U.S. history. No longer would western-bound travelers need to take the long and dangerous journey by wagon train, and the West would surely lose some of its wild charm with the new connection to the civilized East.  

Since at least 1832, both Eastern and frontier statesmen realized a need to connect the two coasts. It was not until 1853, though, that Congress appropriated funds to survey several routes for the transcontinental railroad. The actual building of the railroad would have to wait even longer, as North-South tensions prevented Congress from reaching an agreement on where the line would begin.  

One year into the Civil War, a Republican-controlled Congress passed the Pacific Railroad Act (1862), guaranteeing public land grants and loans to the two railroads it chose to build the transcontinental line, the Union Pacific and the Central Pacific. With these in hand, the railroads began work in 1866 from Omaha and Sacramento, forging a northern route across the country. In their eagerness for land, the two lines built right past each other, and the final meeting place had to be renegotiated.  

Harsh winters, staggering summer heat, Indian raids and the lawless, rough-and-tumble conditions of newly settled western towns made conditions for the Union Pacific laborers--mainly Civil War veterans of Irish descent--miserable. The overwhelmingly immigrant Chinese work force of the Central Pacific also had its fair share of problems, including brutal 12-hour work days laying tracks over the Sierra Nevada Mountains. On more than one occasion, whole crews would be lost to avalanches, or mishaps with explosives would leave several dead.  

For all the adversity they suffered, the Union Pacific and Central Pacific workers were able to finish the railroad--laying nearly 2,000 miles of track--by 1869, ahead of schedule and under budget. Journeys that had taken months by wagon train or weeks by boat now took only days. Their work had an immediate impact: The years following the construction of the railway were years of rapid growth and expansion for the United States, due in large part to the speed and ease of travel that the railroad provided.



1267 - Vienna's church orders all Jews to wear a distinctive garb

1278 - Jews of England imprisoned on charges of coining

1291 - Scottish nobles recognize authority of English king Edward I

1427 - Jews are expelled from Berne Switzerland

1497 - Italian navigator Amerigo Vespucci leaves for 1st voyage to the New World

1503 - Columbus discovered the Cayman Islands

1525 - Church reformer John Pistorius caught in the Hague

1534 - French navigator Jacques Cartier reaches Newfoundland

1559 - Scottish Protestants under John Knox uprise against queen-mother Mary

1570 - Czar Ivan IV becomes Protestant

1624 - Jacob Willekens & Piet Heyn conquer Salvador, Civil rights activist

1652 - John Johnson, a free black, is granted 550 acres in Northampton, Va

1655 - Jamaica captured by English

1676 - Bacon's Rebellion, frontiersmen vs Virginia government begins

1752 - Benjamin Franklins 1st tests the lightning rod

1768 - John Wilkes is imprisoned as an outlaw for writing an article for The North Briton severely criticizing King George III. This action provokes rioting in London. Wilkes was returned to parliament as a member for Middlesex.

1773 - The English Parliament passed the Tea Act, which taxed all tea in the U.S. colonies.

1774 - Louis XVI ascended to throne of France

1775 - Second Continental Congress convened in Pa issues paper currency for first time

1775 - Second Continental Congress names George Washington, supreme commander

1775 - Ethan Allen and Colonel Benedict Arnold led an attack by the "Green Mountain Boys" on the British Fort Ticonderoga and captured it from the British.

1787 - Parliament impeaches Warren Hastings

1794 - Elizabeth, the sister of King Louis XVI, was beheaded.

1796 - French government arrest 10 utopists

1796 - Napoleon Bonaparte won a brilliant victory against the Austrians at Lodi bridge in Italy.

1796 - Riot after disagreement of patriotic demand in Amsterdam

1797 - 1st Navy ship, the "United States," is launched

1801 - First Barbary War: The Barbary pirates of Tripoli declare war on the United States of America.

1816 - English steamship "Defiance" arrives at Rotterdam harbor

1823 - First steamboat to navigate the Mississippi River arrives at Ft Snelling

1824 - The National Gallery in London opens to the public in its temporary home in a townhouse on Pall Mall

1837 - Panic of 1837: New York City banks fail, and unemployment reaches record levels.

1840 - Mormon leader Joseph Smith moved his band of followers to Illinois to escape the hostilities they had experienced in Missouri.

1849 - Pack destroys Astor Place opera house in NYC (22 killed)

1857 - Indian Mutiny begins with revolt of Sepoys in Meerut against the British Army.

1861 - Union troops march on state militia in St Louis, MI

1862 - Battle of Plum Run Bend, TN (Plum Point Bend)

1863 - Confederate General Stonewall Jackson died after being accidentally shot by his own troops.

1864 - Battles at Spotsylvania Court House, Virginia

1864 - Skirmish at Ny River Virginia

1865 - Former Confederate President Jefferson Davis was captured at Irwinsville, Georgia

1865 - Surrender of Sam Jones

1869 - Central Pacific and Union Pacific Rail Roads meet in Promontory, UT. A golden spike was driven in at the celebration of the first transcontinental railroad in the U.S.

1870 - Jem Mace & defends his heavyweight crown against Irish champ Joe Coburn, it lasts 1 hr & 17 minutes, & neither is struck by a punch

1871 - Peace of Frankfurt-am-Main concluded between France & Germany ends Franco-Prussian war

1872 - Victoria Woodhull became the first woman nominated for US president

1876 - Richard Wagner’s "Centennial Inaugural March" was heard for the first time at the Centennial Exposition, which opened on this date in Philadelphia, PA

1879 - Meteor falls near Estherville, Iowa

1880 - General Wolseley opens new legislative council in Pretoria

1881 - Lighthouse on Ameland begins operation

1889 - 17th Preakness: W Anderson aboard Buddhist wins in 2:17.5

1893 - 19th Kentucky Derby: Eddie Kunze aboard Lookout wins in 2:39.25

1893 - Imperial Institute in London opens

1898 - A vending machine law was enacted in Omaha, NE. It cost $5,000 for a permit.

1905 - 31st Kentucky Derby: Jack Martin aboard Agile wins in 2:100.75

1906 - Russia's Duma (Parliament) meets for 1st time

1907 - Paul Dukas' opera "Ariane et Barbe Bleue," premieres in Paris

1908 - The first Mother's Day observance took place during a church service in Grafton, West Virginia.

1908 - First Mother's Day observed (Phila)

1909 - Winchester's Fred Toney no-hits Lexington for 17 inning

1910 - First aircraft air display held (Hendon, England)

1910 - 36th Kentucky Derby: Fred Herbert aboard Donau wins in 2:06.4

1910 - Comet Halley's closest approach to Earth in 1910 pass

1913 - 39th Kentucky Derby: Roscoe Goose aboard Donerail wins in 2:04.8

1915 - Zeppelin drops hundred of bombs on Southend-on-Sea

1916 - Disastrous fire in Ellendale, North Dakota

1916 - Historic Shipport Museum opens in Amsterdam

1917 - Atlantic ships get destroyer escorts to stop German attacks

1918 - HMS Vindictive sunk to block entrance of Ostend Harbor

1919 - 45th Kentucky Derby: Johnny Loftus aboard Sir Barton wins in 2:09.8

1919 - Race riot in Charleston SC, 2 blacks killed

1921 - Luigi Pirandello's "Sei Personaggi in Cerca d'Autore," premieres

1922 - Dr Ivy Williams is 1st woman to be called to the English Bar

1922 - WHB-AM in Kansas City MO begins radio transmissions

1922 - The United States annexes the Kingman Reef.

1924 - J Edgar Hoover appointed head of FBI

1926 - 52nd Preakness: John Maiben aboard Display wins in 1:59.8

1928 - WGY, Schenectady begins regular TV programming

1929 - 55th Preakness: Louis Schaefer aboard Dr Freeland wins in 2:01.6

1930 - The Adler Planetarium opened to the public in Chicago, IL. it was the first American planetarium.

1931 - Golf ball size hail falls in Burlington NJ

1932 - Government declares "Wilhelmus" Neth national anthem

1932 - Senate chairman Albert Lebrun becomes president of France

1933 - Deutsche Arbeitsfront (DAF) forms

1933 - Nazis stage public book burnings in Germany

1933 - Paraguay declares war on Bolivia

1933 - Suriname worker's union leader A de Come banish to Netherlands

1936 - Manuel Azaña elected president of Spain

1936 - Nahas Pasja becomes premier of Egypt

1937 - Busmen strike in London

1938 - Banning speech on anti-fascism demonstration in Amsterdam

1940 - British Local Defense Volunteers (Home Guard) forms

1940 - Dutch torpedo boat Johan van Galen sinks

1940 - Dutch-Indies Gov Van Starkenborch proclaims end to state of siege

1940 - French marines stationed on Aruba

1940 - French troops arrive in Zealand/Brabant Netherlands

1940 - Nazi armies attack France, Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg

1940 - Winston Churchill succeededNeville Chamberlain as British Prime Minister

1940 - World War II: The first German bombs of the war fall on England at Chilham and Petham, in Kent.

1941 - 67th Preakness: Eddie Arcaro aboard Whirlaway wins in 1:58.8

1941 - Adolph Hitler's deputy Rudolf Hess parachutes into Scotland on what he claimed was a peace mission.

1941 - England's House of Commons & Holborn Theater destroyed in a blitz during a German air raid.

1941 - Queen Wilhelmina on Radio Orange warns against treason

1942 - U.S. forces in the Philippines began to surrender to the Japanese.

1942 - World War II: The Thai Phayap Army invades the Shan States during the Burma Campaign.

1943 - U.S. troops invaded Attu in the Aleutian Islands to expel the Japanese.

1944 - Chinese offensive in West-Yunnan

1944 - Smith v Allwright (excluding Blacks from primary voting) is illegal

1945 - Allies capture Rangoon from the Japanese

1945 - Russian troops occupied Prague

1946 - Red Sox win 15th straight beat Yanks 5-4, DiMaggio hits Grand Slam

1946 - Umberto II succeeds Victor Emmanuel III as king of Italy

1947 - "Chocolate Soldier" closes at Century Theater NYC after 69 perfs

1947 - 73rd Preakness: Doug Dodson aboard Faultless wins in 1:59

1948 - First attack by Egyptian irregular forces at Kfar Darom Israel

1948 - Winston Churchill visits The Hague

1950 - First Neth-US telex sent

1951 - Z Alexander Looby elected to Nashville City Council

1952 - "Shuffle Along" closes at Broadway Theater NYC after 4 performances

1953 - KCBD TV channel 11 in Lubbock, TX (NBC) begins broadcasting

1954 - Bolshoi-ballet does not appear in Paris

1956 - French government sends 50,000 reservists to Algeria

1956 - KFSN TV channel 30 in Fresno, CA (ABC/CBS) begins broadcasting

1957 - First meeting of legislative of Cameroon

1957 - Dmitri Sjostakovitsch 2nd Piano concert, premieres in Moscow

1959 - Soviet forces arrive in Afghanistan

1959 - Giants Jim Hearn allows 2 runs against Pirates, game is suspended, Hearn is released & charged with loss 2 months after his retirement

1960 - John F Kennedy wins primary in West Virginia

1960 - US atomic sub USS Triton completes 1st around world under water trip

1960 - USS Nautilus The U.S.S. Triton completed the first circumnavigation of the globe under water. The trip started on February 16.

1961 - "Beyond the Fringe," premieres in London

1963 - Decca signs Rolling Stones on advice of Beatle George Harrison

1966 - 25°F lowest temperature ever recorded in Cleveland in May

1967 - Foundation AZ soccer team forms in Alkmaar

1967 - Hank Aaron only inside the park HR (vs Jim Bunning)

1967 - Keith Richards, Brian Jones & Mick Jagger arrested on drug charges

1967 - Stockholm Vietnam-Tribunal declares US aggression in Vietnam/Cambodia

1967 - US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site

1968 - Vietnam peace talks began in Paris between the US & North Vietnam

1969 - Apollo 10 transmit first color pictures of Earth from space

1969 - Turtles play White House, Mark Volman falls off stage 5 times

1969 - US troop begin attack on Hill 937/Hamburger Hill

1969 - The National and American Football Leagues announced their plans to merge for the 1970-71 season.

1970 - Brave's Hoyt Wilhelm pitches in his 1,000th game, loses to Cards 6-5

1970 - Stanley Cup: Boston Bruins sweep St Louis Blues in 4 games

1971 - US special delivery rates go from 45 cents to 60 cents

1972 - Overloaded South Korean bus plunges into reservoir, killing 77

1972 - US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site

1973 - 27th NBA Championship: NY Knicks beat LA Lakers, 4 games to 1

1973 - 9th Mayor's Trophy Game, Mets beat Yanks 8-4

1973 - Establishment of Frente Polisario in Mauritania

1973 - Stanley Cup: Montreal Canadiens beat Chicago Blackhawks, 4 games to 2

1974 - 7th ABA championship: NY Nets beats Utah Stars, 4 games to 1

1975 - Brian Oldfield of US put shot 75', an unofficial record

1978 - "Angel" opens at Minskoff Theater NYC for 5 performances

1978 - Liverpool wins 23rd Europe Cup

1979 - Federated States of Micronesia becomes self-governing

1979 - John McMullen becomes CEO of Houston Astros

1979 - Vivekananda (Sri Lanka) completes nonstop cycle ride of 187 hrs, 28 min, around Vihara Maha Devi Park, Colombo, Sri Lanka [From May 2]

1980 - "Happy New Year" closes at Morosco Theater NYC after 17 performances

1981 - Francois Mitterrand defeats Valery Giscard d'Estang for Pres of France

1981 - Montreal Expo Charlie Lee no-hits SF Giants, 4-0

1982 - WABC NYC plays its last record (John Lennon's Imagine)

1982 - WABC joins ABC's All Talk radio network

1983 - "Laverne & Shirley," last airs on ABC-TV

1983 - Lee Chin Yong performs 170 continuous chin-ups in Seoul

1984 - Intl Court of Justice rules on US blockade of Nicaragua

1985 - Challenger transports back to Kennedy Space Center via Kelly AFB

1986 - "Rock Me Amadeus," by Falco hit #1 on UK pop chart

1986 - Navy Lt. Commander Donnie Cochran became the first black pilot to fly with the Blue Angels team.

1988 - Edgar Degas' "Danseresje of 14" sold for $10,120,000

1989 - FC Barcelona wins 29th Europe Cup II

1989 - Gen Manuel Noriega's government nullifies country's elections, which the opposition had won by a 3-1 margin

1990 - "Zoya's Apartment" opens at Circle in Sq Theater NYC for 45 perfs

1990 - French TGV-train hits record speed of 510.6 kph

1990 - Howard Stern holds a mock funeral for rival John DeBella

1991 - Oakland A's Jose Canseco is seen leaving Madonna's apt

1992 - "Hamlet" closes at Criterion Theater NYC after 45 performances

1992 - Bible Lands Museum opens in Jerusalem Israel

1993 - Fire in clothing factory at Bangkok, kills 145

1993 - Last TV appearance of Mies Bouwman

1993 - Paul Cezannes still life sells for $28,600,000 in NYC

1993 - Premier Lubbers opens Terminal West on Schiphol

1994 - The state of Illinois executed convicted serial killer John Wayne Gacy for the murders of 33 young men and boys.

1994 - "Best Little Whorehouse Goes Public" opens at Lunt-Font NYC for 16 per

1994 - Barbara Striesand's begins first concert tour in 30 years

1994 - Drew Barrymore (19) files for divorce from Jeremy Thomas (31)

1994 - Nelson Mandela sworn in as South Africa's 1st black president

1994 - Silvio Berlusconi forms Italian government with 5 neo-fascists

1995 - 30th Academy of Country Music Awards: Reba McEntire wins

1995 - Britain lifts a 23-year ban on ministerial talks with Sinn Fein

1995 - In South Africa, 104 miners killed in an elevator accident

1996 - "Twister" premieres

1996 - 2 US Marine helicopters collided during joint US & British war games

1996 - Excel Communications, Inc. becomes the youngest company ever to join the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), trading under the symbol (ECI).

1997 - Chicago Cubs turn baseballs 68th triple play (vs SF Giants) 2001 - In Ghana, a stampede at a football game kills over 120 spectators.

1997 - An earthquake in northeastern Iran killed at least 2,400 people.

1999 - China broke off talks on human rights with the U.S. in response to NATO's accidental bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Yugoslavia.

1999 - The Cezanne painting "Still Life With Curtain, Pitcher and Bowl of Fruit" sold for 60.5 million.

2000 - 11,000 residents were evacuated in Los Alamos, NM, due to a fire that was blown into a canyon. The fire had been deliberately set to clear brush.

2001 - Boeing Co. announced that it would be moving its headquarters to Chicago, IL.

2001 - In Ghana, 121 people were killed in a stampede at a soccer game.

2002 - Anaheim Angels crush the Chicago White Sox 19-0. The Angels join the 1923 Indians, 1939 Yankees and 1950 Red Sox as the only teams to beat two opponents by 19 or more runs in the same season

2002 - Robert Hanssen was sentenced to life in prison with no chance for parole. Hanssen, an FBI agent, had sold U.S. secrets to Moscow for $1.4 million in cash and diamonds.

2002 - Taiwan test fired a locally made Sky Bow II surface-to-air missile for the first time. They also fired three U.S.-made Hawk missiles.

2002 - Dr. Pepper announced that it would be introducing a new flavor, Red Fusion, for the first time in 117 years

2003 - The May 2003 tornado outbreak sequence takes place.

2005 - A hand grenade which was thrown by Vladimir Arutyunian lands about 65 feet (20 metres) from U.S. President George W. Bush while he was giving a speech to a crowd in Tbilisi, Georgia, but it malfunctions and does not detonate.

2011 - It was announced that Microsoft had closed a deal to purchase the internet phone service Skype for $8.5 billion.

2012 - The Red Cross suspends all humanitarian work in Pakistan after a worker was kidnapped and killed

2012 - Two bombings in Damascus, Syria, kill 55 people and injure 370


The following are the websites that I primarily used to complete this blog entry:

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history

http://www.historyorb.com/events/may/10

http://on-this-day.com/onthisday/thedays/alldays/may10.htm

http://www.infoplease.com/dayinhistory/May-10