Daily Calendar for Monday, May 11, 2009

First known dated printed book, Wang Jie’s copy of the Diamond Sutra published– 0868
Prime Minister Spencer Perceval assassinated by John Bellingham in the lobby of the British House of Commons– 1812
A new dance called The Waltz arrived in English ballrooms– 1812
President James Monroe rode on The Savannah to inspect the harbor defenses of Savannah, Georgia, making him the first U.S. president to ride on a steamboat– 1819
Minnesota admitted as the 32nd state– 1858
Pullman strike ended in defeat for organized labor– 1894
Glacier National Park in Montana established– 1910
A 20-ton meteor fell to the ground near Blackstone, Virginia– 1922
Siam changed its name to Thailand– 1949
Linda McCartney became the first woman photographer to shoot a Rolling Stone cover– 1968
The first heart-lung transplant took place in Baltimore, Maryland– 1987
After taking off from Miami, FL, a fire started by improperly-handled oxygen canisters in the cargo hold of Atlanta-bound ValuJet Flight 592, and caused the Douglas DC-9 to crash in the Florida Everglades killing all 110 on board– 1996

A tornado hit Newark, New Jersey– 1865
A strong 2-day dust storm removed massive amounts of topsoil from the Great Plains in one of the worst dust storms of the Dust Bowl– 1934
Dust storms darkened skies from Oklahoma to the Atlantic Ocean – 1934
The Waco Tornado (registering at F5) hit downtown Waco, Texas– 1953
Spring snowstorm hit western part of South Dakota. In some areas the snow was accompanied by thunder, lightning, sleet, and hail– 1983