Daily Calendar for Sunday, September 8, 2024

In 1970, a West Virginia housewife, Marian Lucille Herndon McQuade, initiated a campaign to set aside a special day just for Grandparents. In 1978, the United States Congress passed legislation proclaiming the first Sunday after Labor Day as National Grandparents Day. The proclamation was signed by President Jimmy Carter. (September was chosen to signify the “autumn years” of life.) Read more about Grandparents Day here!

Question of the Day

When were horses first domesticated?
Reportedly, they were tamed for transportation purposes in 2700 B.C. by people living in the area now known as Ukraine.

Advice of the Day

Girls who tuck a daisy under their pillows at night will dream of a true love.

Home Hint of the Day

Clean a leather tabletop by sponging on a solution of equal parts lemon juice and warm water. Then wipe the tabletop dry.

Word of the Day

Hogshead
1 hogshead=63 gallons

Puzzle of the Day

The Volunteer State.(Name the U.S. state!)
Tennessee

Born

  • King Richard I of England (the Lion-Hearted)
  • Antonin Dvorak (composer)
  • Siegfried Sassoon (poet)
  • Euell Gibbons (author)
  • Sid Caesar (comedian & actor)
  • Peter Sellers (actor)
  • Patsy Cline (country music singer)
  • Martin Freeman (actor)
  • Henry Thomas (actor)
  • David Arquette (actor)
  • Pink (singer)
  • Jonathan Taylor Thomas (actor)

Died

  • Ann Lee (Shaker leader)
  • Richard Strauss (composer)
  • Dorothy Dandridge (actress)
  • Roy Wilkins (civil rights leader)
  • Rich Cronin (singer)

Events

  • Michelangelo’s David statue was unveiled in Florence, Italy
  • The first permanent settlement in what is now the United States was established at St. Augustine, Florida, by Don Pedro Menendez de Aviles
  • Don Pedro Menéndez de Avilés founded what became St. Augustine, Florida
  • The steamer Lady Elgin collided with the schooner Augusta on Lake Michigan
  • The eastern and western lines of the Northern Pacific Railway were joined in Gold Creek, Montana
  • Francis Bellamy’s Pledge of Allegiance first published, in The Youth’s Companion
  • Margaret Gorman of Washington, D.C., became the first Miss America
  • Cruise ship S.S. Morro Castle burned near Asbury Park, New Jersey
  • Percy Saltzman became the first meteorologist to appear on Canadian television. Known for his entertaining presentations, Percy wrote vigorously on a chalkboard map while reporting on air and ended each broadcast by tossing and catching his chalk.
  • Original Star Trek series debuted on television
  • John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts made its public debut, Washington, D.C.
  • Stunt motorcyclist Evel Knievel made a failed attempt to jump the Snake River canyon in Idaho. He was propelled by a red, white and blue rocket-powered motorcycle, designed by rocket scientist Robert Truax.
  • The Genesis return capsule, which had collected solar wind atoms in fragile disks, crashed in the desert after its parachutes failed to deploy
  • A rare black rhino was born in Pittsburgh Zoo, Pennsylvania

Weather

  • The deadliest hurricane in U.S. history, with a 15-foot storm surge, inundated the city of Galveston, Texas, killing an estimated 8,000 people
  • A hurricane hit Key West and later struck Texas: 284 dead and $20 million in damages
  • Roanoke, Virginia, reported a low temperature of 42 degrees F