What Happened on August 6

Historical Events

1890 – At Auburn Prison in New York, murderer William Kemmler becomes the 1st person to be executed by electric chair
1919 – 1st air flight over a major body of water in Australia (Harry Butler)
1940 – Estonia is annexed into Soviet empire
1967 – Minnesota Twins pitcher Dean Chance throws a perfect no-hitter vs Boston Red Sox, 2-0 in 5 innings before game is called because of weather
1983 – Supertanker Castillo de Bellvar catches fire and sinks northwest of Capetown, South Africa
1984 – 203.05 million shares traded in NY Stock Exchange

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Famous Birthdays

1819 – Samuel Powhatan Carter, American Brevet Major General (Union Army), born in Elizabethton, Tennessee (d. 1891)
1826 – Thomas Alexander Browne, Australian writer (Robbery Under Arms), born in London (d. 1915)
1874 – Charles Fort, American writer and researcher (specialized in anomalous phenomena), born in Albany, New York (d. 1932)
1915 – Jim Ameche [James Amici], American voice actor (Jack Armstrong, the All-American Boy), born in Kenosha, Wisconsin (d. 1983)
1925 – Leland Smith, American composer, bassoonist and computer coder who led music publishing into the digital age (SCORE), born in Oakland, California (d. 2013)
1945 – John Kongos, South African singer and songwriter (“He’s Gonna Step On You Again”), born in Johannesburg

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Famous Deaths

1866 – John Mason Neale, English divine, scholar and hymnwriter (b. 1818)
1945 – Hiram Johnson, American progressive politician, US Senator, Governor of California (1911-17), dies at 78
1945 – Prince Wu of Korea (b. 1912)
1956 – Johan Frans van Bemmelen, Dutch zoologist, dies at 96
2009 – John Hughes, American film director (Breakfast Club; Ferris Bueller’s Day Off), dies of a heart attack at 59
2011 – Mark Hatfield, American politician (29th Governor of Oregon), dies at 89

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