Today's Highlights in History
On June 17, 1928, Amelia Earhart embarked on the first trans-Atlantic flight by a woman. She flew from Newfoundland to Wales in about 21 hours.
On June 17, 1882, Igor Stravinsky, the Russian composer, was born. Following his death on April 6, 1971, his obituary appeared in The Times.
1775 - The Battle of Bunker Hill took place near Boston during the Revolutionary War.
1789 - The Third Estate in France declared itself a national assembly and undertook to frame a constitution.
1856 - The Republican Party opened its first convention, in Philadelphia.
1880 - John Ward of the Providence Grays pitched a perfect game in a 5-0 victory over the Buffalo Bisons, less than a week after the first perfect game in major league history was recorded. (The next would not occur for 24 years.)
1885 - The Statue of Liberty arrived in New York City aboard the French ship Isere.
1940 - France asked Germany for terms of surrender in World War II.
1944 - The republic of Iceland was established.
1961 - Soviet ballet dancer Rudolf Nureyev defected to the West while his troupe was in Paris.
1963 - The Supreme Court struck down rules requiring the recitation of the Lord's Prayer or the reading of Biblical verses in public schools.
1972 - President Richard Nixon's downfall began with the arrest of five burglars inside Democratic national headquarters in Washington's Watergate complex.
1994 - After leading police on a chase through Southern California, O.J. Simpson was arrested and charged with murder in the slayings of his ex-wife, Nicole, and Ronald Goldman.
2005 - Former Tyco CEO Dennis Kozlowski and a second executive, Mark H. Swartz, were convicted of looting their company of more than $600 million. (Each was later sentenced to 8-1/3 to 25 years in prison.)
2006 - Officials in Chechnya reported police had killed rebel leader Abdul-Khalim Sadulayev by acting on a tip from within his network.