TIME TRAVELING, MAY 18 1798 Benjamin Stoddert is appointed first Secretary of the U.S. Navy. 1860 Abraham Lincoln, a one-time U.S. representative from Illinois, is nominated for the U.S. presidency by the Republican National Convention meeting in Chicago, Ill. 1917 Six weeks after the U.S formally enters World War I the U.S. Congress passes the Selective Service Act, which calls up soldiers to fight in World War I. 1926 Nationally known evangelist Aimee Semple McPherson vanishes while visiting a beach in Venice, Calif. Police dispatch planes and ships in an effort to find her, but she cannot be found. She reappears in Agua Prieta, N. Mex., a month later with the claim that she had been kidnapped. Reporters uncover information, however, to prove she has been with a friend of hers, radio announcer Kenneth Ormiston, the entire time. She avoids obstruction of justice charges by paying $30,000 to law enforcement agencies. 1931 Japanese pilot Seiji Yoshihara crashes his plane in the Pacific Ocean while trying to be the first to cross the ocean nonstop. He is picked up seven hours later by a passing ship. 1934 The U.S. Congress approves an act, known as the Lindberg Act, that calls for the death penalty in interstate kidnapping cases. 1953 The first woman to fly faster than the speed of sound, Jacqueline Cochran, pilots an F-86 Sabrejet over California at an average speed of 652.337 miles per hour. 1968 Tiny Tims Tiptoe through the Tulips is released. It was originally a number-one hit for Nick Lucas in 1929. 1974 India becomes the sixth nation to explode an atomic bomb. 1980 Mt. Saint Helens erupts in Washington state causing a massive avalanche that kills 57 people and causes $3 billion in damages. Ash from the volcanic eruption falls as far away as Minnesota. 1983 The U.S. Senate revises immigration laws and gives millions of illegal aliens legal status under an amnesty program. 1998 The U.S. federal government and 20 states file a sweeping antitrust case against Microsoft Corp., saying the computer software company has a choke hold on competitors which deny consumers choices by controlling 90% of the software market.
Posted on: Sun, 18 May 2014 08:35:53 +0000
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