Today in History

Today in History

Today is Friday, June 10, the 162nd day of 2016. There are 204 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On June 10, 1692, the first execution resulting from the Salem witch trials in Massachusetts took place as Bridget Bishop was hanged.

On this date:

In 1864, the Confederate Congress authorized military service for men between the ages of 17 and 70.

In 1921, President Warren G. Harding signed into law the Budget and Accounting Act, which created the Bureau of the Budget and the General Accounting Office.

In 1935, Alcoholics Anonymous was founded in Akron, Ohio, by Dr. Robert Holbrook Smith and William Griffith Wilson.

In 1940, Italy declared war on France and Britain; Canada declared war on Italy. Jamaican-born Pan-African nationalist Marcus Garvey died in London at 52.

In 1942, during World War II, German forces massacred 173 male residents of Lidice, Czechoslovakia, in retaliation for the killing of Nazi official Reinhard Heydrich.

In 1944, German forces massacred 642 residents of the French village of Oradour-sur-Glane.

In 1967, the Middle East War ended as Israel and Syria agreed to observe a United Nations-mediated cease-fire.

In 1971, President Richard M. Nixon lifted a two-decades-old trade embargo on China.

In 1981, 6-year-old Alfredo Rampi fell down an artesian well near Frascati, Italy; the story ended tragically as efforts to rescue him proved futile.

In 1985, socialite Claus von Bulow was acquitted by a jury in Providence, Rhode Island, at his retrial on charges he'd tried to murder his heiress wife, Martha "Sunny" von Bulow.

In 1991, 11-year-old Jaycee Dugard of South Lake Tahoe, California, was abducted by Phillip and Nancy Garrido; Jaycee was held by the couple for 18 years before she was found by authorities.

In 2004, singer-musician Ray Charles died in Beverly Hills, California, at age 73.

Ten years ago: Two Saudis and one Yemeni were found hanged at the Guantanamo Bay military prison, the first successful suicides at the base after dozens of attempts. Justine Henin-Hardenne won the French Open, beating Svetlana Kuznetsova 6-4, 6-4. Jazil cruised to victory, holding off Bluegrass Cat in the Belmont Stakes.

Five years ago: In a stern rebuke, Defense Secretary Robert Gates warned in Brussels that the future of the historic NATO military alliance was at risk because of European penny pinching and a distaste for front-line combat. Tony La Russa managed his 5,000th game as his St. Louis Cardinals lost to the Milwaukee Brewers 8-0.

One year ago: President Barack Obama ordered the deployment of up to 450 more American troops to Iraq in an effort to reverse major battlefield losses to the Islamic State. Pope Francis took the biggest step yet in cracking down on bishops who covered up for priests who raped and molested children, creating a new tribunal inside the Vatican to hear cases of bishops accused of failing to protect their flocks.

Today's Birthdays: Britain's Prince Philip is 95. Columnist Nat Hentoff is 91. Attorney F. Lee Bailey is 83. Actress Alexandra Stewart is 77. Singer Shirley Alston Reeves (The Shirelles) is 75. Actor Jurgen Prochnow is 75. Media commentator Jeff Greenfield is 73. Football Hall of Famer Dan Fouts is 65. Country singer-songwriter Thom Schuyler is 64. Former Sen. John Edwards, D-N.C., is 63. Actor Andrew Stevens is 61. Singer Barrington Henderson is 60. Former New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer is 57. Rock musician Kim Deal is 55. Singer Maxi Priest is 55. Actress Gina Gershon is 54. Actress Jeanne Tripplehorn is 53. Rock musician Jimmy Chamberlin is 52. Actor Ben Daniels is 52. Actress Kate Flannery is 52. Model-actress Elizabeth Hurley is 51. Rock musician Joey Santiago is 51. Actor Doug McKeon is 50. Rock musician Emma Anderson is 49. Country musician Brian Hofeldt (The Derailers) is 49. Rapper The D.O.C. is 48. Rock singer Mike Doughty is 46. Rhythm-and-blues singer JoJo is 45. Former Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal is 45. Rhythm-and-blues singer Faith Evans is 43. Actor Hugh Dancy is 41. Rhythm-and-blues singer Lemisha Grinstead (702) is 38. Actor DJ Qualls is 38. Actor Shane West is 38. Country singer Lee Brice is 37. Singer Hoku is 35. Actress Leelee Sobieski is 34. Olympic gold medal figure skater Tara Lipinski is 34. Americana musician Bridget Kearney (Lake Street Drive) is 31. Model-actress Kate Upton is 24. Sasha Obama is 15.

Thought for Today: "Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else." -- Judy Garland, American singer-actress (born this date in 1922, died in 1969).