Important Events From This day in History February 8th

1978 U.S.A. Blizzard

1978 : A severe blizzard in New England finally ends and the region begins to dig out from under several feet of snow. Some areas received as many as 55 inches of snow in just 3 days. Find More What happened in 1978

1983 Shergar is stolen

1983 : Shergar is stolen from a stud farm owned by the Aga Khan in County Kildare, Ireland. The five-year-old thoroughbred stallion was worth $13.5 million and commanded stud fees of approximately $100,000. Shergar was never seen again and no ransom was paid and the case was never solved.

1910 Boy Scouts of America

The Boy Scouts of America, which is modeled after the Boy Scouts of England, was incorporated 1910

1922 Radio Installed In White House

President Warren G. Harding has a radio installed in the White House signaling it's increased use, acceptance in America.

1924 Lethal Gas

1924 : Lethal gas was used at the Nevada State Prison today as a form of Execution for the first time in the United States on Convicted murderer Gee Jon .

1937 Judicial Reform

Members of Congress that were opposed to FDR current judicial reform program proposal pushed for a separate bill to be voted upon.

1943 World War II Guadalcanal

Japanese troops evacuate Guadalcanal, leaving the island in American possession after a long and bloody battle for control of the Island.

1950 U.S.A. Soviet Spies

1950 : As of this date and year in history, it was reported that undercover Russian activity in the U.S. was at an all-time high. Information regarding Russian activity was presented to Congress by Director J. Edgar Hoover.

Hoover was the one who was familiar with details of the Klaus Fuchs Case. Fuchs was a British scientist who was arrested by Scotland Yard when the United States found out he had leaked atomic secrets to the enemy, one of whom at this time was Russia.

1951 U.S.A. Stock Prices

Stock prices rose sharply , after a two-day losing streak. Gains on prices ranged from a few cents to two dollars per share. Most of the buyers had invested in radio, television, air crafts, motors, rails, and motion pictures.

1967 Australia Bush Fires Kill 62

1967: 125 separate bush fires in southern Tasmania claim 62 lives, 900 injured and over seven thousand homeless The city of Hobart is encircled by fire leaving 52 dead just in that area, in total the fires burned over 1/2 million acres of land

1952 Queen Elizabeth the Second

Princess Elizabeth has formally proclaimed herself Queen and Head of the Commonwealth and Defender of the Faith declaring her reign as Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second.

1952 Meat Prices

According to the meat industry meat prices are expected to be lower that in times past. This promise was pending a few actions that would need to be taken.

For instance, more animals would need to be raised in farms and ranges. In fact, more than the record number was necessary in order for this to happen. On the other hand, New York economists have mentioned that production of meat will only be increased if costs are kept down.

Another factor that would be considered in the decision to help keep meet costs low is the available of cattle feed supplies. It was necessary to make sure that there was enough grazing land, feed, and other supplies in order to raise cattle for meet.

Part of the reason for the concern about meat production started a year prior. According to one news publication, cattle breeding was reported to be the smallest ever in the past year as it has been in the 10 years previous to this date.

1962 France Riots

The State of Emergency currently in force in Paris did not stop a demonstration in Paris by 20,000 protesters against the recent wave of bomb attacks in the French capital which was organised by France's main communist-led union. The Riot led to the deaths of 8 due to being trampled underfoot in the chaos .

1973 Watergate

1973 : The US Senate approved the formation of a special committee to investigate the Watergate bugging incident.

1974 Space New Record

Three US astronauts Dr Edward Gibson, Lieutenant Colonel Gerald Carr and Lieutenant Colonel William Pogue have returned safely to Earth after breaking the previous record for staying in space. They spent a total of 85 days in the American space station, Skylab.

1985 Ronald Reagan

While Ronald Reagan was in office, he had announced that his secretary of staff Ronald Regan and his Chief of Staff James Baker were planning on switching roles. Some people, including legislators within Congress, had wondered if this was indeed a smart enough mood.

Likewise, some people had wondered if Regan could fill Baker's shoes. However, Regan had expressed himself confidentially, and had sold this current White House Administration on the basis that he had adequate managerial skills.

1993 Elvis Stamp

A new Elvis stamp was produced on this day in 1993. This stamp was created on the day that would have been his 58th birthday. The image portrayed on the stamp was from Elvis' earlier rocker days.

1994 Congo Republic Plane Crash

A cargo plane crash had occurred in the country of what is now present-day Democratic Republic of the Congo (previously known as Kishasa, Zaire). At least a couple of hundred people were killed and 500 more were injured. Two of the six crew members were killed as well.

The engine of this plane had smoked and burst into flames, as it attempted to take off from the runway one sunny afternoon. The operators of the marketplace that it had hit (where all the people were killed/injured) tried to take action against the airport.

However, it was ruled in a Russian court that the marketplace should have not been so close to the airport in the first place. Therefore, the marketplace was denied compensation. However, the four crew members that survived the plane crash were sentenced to two years in prison.

1999 King Hussein

World Leaders including President Clinton and three former U.S. presidents - George H.W. Bush, Jimmy Carter and Gerald R. Ford - attended the funeral of Jordan's King Hussein .

1999 Clinton Impeachment Proceedings

The Senate listens to closing arguments in President Bill Clinton's impeachment trial.

2002 2002 Winter Olympics

The opening ceremonies for the 2002 Winter Olympics in Utah lasting until February 24th

2005 Peace Between Israel and Palestine

Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon have declared a truce to end four years of Middle East violence.

2008 Nebraska bans the electric chair, and calls it unconstitutional

The Nebraska Supreme Court has ruled that the electric chair, which is the only method used for executions in that state, is a violation of human dignity, and as such, is unconstitutional. Having confirmed the death penalty that was imposed on Raymond Mata for the murder of a three-year-old boy, the court said that he should not be electrocuted. The court elucidated by saying that 'Electrocution's proven history of burning and charring bodies is inconsistent with both the concepts of evolving standards of decency and the dignity of man.' It went on to say that electrocution 'has proven itself to be a dinosaur more befitting the laboratory of Baron Frankenstein than the death chamber.'

2009 Swiss Vote On E.U. citizens automatic right to work in Switzerland

Swiss voters are going to the polls to decide whether to continue allowing in workers from the European Union. A more controversial point for the majority of Swiss will be whether to extend that free movement to the new E.U. members Bulgaria and Romania. Switzerland remains outside the E.U, but is becoming more economically tied to Europe. Since the Swiss first introduced the free movement of labor the number of E.U. citizens working in Switzerland has risen to over a million.

2011 New Tunnel Between New York and New Jersey Proposed

3 Senators and the Amtrak rail company have proposed two new tunnels to be built under the Hudson River to connect New York and New Jersey as the states face an increasingly congested commuter system. The proposed tunnels would cost about 13.5 billion dollars and could be finished by 2020.

2012 Prince Harry Can Be Apache Pilot

2012 : Prince Harry has qualified as an Apache helicopter pilot after training for eighteen months in both the United Kingdom and United States. The Prince also received an award for best co-pilot gunner at his training base and enjoys a limited combat-ready status with twenty other graduates of the program.

2013 Canadian Spy Jailed

A former Canadian naval intelligence officer was jailed for twenty years. Jeffrey Delisle plead guilty to selling Nato information to Russia. Delisle was also fined a large amount of money.

2014 McDonalds Opens in Vietnam

2014 : McDonalds has opened its first restaurant in the communist country of Vietnam. The location opened in the country's city of Ho Chi Minh. Many observers saw some level of irony in such an American capitalist symbol as the food chain in such a tightly controlled communist country. The restaurant was set to be run by the son-in-law of Vietnam's prime minister.

https://www.thepeoplehistory.com/february9th.html