Today in News History

On June 20, several notable moments in the history of News stand out. In 1771, Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk, Scottish philanthropist and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Kirkcudbright (died 1820) was born. In 1862, Barbu Catargiu, the Prime Minister of Romania, is assassinated. In 1877, Alexander Graham Bell installs the world's first commercial telephone service in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. In 1916, Jean-Jacques Bertrand, Canadian lawyer and politician, 21st Premier of Quebec (died 1973) was born. In 1951, Sheila McLean, Scottish scholar and academic was born. In 1959, A rare June hurricane strikes Canada's Gulf of St. Lawrence killing 35. In 1960, The Mali Federation gains independence from France (it later splits into Mali and Senegal). In 1982, The International Conference on the Holocaust and Genocide opens in Tel Aviv, despite attempts by the Turkish government to cancel it, as it included presentations on the Armenian genocide. In 1996, Space Shuttle Columbia launches on STS-78 to conduct life science and microgravity research aboard the Spacelab module. In 2003, The Wikimedia Foundation is founded in St. Petersburg, Florida. Together, these milestones provide historical context for today's news news and ongoing narratives.