Today in News History

On June 17, several notable moments in the history of News stand out. In 1242, Following the Disputation of Paris, twenty-four carriage loads of Jewish religious manuscripts were burnt in Paris. In 1919, William Kaye Estes, American psychologist and academic (died 2011) was born. In 1940, World War II: RMS Lancastria is attacked and sunk by the Luftwaffe near Saint-Nazaire, France. At least 3,000 are killed in Britain's worst maritime disaster. In 1948, United Airlines Flight 624, a Douglas DC-6, crashes near Mount Carmel, Pennsylvania, killing all 43 people on board. In 1952, Jack Parsons, American chemist and engineer (born 1914) passed away. In 1957, Philip Chevron, Irish singer-songwriter and guitarist (died 2013) was born. In 1958, The Ironworkers Memorial Second Narrows Crossing, in the process of being built to connect Vancouver and North Vancouver (Canada), collapses into the Burrard Inlet killing 18 ironworkers and injuring others. In 1963, A day after South Vietnamese President Ngô Đình Diệm announced the Joint Communiqué to end the Buddhist crisis, a riot involving around 2,000 people breaks out. One person is killed. In 1989, Interflug Flight 102 crashes during a rejected takeoff from Berlin Schönefeld Airport, killing 21 people. In 2017, A series of wildfires in central Portugal kill at least 64 people and injure 204 others. Together, these milestones provide historical context for today's news news and ongoing narratives.