Today in News History

On July 12, several notable moments in the history of News stand out. In 1688, Narai, Thai king (born 1629) passed away. In 1832, Charilaos Trikoupis, Greek lawyer and politician, 55th Prime Minister of Greece (died 1896) was born. In 1906, Murder of Grace Brown by Chester Gillette in the United States, inspiration for Theodore Dreiser's An American Tragedy. In 1935, Frederick Hemke, American saxophonist and educator (died 2019) was born. In 1960, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is first published, in the United States. In 1978, Los Alfaques disaster: A truck carrying liquid gas crashes and explodes at a coastal campsite in Tarragona, Spain killing 216 tourists. In 1983, A TAME airline Boeing 737-200 crashes near Cuenca, Ecuador, killing all 119 passengers and crew on board. In 2003, Zahra Kazemi, Iranian-Canadian freelance photographer (born 1948) passed away. In 2010, The Islamist militia group Al-Shabaab carries out multiple suicide bombings in Kampala, Uganda, killing 74 people and injuring 85 others. In 2011, Ninety-eight containers of explosives self-detonate killing 13 people in Zygi, Cyprus. Together, these milestones provide historical context for today's news news and ongoing narratives.