Month: February 2016

Baseball History for February 14

Tom Knuppel Sports

Baseball_Baseball History_3

1887 For a record price of $10,000, the Cubs, then known as the White Stockings, sell future current NL batting champ and future Hall of Famer Mike Kelly to the Beaneaters. The popular box office draw, who will earn his nickname King while playing in Boston, will continue to be productive, hitting .311 for a three-year span during his first tenure with the team.
1928 The American Legion baseball program, on the brink of bankruptcy, receives a pledge of $50,000 from Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis and the MLB Advisory Council to continue its development of a national championship program for teenagers. With the much-needed funding, Legion Baseball will continue in 1928, and the following season, teams from every state and the District of Columbia will participate in the youth tournament.
1934 Sam Rice, who spent the first 19 seasons with the Senators, ends his career after playing one year with the Indians. The 44 year-old future Hall of Famer collected 2,987 career hits during his two decades in the major leagues.
1945 Braves president Bob Quinn retires, with his son, John, becoming the team’s general manager of the team following his father’s departure. The former owner of the Red Sox and Braves, whose grandson will also become a major league GM, will serve as president of the Baseball Hall of Fame from 1948 to 1951, resigning from the position after suffering two strokes.
1957 Ten years after the integration of major league baseball, the Georgia Senate unanimously approves a bill, which prohibits blacks from playing baseball with whites except at religious gatherings. Less than a decade later, the Braves will move its franchise from Milwaukee to Atlanta, the state’s capital.
1959 The Orioles, in an effort to find a backup for first baseman Bob Boyd, buy 32 year-old veteran infielder/outfielder Whitey Lockman from the Giants for an undisclosed sum. In June, Baltimore will trade their new acquisition to the Reds for Walt Dropo, who has played the position exclusively since since winning the Rookie of the Year award in 1950.
1996 Kevin McClatchy and his group of investors purchase the Pirates from the Pittsburgh Associates. The deal includes the condition of having to build a baseball-only ballpark in Pittsburgh within five years.
2001 The Ford C. Frick Award, named in memory of the former baseball commissioner who was a broadcaster, will be given to Marlins’ radio announcer Rafael Ramirez during Hall of Fame induction ceremonies this summer. ‘Felo’, who began his 56-year career broadcasting games in Cuba, has been in the Miami broadcast booth since the team’s inaugural season in 1993.
2001 According to the Detroit Free Press, major league baseball is informing umpires to remove pitchers who deliberately throw a beanball at a batter’s head from the game, without warning. The crackdown, according to officials, is a clarification and reinforcement of an existing rule.
2002 The Tigers sign Dmitri Young (.302, 21, 69) to a four-year contract with two team options. The Tigers traded outfielder Juan Encarnacion (.242, 12, 52) and minor league right hander Luis Pineda in December to acquire the first baseman/outfielder from the Reds.
2003 After much speculation, the Chunichi Dragons return Kevin Millar to the Marlins for an undisclosed amount of money for relinquishing its rights. After reconsidering an offer from the Red Sox, the outfielder had a change of heart and didn’t want to play for the Japanese Central League team.
2005 The Twins sign Johan Santana (20-6, 2.61), who was eligible for arbitration, to a four-year deal. Last season, the 25 year-old southpaw became the first Venezuelan to win the Cy Young Award.
2007 For first time at Wrigley Field, the Cubs will allow ads on the green doors which are located in the ivy in the left- and right-field bleachers, according to Jay Blunk, director of marketing and sales. Although the team has been approached by other companies, Under Armour, whose company spokesman is newly acquired outfielder Alfonso Soriano, is the “right fit” for the 7-by-12 foot signage featuring the performance apparel’s signature logo.

 

2009 The Angels and Bobby Abreu (.296, 20, 100) agree to a $5 million, one-year deal. The 34 year-old free-agent outfielder, taking a significant pay cut after having a solid season with the Yankees last season, is expected to add some much-needed punch from the left side for the AL West champions.
2011 Avoiding arbitration, Carlos Marmol agrees to a three-year, $20 million deal with the Cubs. The 28 year-old closer saved 38 games in 43 opportunities last season along with compiling a 2-3 record and an ERA of 2.55.
2011 The Yankees come to terms with free-agent Andruw Jones on a $1.5 million, one-year contract, eliminating the likelihood of the team resigning Johnny Damon. ‘The Curaçao Kid’, best known for his outstanding outfield defense for the Braves at the start of his career, will spend two seasons in the Bronx, before finishing his 17-year major league tenure with a lifetime .254 batting average.
2014 Avoiding arbitration, 24 year-old outfielder Jason Heyward and the Braves agree to a two-year, $13.3 million deal. After the season, Atlanta will trade their 2007 first-round pick (14th overall) along with right-handed reliever Jordan Walden to the Cardinals for right-handers Tyrell Jenkins and Shelby Miller.
2014 Freddie Freeman agrees to a franchise-record eight-year, $135 million contract, surpassing the six-year, $90 million deal the Braves gave Chipper Jones in 2000. The 24 year-old All-Star first baseman, who finished fifth in the MVP balloting this season, has hit .285 during his four years with the team, annually averaging 17 home runs and 70 RBIs.

Baseball History for February 13th

Tom Knuppel Sports

zito_curveball

This Date in Baseball History

1914
The Cubs exchange second basemen with the Braves, sending future Hall of Famer Johnny Evers to Boston for Bill Sweeeny. Boston gets the better of the deal when their new middle infielder plays a pivotal role in the club’s World Championship this season, garnering the Chalmers Award as the Most Valuable Player of the league.

1920
A group of eight midwestern team owners meets at the Kansas City YMCA to organize the Negro National League, which will become one of the most successful ventures of its kind. Rube Foster, the owner and manager of the American Giants, will become president of the new circuit, leading to accusations of favoritism, which appear especially true when the schedule had Chicago play a disproportionate number of games at home.

1935
Former major league journeyman Gus Dugas, a French-Canadian obtained from by the Montreal Royals from Albany of the International League in November, signs his contract while visiting relatives in his native province of Quebec. The contract is totally written in French, a first in the history of professional baseball.

1953
In honor of their longtime owner and manager, the A’s rename their Philadelphia ballpark from Shibe Park to Connie Mack Stadium. During his 50-year tenure as Athletics skipper, the ‘Tall Tactician’ guided the team to nine American League pennants and appeared in eight World Series, winning five of the Fall Classics.
1964
At the age of twenty-two, Cubs’ second baseman Ken Hubbs dies when the red and white Cessna 172 plane he is piloting crashes in Provo, Utah during a winter storm. The 1962 National League Rookie of the Year took flying lessons in the past two off-seasons, obtaining his license last month, to overcome his fear of flying.

1968
The Dodgers trade infielders Ron Hunt and Nate Oliver to the Giants in exchange for backstop Tom Haller. The 30 year-old All-Star catcher will compile a very respectable .276 batting average during his four years behind the plate for L.A.

1970
A day after his 27th birthday, Paul Edmondson and his girlfriend are killed in an automobile accident in San Barbara, California when his automobile skids on a rain-slicked U.S. Route 101 and crashes into oncoming traffic. The White Sox had hoped their sophomore right-hander would become the fourth starter in the team’s rotation, after compiling a misleading 1-6 record last season.

1986
Ron Hassey, whom the White Sox acquired two months ago from the Yankees, is traded back to the Bronx Bombers, along with three minor-leaguers for Neil Allen, Scott Bradley and a minor leaguer. In December, the 32 year-old catcher was sent to the Windy City, along with Joe Cowley for Britt Burns and two minor leaguers.

1987
Jack Morris is awarded the highest salary ever given to a pitcher by arbitration when the Tigers must pay the hurler $1.85 million for his services next season. The 31 year-old right-hander will not disappoint, posting an 18-11 record along with an ERA of 3.38 for the AL East Division champions.

1995
The Dodgers sign five-time Japanese all-star pitcher, Hideo Nomo. ‘Tornado Boy’ is the first player to move directly from the majors in Japan to the North American majors.

2002
The Red Sox sign 43 year-old Rickey Henderson to a minor-league contract. Last season with the Padres, the future Hall of Famer got his 3000th career hit and broke the all-time records for walks and runs.

2003
The Mets sign 40 year-old David Cone to a minor league contract. The right-hander, who compiled an 80-48 record with the team from 1987-1992, is coming out of retirement hoping to win the fifth spot in the rotation.

2005
Avoiding an arbitration hearing, Ben Sheets (12-14, 2.70) and the Brewers agree to a one-year contract valued at $5.5 million. The All-Star right hander, who made $2.5 million last season, established a team record last May, striking out 18 batters in a game.

2005
After 19 years at shortstop for the Reds, Barry Larkin announces his retirement as an active player to become special assistant to Nationals’ general manager Jim Bowden, who had served as the team’s GM from 1992 to 2001. The 40 year-old former Gold Glove infielder spent his entire career in his hometown of Cincinnati.

2006
Avoiding an arbitration hearing, Adam Dunn (.247, 40, 101) and the Reds agreed to a $18.5 million two-year deal and gives the team a 2008 option for $13 million with a buyout for $500,000. The 26 year-old outfielder/first baseman, who led the big leagues for the second consecutive season in strikeouts, had asked for $8.95 million, with the club countering with $7.1 million.

2008
Takashi Saito (2-1, 1.40), who signed a minor league deal with the Dodgers two years ago after playing 14 seasons in the Japanese Central League with the Yokohama Bay Stars, agrees to a $2 million, one-year contract to stay with Los Angeles. The 37 year-old All Star closer had 39 saves in 43 chances last season.

2008
In a much anticipated congressional hearing, Roger Clemens and his former personal trainer, Brian McNamee, testify for 4 1/2 hours concerning the allegations of the Rocket’s use of performance-enhancing drugs. Although no definitive conclusions are reached, Republicans appear to believe the seven-time Cy Young Award winner while Democrats seem to favor his chief accuser’s account of events.

2009
In an effort to avoid arbitration for the remainder of his career, Ryan Howard agrees to a three-year, $54 million deal with Philadelphia. The Phillies slugger, who led the major leagues in home runs (48) and RBI (146), was unable reach a contract settlement in less than friendly negotiations with the team and was awarded $10 million by arbitrators during the 2008 off-season, tying the highest sum ever given to a player in the process.

2012
In a deal confirmed by his agent, Yoenis Cespedes has reached a four-year, $36 million agreement with the A’s, pending the results of a physical. The Cuban defector, who is slotted to play center field, moving Coco Crisp to left, hit .458 with a double, three triples, two home runs, and five RBIs in the six games he played in the 2009 World Baseball Classic.

Baseball History for February 12

Tom Knuppel Sports , ,
Baseball History for February 12

 

 

Today on February 12th in Major League Baseball History

1878 After designing the device last season to protect his team’s promising, but skittish, catcher James Tyng, Fredrick Thayer receives a patent for his innovative invention, the catcher’s mask. The Harvard captain, who will never play in a major league game, designed an oblong wire frame modeled after a fencing mask with eyes holes that supports a series of strategically-placed pads made from animal skins. Here is an article from the New York Times about fans scoffing at a catcher’s mask.
1924 The National League announces it will join the AL in awarding a thousand dollars to the player selected by writers as the league’s Most Valuable Player. Dazzy Vance, who posts a 28-6 record along with an ERA of 2.16 for the Dodgers, easily outpoints Rogers Hornsby to become the Senior Circuit’s first MVP.
1930 After leading his A’s to a world championship, Connie Mack becomes the first Philadelphian sports figure to receive the prestigious Edward W. Bok Prize. The honor, now known as the Philadelphia Award, recognizes distinguished Philadelphians for their achievements in education, industry, law, politics, science, medicine, philosophy, and the creative arts. Very good article written in the SabrBio Project about Connie Mack.
1942 Former Texarkana outfielder Gordon Houston is the first professional ballplayer to be killed in WW II. The minor league batting champion, who became a full-time fighter pilot following the attack on Pearl Harbor, dies at the age of 25 when his Republic P-43 Lancer crashes at Washington’s McChord Field, after leading a sortie along the West Coast, looking for Japanese submarines.
1944 Bob Coleman, who filled in for Casey Stengel last season when the Boston skipper suffered a broken leg when hit by a taxi cab trying to cross a street, is named to replace the ‘Old Perfessor’ as the manager of the Braves. Considered one of the most successful managers in minor league history, the 54 year-old Indiana native could not work his magic with the wartime club, and after finishing sixth followed by a slow start in 1945, the former big league catcher will be replaced by Del Bissonette, one of his coaches.
1980 Marv Davis’s plan to buy the A’s from Charlie Finley is thwarted when the American League offers to buy out the Oakland Coliseum lease. The billionaire businessman, who will also make failed bids for the NFL’s Cowboys and Broncos, had hoped to move the franchise from the City by the Bay to Denver.
1981 Arbitrator Raymond Goetz officially declares Carlton Fisk a free agent, citing the Boston Red Sox had violated the CBA by not mailing the catcher’s contract by the December 20th deadline as specified in the agreement. Next month, the 33 year-old future Hall of Fame backstop will signed a $3.5 million deal to catch for the White Sox this season.
2002 For the first time in its history, Major League Baseball will own a team after acquiring the Expos from Jeffrey Loria. The former Montreal owner sells the Expos for $120 million, then buys the Florida Marlins for $158.5 million with the difference being made up with a loan from major league baseball.
With unanimous approval of the sale of the Florida Marlins to the former owner of the Montreal Expos, Jeffrey Loria, and Major League Baseball’s acquisition of the Montreal franchise, personnel changes are announced. The Expos name Frank Robinson as manager, Tony Tavares as president of the club with Omar Minaya becoming the major leagues’ first Hispanic general manager, and south of the border former Expo manager Jeff Torborg will manage the Marlins with former Expos’ interim general manager Larry Beinfest as the GM and David Samson will take over the duties of team president.

 

2003 Federal Judge James Holderman has given the Cubs and the owners of rooftop bleachers which provide fans a view of Wrigley Field a year to settle their dispute. The team believes the seating provided above the field via rooftops directly competes with the club for ticket sales revenue and the surrounding neighbors, in turn, have not been sympathetic to the team’s expansion plans.
2007 The Major League Baseball Players Association asks the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to reconsider its 2-1 decision which would allow the names and urine samples of more than 100 players who tested positive for performance enhancing drugs to be made available to authorities investigating the use of steroids in baseball. The 1993 samples were collected by MLB in an effort to gauge the prevalence of steroid use with players and owners agreeing the results would be confidential.
2007 After a year of negotiations, an agreement is reached on the sale of the Braves from Time Warner to Liberty Media. Seventy percent of the owners must approve the deal which includes the retention of general manager John Schuerholz and manager Bobby Cox.
2008 The Twins, in an effort to add experience to a young rotation, sign Livan Hernandez (11-11, 4.93) to a $5 million, one-year deal with an additional $2 million in performance bonuses. The 32 year-old right-hander from Cuba will also add innings to a staff depleted due to the departures of starters Johan Santana and Carlos Silva.
2009 Three days after Alex Rodriguez apologizes for using steroids, commissioner Bud Selig chastises the Yankee superstar, and all the other players, who used such substances, for bringing shame to the game. The third baseman’s apology followed a SI.com report that he was one of 104 players who tested positive in tests taken in 2003 to determine the extent of steroid use in the national pastime.
2009 Ervin Santana avoids arbitration, agreeing to a deal with the Angels which could be worth $42 million over the next five years. The 26 year-old right-hander, who posted a 16-7 record with a 3.49 ERA for the AL West Champions last season, is the youngest active hurler with 50 career victories (51-37).
2009 Dan Uggla (.260, 32, 92), eligible for arbitration for the first time, is awarded $5.35 million by the process. The All-star second baseman, who has averaged 30 home runs and 90 RBIs his first three seasons in the majors, rejected the Marlins’ offer of $4.4 million.
2009 Jose Offerman, a former All-Star major league infielder with the Red Sox and Dodgers, is sued by John Nathans for his bat-wielding attack at a minor league game in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The Bluefish catcher is seeking $4.8 million in damages against the Long Island Ducks player, claiming the 2007 incident left him with career-ending injuries which include inner ear damage, vertigo, headaches and post-concussion syndrome.
2010 Corey Hart (.260, 12, 48) is awarded a raise from $3.25 million to $4.8 million in the Brewers’ first salary arbitration hearing in a dozen years. In the first case to use the process this year, Milwaukee’s offer of $4.15 million to their 27 year-old right-fielder, an All-Star in 2008, was rejected by a panel of arbitrators.
2010 Tim Lincecum, two-time reigning NL Cy Young Award winner, reaches a preliminary agreement on a $23 million, two-year deal with the Giants prior to the start of a scheduled arbitration hearing. The 25 year-old right-hander has compiled a 40-17 record along with an ERA of 2.90 ERA during three big league seasons with San Francisco.
2011 “Doris From Rego Park” makes its debut on Jonathan Schwartz’s weekend program on WNYC-FM. The song, written and performed by Don Rosler, is a tribute to Doris Bauer, the Mets fan who became a New York institution as a late-night caller to WFAN sports radio before she died in 2003.

2014 Derek Jeter, who will turn 40 during in June, announces the 2014 season will be his final one, informing his fans via a lengthy Facebook post. The 13-time All-Star shortstop acknowledged that his numerous injuries have taken their toll, making the game more of a struggle and less enjoyable.

This Date in Baseball History- Feb. 11th

Tom Knuppel Sports , , , , ,

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Here’s a look at This Date in Baseball History
1915 New York Giants president Harry Hempstead rejects the International League’s request for permission to put a team in the Bronx. The shift of the IL’s Jersey City to the nearby borough, already the home to the Yankees, was conceived as a way to prop up the failing minor league franchise and perhaps to thwart the invasion of the Federal League into the Big Apple.
1974 The first arbitration ruling in baseball history is decided in favor of Twins’ hurler Dick Woodson. The right-hander, the first player to invoke the new free agency clause, is awarded the $29,000 he asked for rather than having to take Minnesota’s offer which was $6 thousand less.
1977 The Cubs trade two-time NL batting champ Bill Madlock along with Rod Sperring to the Giants for Bobby Murcer, Steve Ontiveros and a minor leaguer. During the 1979 season, San Francisco will trade the fiercely competitive ‘Mad Dog’ to the Pirates, where he play a major role in the team’s world championship that season, and will win two more batting crowns during his seven-year tenure in Pittsburgh.
1982 Two months after the trade was announced, the Ozzie Smith agrees to go to the Cardinals to complete the December deal that finally sends Gary Templeton to the Padres. An outside arbitrator, Tom Roberts, will determine ‘the Wizard of Oz’s’ Cardinal salary before the season starts, awarding the light-hitting Gold Glove shortstop $450,000 rather than the $750,000 he requested.
1985 Kent Hrbek signs a new contract, making him the Twins’ first million dollar player. The Minnesota first baseman was the runner-up for the American League Most Valuable Player last season after batting .311 along with 27 homers and 107 RBIs for the second-place club.
On This Day in Baseball History in 1987 After refusing the Mets’ $800,000 one-year offer, World Series MVP Ray Knight signs with the Orioles for $475,000 plus incentives and an option for an additional year.
1997 General Mills, the makers of Wheaties, unveils three new Jackie Robinson cereal boxes to be sold in stores nationwide. The Dodgers’ Hall of Fame infielder will be the first athlete to be honored on all three varieties of Wheaties: Original Wheaties, Honey Frosted Wheaties, and Crispy Wheaties ‘n’ Raisins.

2001 As thousands cheer, Three Rivers Stadium, 30 year-old home of the Pirates, is imploded. Roberto Clemente’s 3,000th hit as well as Mike Schmidt’s 500th career home run are part of the historic park’s legacy.

2005 Jose Canseco’s controversial book, Juiced, is made available in certain markets in anticipation of his appearance on CBS’s Sixty Minutes. The self proclaimed godfather of the steroids in baseball alleges Mark McGwire, Juan Gonzalez, Rafael Palmeiro and Ivan Rodriguez all used illegal performance-enhancing

2005 The Mets announce their former slugging All-Star and often-troubled Rookie of the Year, Darryl Strawberry, will rejoin the team as a special outfield instructor during spring training. He will also join former 1986 World Champion teammates Gary Carter, Lenny Dykstra, Howard Johnson and Tim Teufel at Shea Stadium on Feb. 27 when single-game tickets go on sale.
2006 Avoiding an arbitration hearing, starting pitcher Carlos Zambrano (14-6, 3.26) and the Cubs agree to a one-year deal worth $6.5 million. After earning $3.76 million last season, the emotional right-hander had asked for $7.2 million, with Chicago offering $6 million.
2007 Avoiding salary arbitration, AL’s reigning batting champ Joe Mauer (.347, 13, 84) and the Twins come to terms on a $33 million, four-year contract. The hometown 23 year-old All-Star backstop is the first catcher to lead the majors in batting average and the first to win the batting title in the American League.
2008 Following in the footsteps of fan favorites Nolan Ryan, Roger Clemens and Jeff Bagwell, Craig Biggio agrees to a three-year personal services contract with the Astros. The 42 year-old retired ballplayer spent his entire 20-year career in Houston, leading the club in games, at-bats, hits, doubles, and total bases.
2009 The Nationals sign slugger Adam Dunn to a two-year, $20 million deal. The 29 year-old left-handed free-agent, who played for Arizona last season, will bat cleanup for Washington, replacing Nick Johnson at first base.
2010 Ernie Harwell, the long-time voice of the Tigers, will receive the Vin Scully Lifetime Achievement Award in Sports Broadcasting during WFUV Radio’s Spring Gala at Fordham University. The 92 year-old Hall of Fame broadcaster is the third recipient of the VSLA, named for the former alum and Dodger broadcast icon, joining inaugural honoree Vin Scully (2008) and Dick Enberg (2009).

 

 

 

 

 

February 10, 1967- 25th Amendment to Constitution Ratified

Tom Knuppel Politics

 

The Twenty-fifth Amendment (Amendment XXV) to the United States Constitution deals with succession to the Presidency and establishes procedures both for filling a vacancy in the office of the Vice President, as well as responding to Presidential disabilities. It supersedes the ambiguous wording of Article II, Section 1, Clause 6 of the Constitution, which does not expressly state whether the Vice President becomes the President or Acting President if the President dies, resigns, is removed from office or is otherwise unable to discharge the powers of the presidency. The Twenty-fifth Amendment was adopted on February 10, 1967.

Section 1. In case of the removal of the President from office or of his death or resignation, the Vice President shall become President.
Section 2. Whenever there is a vacancy in the office of the Vice President, the President shall nominate a Vice President who shall take office upon confirmation by a majority vote of both Houses of Congress.
Section 3. Whenever the President transmits to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives his written declaration that he is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, and until he transmits to them a written declaration to the contrary, such powers and duties shall be discharged by the Vice President as Acting President.
Section 4. Whenever the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive departments or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President shall immediately assume the powers and duties of the office as Acting President.
Thereafter, when the President transmits to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives his written declaration that no inability exists, he shall resume the powers and duties of his office unless the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive department or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit within four days to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office. Thereupon Congress shall decide the issue, assembling within forty-eight hours for that purpose if not in session. If the Congress, within twenty-one days after receipt of the latter written declaration, or, if Congress is not in session, within twenty-one days after Congress is required to assemble, determines by two-thirds vote of both Houses that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President shall continue to discharge the same as Acting President; otherwise, the President shall resume the powers and duties of his office.

The Twenty-fifth Amendment in the National Archives

Article II, Section 1, Clause 6 of the Constitution states:
In Case of the Removal of the President from Office, or of his Death, Resignation, or Inability to discharge the Powers and Duties of the said Office, the Same shall devolve on the Vice President, and the Congress may by Law provide for the Case of Removal, Death, Resignation or Inability, both of the President and Vice President, declaring what Officer shall then act as President, and such Officer shall act accordingly, until the Disability be removed, or a President shall be elected.
That clause was unclear regarding Presidential succession and inability; it did not state who had the power to declare a President incapacitated. Also, it did not provide a mechanism for filling a Vice Presidential vacancy prior to the next Presidential election. The vagueness of this clause caused difficulties many times before the Twenty-fifth Amendment’s adoption:
In 1841, President William Henry Harrison became the first U.S. President to die in office. Representative John Williams had previously suggested that the Vice President should become Acting President upon the death of the President. John Tyler asserted that he had succeeded to the presidency, as opposed to only obtaining its powers and duties. He also declined to acknowledge documents referring to him as “Acting President”. Although he felt his vice presidential oath negated the need for the presidential oath, Tyler was persuaded that being formally sworn-in would clear up any doubts about his right to the office. Having done so, he then moved into the White House and assumed full presidential powers. Tyler’s claim was not formally challenged, and both houses of Congress adopted a resolution confirming that Tyler was the tenth President of the United States, without any qualifiers. The precedent of full succession was thus established. This became known as the “Tyler Precedent”.
There had been occasions when a President was incapacitated. For example, following Woodrow Wilson’s stroke no one officially assumed the Presidential powers and duties, in part because the First Lady, Edith Wilson, together with the White House Physician, Cary T. Grayson, covered up President Wilson’s condition.
The office of Vice President had been vacant sixteen times due to the death or resignation of the Vice President or his succession to the presidency. For example, there was no Vice President for nearly four years after the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt.
All of these incidents made it evident that clearer guidelines were needed. There were two proposals for providing those guidelines.

Keating–Kefauver proposal

In 1963, Senator Kenneth Keating of New York proposed a Constitutional amendment which would have enabled Congress to enact legislation providing for how to determine when a President is disabled, rather than, as the Twenty-fifth Amendment does, having the Constitution so provide. This proposal was based upon a recommendation of the American Bar Association in 1960.
The text of the proposal read:
In case of the removal of the President from office or of his death or resignation, the said office shall devolve on the Vice President. In case of the inability of the President to discharge the powers and duties of the said office, the said powers and duties shall devolve on the Vice President, until the inability be removed. The Congress may by law provide for the case of removal, death, resignation or inability, both of the President and Vice President, declaring what officer shall then be President, or, in case of inability, act as President, and such officer shall be or act as President accordingly, until a President shall be elected or, in case of inability, until the inability shall be earlier removed. The commencement and termination of any inability shall be determined by such method as Congress shall by law provide.
Senators raised concerns that the Congress could either abuse such authority or neglect to enact any such legislation after the adoption of this proposal. Tennessee Senator Estes Kefauver (the Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Constitutional Amendments), a long-time advocate for addressing the disability question, spearheaded the effort until he died of a heart attack on August 10, 1963.

Kennedy assassination

With President John F. Kennedy’s assassination, the need for a clear way to determine presidential succession, especially with the new reality of the Cold War and its frightening technologies, forced Congress into action. The new President, Lyndon B. Johnson, had once suffered a heart attack, and the next two people in line for the presidency were Speaker of the House John McCormack, who was 71 years old, and Senate President pro tempore Carl Hayden, who was 86 years old. Senator Birch Bayh succeeded Kefauver as Chairman of the Subcommittee on Constitutional Amendments and set about advocating for a detailed amendment dealing with presidential succession.

Bayh–Celler proposal

On January 6, 1965, Senator Birch Bayh proposed in the Senate and Representative Emanuel Celler (Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee) proposed in the House of Representatives what became the Twenty-fifth Amendment. Their proposal specified the process by which a President could be declared disabled, thereby making the Vice President an Acting President, and how the President could regain the powers of his office. Also, their proposal provided a way to fill a vacancy in the office of Vice President before the next presidential election. This was as opposed to the Keating–Kefauver proposal, which did not provide for filling a vacancy in the office of Vice President prior to the next presidential election or itself provide a process for determining presidential disability. In 1964, the American Bar Association endorsed the type of proposal which Bayh and Celler advocated.
On February 19, the Senate passed the amendment, but the House passed a different version of the amendment on April 13. On July 6, after a conference committee ironed out differences between the versions, the final version of the amendment was passed by both Houses of the Congress and presented to the states for ratification.

 

(the above from wikipedia)

 

Volleyball Invented February 9, 1895

Tom Knuppel Sports

playingvb

On February 9, 1895, in Holyoke, Massachusetts (USA), William G. Morgan, a YMCA physical education director, created a new game called Mintonette as a pastime to be played (preferably) indoors and by any number of players. The game took some of its characteristics from tennis and handball. Another indoor sport, basketball, was catching on in the area, having been invented just ten miles (sixteen kilometers) away in the city of Springfield, Massachusetts, only four years before. Mintonette was designed to be an indoor sport, less rough than basketball, for older members of the YMCA, while still requiring a bit of athletic effort.
The first rules, written down by William G Morgan, called for a net 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) high, a 25 ft × 50 ft (7.6 m × 15.2 m) court, and any number of players. A match was composed of nine innings with three serves for each team in each inning, and no limit to the number of ball contacts for each team before sending the ball to the opponents’ court. In case of a serving error, a second try was allowed. Hitting the ball into the net was considered a foul (with loss of the point or a side-out)—except in the case of the first-try serve.
After an observer, Alfred Halstead, noticed the volleying nature of the game at its first exhibition match in 1896, played at the International YMCA Training School (now called Springfield College), the game quickly became known as volleyball (it was originally spelled as two words: “volley ball”). Volleyball rules were slightly modified by the International YMCA Training School and the game spread around the country to various YMCAs.

The first official ball used in volleyball is disputed; some sources say that Spalding created the first official ball in 1896, while others claim it was created in 1900. The rules evolved over time: in the Philippines by 1916, the skill and power of the set and spike had been introduced, and four years later a “three hits” rule and a rule against hitting from the back row were established. In 1917, the game was changed from 21 to 15 points. In 1919, about 16,000 volleyballs were distributed by the American Expeditionary Forces to their troops and allies, which sparked the growth of volleyball in new countries.
The first country outside the United States to adopt volleyball was Canada in 1900. An international federation, the Fédération Internationale de Volleyball (FIVB), was founded in 1947, and the first World Championships were held in 1949 for men and 1952 for women. The sport is now popular in Brazil, in Europe (where especially Italy, the Netherlands, and countries from Eastern Europe have been major forces since the late 1980s), in Russia, and in other countries including China and the rest of Asia, as well as in the United States.

February 9, 1870- National Weather Bureau Signed Into Law

Tom Knuppel Other

A Joint Congressional Resolution requiring the Secretary of War “to provide for taking meteorological observations at the military stations in the interior of the continent, and at other points in the States and Territories…and for giving notice on the northern lakes and on the seacoast, by magnetic telegraph and marine signals, of the approach and force of storms” was introduced. Congress passed the resolution and on February 9, 1870, President Ulysses S. Grant signed it into law. A new national weather service had been born within the U.S. Army Signal Service’s Division of Telegrams and Reports for the Benefit of Commerce that would affect the daily lives of most of the citizens of the United States through its forecasts and warnings for years to come. Gen. Albert J. Myer served as the first Director of the new weather service.

For the Whole Story

he National Weather Service (NWS) is an agency of the United States government that is tasked with providing weather forecasts, warnings of hazardous weather, and other weather-related products to organizations and the public for the purposes of protection, safety, and general information. It is a part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) branch of the Department of Commerce, and is headquartered in Silver Spring, Maryland (located just outside Washington, D.C.). The agency was known as the United States Weather Bureau from 1890 to 1970, when it adopted its current name.
The NWS performs its primary task through a collection of national and regional centers, and 122 local weather forecast offices (WFOs). As the NWS is a government agency, most of its products are in the public domain and available free of charge.

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In 1870, the Weather Bureau of the United States was established through a joint resolution of Congress signed by President Ulysses S. Grant with a mission to “provide for taking meteorological observations at the military stations in the interior of the continent and at other points in the States and Territories…and for giving notice on the northern (Great) Lakes and on the seacoast by magnetic telegraph and marine signals, of the approach and force of storms.” The agency was placed under the Secretary of War as Congress felt “military discipline would probably secure the greatest promptness, regularity, and accuracy in the required observations.” Within the Department of War, it was assigned to the U.S. Army Signal Service under Brigadier General Albert J. Myer. General Myer gave the National Weather Service its first name: The Division of Telegrams and Reports for the Benefit of Commerce.
Cleveland Abbe – who began developing probabilistic forecasts using daily weather data sent by the Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce and Western Union, which he convinced to back the collection of such information in 1869 – was appointed as the Bureau’s first chief meteorologist. In his earlier role as the civilian assistant to the chief of the Signal Service, Abbe urged the Department of War to research weather conditions to provide a scientific basis behind the forecasts; he would continue to urge the study of meteorology as a science after becoming Weather Bureau chief. While a debate went on between the Signal Service and Congress over whether the forecasting of weather conditions should be handled by civilian agencies or the Signal Service’s existing forecast office, a Congressional committee was formed to oversee the matter, recommending that the office’s operations be transferred to the Department of War following a two-year investigation.
The agency first became a civilian enterprise in 1890, when it became part of the Department of Agriculture. Under the oversight of that branch, the Bureau began issuing flood warnings and fire weather forecasts, and output the first daily national surface weather maps; it also established a network to distribute warnings for tropical cyclones as well as a data exchange service that relayed European weather analysis to the Bureau and vice versa. The first Weather Bureau radiosonde was launched in Massachusetts in 1937, which prompted a switch from routine aircraft observation to radiosondes within two years. The Bureau prohibited the word “tornado” from being used in any of its weather products out of concern for inciting panic (a move contradicted in its intentions by the high death tolls in past tornado outbreaks due to the lack of advanced warning) until 1938, when it began disseminating tornado warnings exclusively to emergency management personnel.
The Bureau would later be moved to the Department of Commerce in 1940. On July 12, 1950, bureau chief Francis W. Reichelderfer officially lifted the agency’s ban on public tornado alerts in a Circular Letter, noting to all first order stations that “Weather Bureau employees should avoid statements that can be interpreted as a negation of the Bureau’s willingness or ability to make tornado forecasts”, and that a “good probability of verification” exist when issuing such forecasts due to the difficulty in accurately predicting tornadic activity. However it would not be until it faced criticism for continuing to refuse to provide public tornado warnings and preventing the release of the USAF Severe Weather Warning Center’s tornado forecasts (pioneered in 1948 by Air Force Capt. Robert C. Miller and Major Ernest Fawbush) beyond military personnel that the Bureau issued its first experimental public tornado forecasts in March 1952. In 1957, the Bureau began using radars for short-term forecasting of local storms and hydrological events, using modified versions of those used by Navy aircraft to create the WSR-57 (Weather Surveillance Radar, 1957), with a network of WSR systems being deployed nationwide through the early 1960s; some of the radars were upgraded to WSR-74 models beginning in 1974.
The Weather Bureau became part of the Environmental Science Services Administration when that agency was formed in August 1966. The Environmental Science Services Administration was renamed the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) on October 1, 1970, with the enactment of the National Environmental Policy Act. At this time, the Weather Bureau became the National Weather Service.[5] NEXRAD (Next Generation Radar), a system of Doppler radars deployed to improve the detection and warning time of severe local storms, replaced the WSR-57 and WSR-74 systems between 1988 and 1997

February 8th- The Dawes Act of 1887 was Passed- It Divided Up Indian Land

Tom Knuppel History

Cherokee_Indian_Reservation_sign,_NC

The Dawes Act of 1887 (also known as the General Allotment Act or the Dawes Severalty Act of 1887), adopted by Congress in 1887, authorized the President of the United States to survey American Indian tribal land and divide it into allotments for individual Indians. Those who accepted allotments and lived separately from the tribe would be granted United States citizenship. The Dawes Act was amended in 1891, in 1898 by the Curtis Act, and again in 1906 by the Burke Act.
The Act was named for its creator, Senator Henry Laurens Dawes of Massachusetts. The objectives of the Dawes Act were to lift the Native Americans out of poverty and to stimulate assimilation of them into mainstream American society. Individual household ownership of land and subsistence farming on the European-American model was seen as an essential step. The act also provided what the government would classify as “excess” those Indian reservation lands remaining after allotments, and sell those lands on the open market, allowing purchase and settlement by non-Native Americans.
The Dawes Commission, set up under an Indian Office appropriation bill in 1893, was created to try to persuade the Five Civilized Tribes to agree to allotment plans. (They had been excluded from the Dawes Act by their treaties.) This commission registered the members of the Five Civilized Tribes on what became known as the Dawes Rolls.
The Curtis Act of 1898 amended the Dawes Act to extend its provisions to the Five Civilized Tribes; it required abolition of their governments, allotment of communal lands to people registered as tribal members, and sale of lands declared surplus, as well as dissolving tribal courts. This completed the extinguishment of tribal land titles in Indian Territory, preparing it to be admitted to the Union as the state of Oklahoma.

 

90 Million Acres Taken Away and Sold

During the ensuing decades, the Five Civilized Tribes lost 90 million acres of former communal lands, which were sold to non-Natives. In addition, many individuals, unfamiliar with land ownership, the target of speculators and criminals, and stuck with allotments that were too small for profitable farming, lost their household lands. Tribe members also suffered from the breakdown of the social structure of the tribes.
During the Great Depression, the Franklin D. Roosevelt administration supported passage on June 18, 1934 of the US Indian Reorganization Act (also known as the Wheeler-Howard Law). It ended land allotment and created a “New Deal” for Indians, renewing their rights to reorganize and form their self-governments.

The Indian Problem

During the 1850s, the United States federal government’s attempt to exert control over the Native Americans expanded. Numerous new European immigrants were settling on the eastern border of the Indian territories, where most of the Native Americans tribes were situated. Conflicts between the groups increased as they competed for resources and operated according to different cultural systems. Many European Americans did not believe that members of the two racial societies could coexist within the same communities. Searching for a quick solution to their problem, William Medill the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, proposed establishing “colonies” or “reservations” that would be exclusively for the natives, similar to those which some native tribes had created for themselves in the east. It was a form of removal whereby the US government would uproot the natives from their current locations to positions to areas in the region beyond the Mississippi River; this would enable settlement by European Americans in the Southeast in turn opening up new placement for the new white settlers and at the same time protecting them from the corrupt “evil” ways of the subordinate natives.
The new policy intended to concentrate Native Americans in areas away from encroaching settlers, but it caused considerable suffering and many deaths. During the nineteenth century, Native American tribes resisted the imposition of the reservation system and engaged with the United States Army in what were called the Indian Wars in the West for decades. Finally defeated by the US military force and continuing waves of encroaching settlers, the tribes negotiated agreements to resettle on reservations. Native Americans ended up with a total of over 155 million acres (630,000 km2) of land, ranging from arid deserts to prime agricultural land.

 

Put Them on a Reservation

The Reservation system, though forced upon Native Americans, was a system that allotted each tribe a claim to their new lands, protection over their territories, and the right to govern themselves. With the Senate supposedly being able to intervene only through the negotiation of treaties, they adjusted their ways of life and tried to continue their traditions. The traditional tribal organization, a defining characteristic of Native Americans as a social unit, became apparent to the non-native communities of the United States and created a mixed stir of emotions. The tribe was viewed as a highly cohesive group, led by a hereditary, chosen chief, who exercised power and influence among the members of the tribe by aging traditions. The tribes were seen as strong, tight-knit societies led by powerful men who were opposed to any change that weakened their positions. Many white Americans feared them and sought reformation. The Indians’ failure to adopt the “Euroamerican” lifestyle, which was the social norm in the United States at the time, was seen as both unacceptable and uncivilized.
By the end of the 1880s, a general consensus seem to have been reached among many US stakeholders that the assimilation of Native Americans into white American culture was top priority; it was the time for them to leave behind their tribal landholding, reservations, traditions and ultimately their Indian identities.
On February 8, 1887, the Dawes Allotment Act was signed into law by President Grover Cleveland.

Responsible for enacting the division of the American native reserves into plots of land for individual households, the Dawes Act was created by reformers to achieve six goals:
breaking up of tribes as a social unit,
encouraging individual initiatives,
furthering the progress of native farmers,
reducing the cost of native administration,
securing parts of the reservations as Indian land, and
opening the remainder of the land to white settlers for profit
The compulsory Act forced natives to succumb to their inevitable fate; they would undergo severe attempts to become “Euro-Americanized” as the government allotted their reservations with or without their consent. Native Americans held very specific ideologies pertaining to their land, to them the land and earth were things to be valued and cared for, for they represented all things that produced and sustained life, it embodied their existence and identity, and created an environment of belonging. In opposition to their white counterparts, they did not see it from an economic standpoint.
But, many natives began to believe they had to adapt to the majority culture in order to survive. They would have to embrace these beliefs and surrender to the forces of progress. They were to adopt the values of the dominant society and see land as real estate to be bought and developed; they were to learn how to use their land effectively in order to become prosperous farmers.[13] As they were inducted as citizens of the country, they would shed their uncivilized discourses and ideologies, and exchange them for ones that allowed them to become industrious self-supporting citizens, and finally rid themselves of their “need” for government supervision.

Provisions of the Dawes Act

The important provisions of the Dawes Act were:
A head of family would receive a grant of 160 acres (0.65 km2), a single person or orphan over 18 years of age would receive a grant of 80 acres (320,000 m2), and persons under the age of 18 would receive 40 acres (160,000 m2) each;
the allotments would be held in trust by the U.S. Government for 25 years;
Eligible Indians had four years to select their land; afterward the selection would be made for them by the Secretary of the Interior.

Every member of the bands or tribes receiving a land allotment is subject to laws of the state or territory in which they reside. Every Indian who receives a land allotment “and has adopted the habits of civilized life” (lived separate and apart from the tribe) is bestowed with United States citizenship “without in any manner impairing or otherwise affecting the right of any such Indian to tribal or other property.”
The Secretary of Interior could issue rules to assure equal distribution of water for irrigation among the tribes, and provided that “no other appropriation or grant of water by any riparian proprietor shall be authorized or permitted to the damage of any other riparian proprietor.”
The Dawes Act did not apply to the territory of the:
Cherokee, Creek, Choctaw, Chickasaw, Seminole, Miami and Peoria in Indian Territory
Osage, Sac and Fox, in the Oklahoma Territory
any of the reservations of the Seneca Nation of New York, or
a strip of territory in the State of Nebraska adjoining the Sioux Nation
Provisions were later extended to the Wea, Peoria, Kaskaskia, Piankeshaw, and Western Miami tribes by act of 1889.[19] Allotment of the lands of these tribes was mandated by the Act of 1891, which amplified the provisions of the Dawes Act

The Beatles Land in NYC February 7, 1964

Tom Knuppel History

 

An estimated four thousand Beatles’ fans were present on 7 February 1964 as Pan Am Flight 101 left Heathrow Airport. Among the passengers were the Beatles, on their first trip to the United States as a band, with their entourage of photographers and journalists, and Phil Spector. When the group arrived at New York’s newly renamed John F. Kennedy Airport, they were greeted by a second large crowd, with Beatles fans again estimated to number four thousand, and journalists, two hundred.From having so many people packed in a little space, a few people in the crowd got injured. The airport had not previously experienced such a large crowd.

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After a press conference, where they first met disc jockey Murray the K, the Beatles were put into limousines—one per Beatle—and driven to New York City. On the way, McCartney turned on a radio and listened to a running commentary: “They have just left the airport and are coming to New York City…” After reaching the Plaza Hotel, the Beatles were besieged by fans and reporters. Harrison had a fever of 102 °F (39 °C) the next day and was ordered to stay in bed, so Neil Aspinall, the band’s personal assistant, replaced Harrison on guitar during the Beatles’ first rehearsal for The Ed Sullivan Show. On the 9th February 1964, the Beatles made their first live U.S. television appearance. 73 million viewers—about two-fifths of the total American population—watched the group perform on The Ed Sullivan Show at 8 P.M. According to the Nielsen ratings audience measurement system, the show had the largest number of viewers that had been recorded for a U.S. television program.
Two days after the television appearance, on 11 February 1964, the Beatles’ first U.S. concert took place, at Washington Coliseum, a sports arena in Washington, D.C. The concert was attended by eight thousand fans. The Beatles performed on a central stage in the arena, with the audience on all sides, and there were regular pauses to enable the band to turn their equipment around and perform facing in another direction. The concert generated intense excitement. The following day, the Beatles performed a second concert, in Carnegie Hall, New York, which was attended by two thousand fans. The concert was again well received. Following the Carnegie Hall concert, the Beatles flew to Miami Beach and on Sunday 16 February 1964 made their second television appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show, which this time was broadcast live from the Napoleon Ballroom of the Deauville Hotel in Miami Beach. As it had done on 9 February, the television broadcast attracted around 70 million viewers. On 22 February 1964, the Beatles returned to the UK. Arriving at Heathrow airport at 7 am, they were met by an estimated ten thousand fans

“Miniaturized Electronic Circuits” Patent on February 6, 1959

Tom Knuppel Other

 

Jack St. Clair Kilby

Kilby received his bachelor of science degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he was an honorary member of Acacia Fraternity. In 1947, he received a degree in Electrical Engineering. He obtained his master of science in Electrical Engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Extension in Milwaukee (which later became the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee) in 1950, while simultaneously working at Centralab in Milwaukee.

In mid-1958, Kilby, as a newly employed engineer at Texas Instruments (TI), did not yet have the right to a summer vacation. He spent the summer working on the problem in circuit design that was commonly called the “tyranny of numbers” and finally came to the conclusion that manufacturing the circuit components en masse in a single piece of semiconductor material could provide a solution. On September 12 he presented his findings to management, which included Mark Shepherd. He showed them a piece of germanium with an oscilloscope attached, pressed a switch, and the oscilloscope showed a continuous sine wave, proving that his integrated circuit worked and thus that he had solved the problem. U.S. Patent 3,138,743 for “Miniaturized Electronic Circuits”, the first integrated circuit, was filed on February 6, 1959.[4] Along with Robert Noyce (who independently made a similar circuit a few months later), Kilby is generally credited as co-inventor of the integrated circuit.
Jack Kilby went on to pioneer military, industrial, and commercial applications of microchip technology. He headed teams that built both the first military system and the first computer incorporating integrated circuits. He later co-invented both the hand-held calculator and the thermal printer that was used in portable data terminals.
In 1970, he took a leave of absence from TI to work as an independent inventor. He explored, among other subjects, the use of silicon technology for generating electrical power from sunlight. From 1978 to 1984 he held the position of Distinguished Professor of Electrical Engineering at Texas A&M University.

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He is also the inventor of the handheld calculator and the thermal printer, for which he has patents. He also has patents for seven other inventions.
In 1983, Kilby retired from Texas Instruments.