June 19/history

[more] What else happened today

1866 — Timothy O'Hea puts out a fire on a Grand Trunk train at Danville, Quebec, Canada, loaded with 95 barrels of gunpowder. He saves passengers and troops and receives first and only Victoria Cross awarded for valor inside Canada. 1903 — The US military officially adopts the M1903 Springfield as its standard service rifle. It would not be replaced until 1936, by the faster-firing, semi-automatic M1 Garand. 1918 — Canadian air ace Billy Bishop shoots down five German planes in his last dogfight, bringing his total enemy kills to 72. 1968 — The Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 was enacted by the U.S. Congress. 2000 — The Violence Policy Center made headlines when it issued a press release stating that its website was the victim of a hacking attack that wiped out their data. 2006 — Bill C-21, an early attempt by the Conservative Party of Canada to put the Canadian gun registry out of everyone else's misery, received first reading in the House of Commons.