March 30th in NYC History
Posted: Mar 30, 2013 | 12:25 AM
by Jared Goldstein
1865: The New York City Fire Department is established, which consolidated and replaced rival volunteer fire companies that would sometimes battle each other outside the blazes to determine who would get the spoils from looting the buildings.
We honor the New York Fire Department on the World Trade Center Tour, 20% of the profits benefit the New York Firefighters Burn Center Foundation and the Complete 9/11 Timeline, both of which are highly efficient volunteer-managed charities.
1867: Secretary of State William Seward, a great New Yorker who served as Senator and Governor, reached agreement with Russia to
purchase Alaska for $7.2 million, which was ridiculed as "Seward's Folly."
Now it is considered visionary.
(Seward also managed to keep Britain and France out of the Civil War.) I regard him as the best Secretary of State.
We see the Seward's statue on Madison Square tours; on Santa Claus tours; Flatiron tours; Ladies Mile tours; and Chelsea Tours.
We see his historic eponymous High School on Lower East Side tours.
1909: The Queensborough Bridge opened, connecting Manhattan and Queens. It is also known as the 59th Street Bridge, and the Koch Bridge.
We see this bridge on Roosevelt Island tours.
1940: New York Knicks champion and 1972 MVP, Jerry Lucas, born. He is an amazing person. He is a memory expert.
I love the Knicks from that era. Such characters. Rhodes Scholar and Senator Bill Bradley is a Knick from that era, too.
1964: What is the name of the TV game show "Jeopardy!" that premiered on NBC in NYC on this date?
1979: Norah Jones born in Brooklyn.
1986: Actor James Cagney died at age 86.
He lived down the block from me generations before I was born.
1999: A Portland, Oregon jury ordered New York City based Philip Morris to pay $81 million to the survivors of a man who died of lung cancer after smoking Marlboros for four decades.