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Thursday, March 06, 2003     Page: 2A

The Valley Then: In, 1914 four inches of snow fell in the area, on top of a
blizzard with seven inches four days before and 18 innches in late February,
including a storm of 12 inches.
   
Highlight in History:
    On March 6, 1853, Verdi’s opera “La Traviata” premiered in Venice, Italy.
   
On this date:
   
In 1834, the city of York in Upper Canada was incorporated as Toronto.
   
In 1836, the Alamo in San Antonio, Texas, fell to Mexican forces after a
13-day siege.
   
In 1857, in its “Dred Scott” decision, the Supreme Court held that Scott,
a slave, could not sue for his freedom in federal court.
   
In 1933, a nationwide bank holiday declared by President Franklin Roosevelt
went into effect.
   
In 1935, retired Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Junior died in
Washington.
   
In 1944, U.S. heavy bombers staged the first American raid on Berlin during
World War II.
   
In 1957, the former British African colonies of the Gold Coast and Togoland
became the independent state of Ghana.
   
In 1981, Walter Cronkite signed off for the last time as principal
anchorman of “The CBS Evening News.”
   
In 1983, in a case that drew much notoriety, a woman in New Bedford, Mass.,
reported being gang-raped atop a pool table in a tavern called Big Dan’s; four
men were later convicted in the attack.
   
In 1987, 189 people died when the British ferry Herald of Free Enterprise
capsized off the Belgian port of Zeebrugge.
   
Ten years ago: As a standoff at the Branch Davidian compound near Waco,
Texas, ended its first week, authorities appealed publicly to David Koresh and
his followers to give themselves up.
   
Five years ago: The Army honored three Americans who risked their lives and
turned their weapons on fellow soldiers to stop the slaughter of Vietnamese
villagers at My Lai in 1968. A Connecticut state lottery accountant shot to
death three supervisors and the lottery chief before killing himself.
   
One year ago: Independent Counsel Robert Ray issued his final report in
which he wrote that former President Clinton could have been indicted and
probably would have been convicted in the scandal involving former White House
intern Monica Lewinsky. Federal regulators approved the proposed $22 billion
merger of Hewlett-Packard Company and Compaq Computer Corporation.