Today is Friday, March 4, the 63rd day of 2005. There are 302 days left in the year. On this date in

Today is Friday, March 4, the 63rd day of 2005. There are 302 days left in the year. On this date in 1933, Franklin D. Roosevelt is inaugurated president, pledging to lead the country out of the Great Depression. (The start of President Roosevelt's first administration brings with it the first woman to serve in the Cabinet: Labor Secretary Frances Perkins.)
In 1789, the Constitution of the United States goes into effect as the first Federal Congress meets in New York. The lawmakers then adjourn for lack of a quorum. In 1791, Vermont becomes the 14th state. In 1837, the Illinois state legislature grants a city charter to Chicago. In 1861, Abraham Lincoln is inaugurated president. In 1902, the American Automobile Association is founded in Chicago. In 1925, President Calvin Coolidge's inauguration is broadcast live on 21 radio stations coast-to-coast. In 1952, actors Ronald Reagan and Nancy Davis are married in San Fernando Valley, Calif. In 1981, a jury in Salt Lake City convicts Joseph Paul Franklin, an avowed racist, of violating the civil rights of two black men who were shot to death. In 1987, President Reagan addresses the nation on the Iran-Contra affair, acknowledging his overtures to Iran had "deteriorated" into an arms-for-hostages deal. In 1994, in New York, four extremists are convicted of the World Trade Center bombing that kills six people and injures more than 1,000.
March 4, 1980: New electric rates are taking effect for Ohio Edison customers in Northeastern Ohio that will mean higher bills for 69,000 customer and lower bills for 77,000 who live in unincorporated areas. The change follows an equalization order approved by the Ohio Supreme Court.
Warren Municipal Judge Joseph Craciun, 68, a dominant force in judicial circles and Republican politics for more than 30 years, dies of a heart ailment. He was 68.
Damage could run as high as $500,000 in a fire that destroyed a beef cattle barn on the Brookfield Farms behind Brookfield Dairy in South Pymatuning Township. The barn was part of the beef cattle operation owned by the Kirila Brothers of Brookfield.
March 4, 1965: A veteran lawmaker tells proponents of a bill that would require local school districts to provide bus transportation to parochial school students that the only bill with a possibility of passage would be one that permits, but does not mandate, such transportation.
Richard Cardinal Cushing, Roman Catholic archbishop of Boston, lends his support to a move to legalize the dissemination of birth control information and devices in Massachusetts, although he disapproves of the particular bill pending before the legislature.
The Boardman Spartans roar to their 21st consecutive victory, beating the Howland Tigers, 82-61, in the Class AA sectional basketball tournament at Struthers Field House.
March 4, 1955: Following an investigation by the Mahoning County Bar Association into legal malpractice and the practice of law by lay persons, a Cincinnati judge assigned by the Ohio Supreme Court will conduct hearings on charges against five Youngstown lawyers. The specific charges are secret.
A series of brilliant electrical storms thunder over the Youngstown District dumping more than an inch of rain on the area. A Sharon woman is stunned by a lightning bolt and a sales barn in Kinsman was damaged by a strike.
Airman Second Class Thomas C. Morris, 20, of Youngstown is reported safe after the Military Air Transport Service plane he was aboard crashed near an Iceland air base.
March 4, 1930: Protesting parents, petitions from school districts and letters of disapproval did not deter the Youngstown Board of Education from making budget reductions totaling $560,000. Forty-one kindergarten classes are being closed and all married teachers who are not the sole means of support for a family will lose their jobs.
The Youngstown Board of Education undertakes an investigation into a complaint filed by John A. Aiken that his son, Frank, was brutally paddled by Principal Amy Eldridge at Bancroft School. Miss Eldridge told board members she was not angry when she paddled the boy and the severity of the punishment was exaggerated. Superintendent Richeson has indicated he does not favor use of the paddle.
Youngstown Police Chief Paul Lyden exonerates three policemen found in a bootleg joint by vice officers conducting a raid. The men were involved in investigations that had been approved by their superiors.
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