Today is Wednesday, Feb. 15, the 46th day of 2006. There are 319 days left in the year. On this date

Today is Wednesday, Feb. 15, the 46th day of 2006. There are 319 days left in the year. On this date in 1898, the U.S. battleship Maine mysteriously blows up in Havana Harbor, killing more than 260 crew members and bringing the United States closer to war with Spain.
In 1564, Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei is born in Pisa. In 1764, the city of St. Louis is established. In 1820, American suffragist Susan B. Anthony is born in Adams, Mass. In 1879, President Hayes signs a bill allowing female attorneys to argue cases before the Supreme Court. In 1933, President-elect Franklin D. Roosevelt escapes an assassination attempt in Miami that claims the life of Chicago Mayor Anton J. Cermak. In 1942, the British colony Singapore surrenders to the Japanese during World War II. In 1961, 73 people, including an 18-member U.S. figure skating team en route to Czechoslovakia, are killed in the crash of a Sabena Airlines Boeing 707 in Belgium. In 1965, Canada's new maple-leaf flag is unfurled in ceremonies in Ottawa. In 1986, the Philippines National Assembly proclaims Ferdinand E. Marcos president for another six years, following an election marked by allegations of fraud. (Marcos is later ousted.) In 1989, the Soviet Union announces that the last of its troops had left Afghanistan, after more than nine years of military intervention. In 1996, a federal judge temporarily blocks the Communications Decency Act, saying the government has to explain what material it considers indecent before it can enforce the law, designed to protect children from sexually explicit material on computer networks.
February 15, 1981: Bankruptcy cases in Youngstown doubled in 1980, as had been predicted by loan officers and department store managers when bankruptcy laws were eased.
Youngstown, the 7th largest city in Ohio by population, ranked 8th in the state in the amount of federal money received per person, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Three groups of Youngstown area residents arrive home after escaping from a fire at the Las Vegas Hilton. Among them were John J. Cafaro, executive vice president of the Cafaro Co., and his wife and a daughter.
February 15, 1966: Nathaniel C. Lee, president of the Ohio and Youngstown chapters of the NAACP, says Negro and white leaders alike share the responsibility for inequities that still exist in Youngstown. White business leaders have not done enough to appoint Negroes to responsible positions; Negroes have done little to motivate youth to high standards.
Boardman Township trustees approve reopening of the controversial rock 'n' roll dance hall, the Old Barn, under certain conditions.
Eloise Witte, 40, of Cincinnati, the Grand Empress of the Ku Klux Klan in Ohio denies plotting to kill the president and vice president and blowing up the White House.
February 15, 1956: Three drunken drivers are fined $100 and sentenced to 30 days in jail after appearing in Youngstown Municipal Court.
The General Services Administration gives the green light to its New York office to complete sale of the government-owned foundry in New Castle, Pa., to the United Engineering Co. of Pittsburgh.
Sharon Mayor Michael J. Dunn appeals to Gov. George Leader to send state police to the city to restore peace on the picket line at strikebound Westinghouse electric plants.
February 15, 1931: Youngstown City Council decides that accusations that Traction Commissioner Harry Engle demanded $150,000 from the Ohio Edison Co. for alleged services he rendered to the company, are too serious to ignore and must be investigated.
Viola Carlson, 12, is struck and killed while crossing the road near Palmyra Center on her way from her home to a birthday party. The car was driven by a Sharon school teacher on her way through Warren to her home in Akron. A witness said the accident was unavoidable.