Today is Monday, Sept. 15, the 259th day of 2008. There are 107 days left in the year. On this date

Today is Monday, Sept. 15, the 259th day of 2008. There are 107 days left in the year. On this date in 1789, the U.S. Department of Foreign Affairs is renamed the Department of State.

In 1776, British forces occupy New York City during the American Revolution. In 1821, independence from Spain is proclaimed for Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and El Salvador. In 1857, William Howard Taft, who served as president of the United States and as U.S. chief justice, is born in Cincinnati. In 1858, the third debate between senatorial candidates Abraham Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas is held in Jonesboro, Ill. In 1935, the Nuremberg Laws deprive German Jews of their citizenship. In 1940, during the Battle of Britain in World War II, the tide turns as the Luftwaffe sustains heavy losses inflicted by the Royal Air Force. In 1958, a New Jersey commuter train plunges off a partially open drawbridge into Newark Bay, killing 48 people. In 1963, four black girls are killed when a bomb goes off during Sunday services at the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Ala. (Three Ku Klux Klansmen are eventually convicted for their roles in the blast.)

September 15, 1983: More than 150 citizens turn out at a Campbell City Council meeting to protest the city’s plan to award a franchise for refuse collection to Wesco Inc. All city residents would be billed $4.80 a month for trash and garbage collection.

Frank F. Davis resigns as chairmen of Commuter Aircraft Corp., which once had high hopes of building airplanes in Youngstown but has become virtually a shell of a corporation.

September 15, 1968: St. Elizabeth Hospital will receive a $1.7 million Hill-Burton grant to assist in its expansion and renovation program.

Charley Pride, the first Negro country music artist to be signed to a major record label, will be featured at the Grand Ole Opry show at Stambaugh Auditorium. Jeannie C. Riley, who sings “Harper Valley PTA,” will also appear.

More than 5,000 teenagers are marching in the tri-county Youngstown area to raise funds for ALSAC (Aiding Leukemia Stricken American Children) and its major project, St. Jude Hospital in Memphis, Tenn.

September 15, 1958: Michael J. Kirwan of Youngstown and Frank Clark of Bessemer, Pa., both Democrats, receive high marks for the voting records by the Americans for Democratic Action, which rates congressmen on their support of liberal causes.

The Sharon, Pa., father and son team of Harry and Lou Rotunno win the Youngstown District Amateur Golf Association’s best ball tournament.

More than 1,000 people join high-ranking Catholic clergy to honor the Very Rev. Msgr. Leo Adamiak, pastor of Holy Trinity Ukrainian Byzantine Rite Catholic Church at a testimonial dinner. He was elevated to the rank of papal chamberlain during ceremonies in Philadelphia.

September 15, 1933: Told that the federal works administration will not provide money to cities for projects that the cities themselves could borrow to build, Youngstown City Council abandons its public works plan, including the purchase of land for a new airport.

The Mahoning County Taxpayers Protective League passes a resolution calling for the removal of John J. Farrell, chairman of the Mahoning County Democratic Party, from the Mahoning County board of elections. Farrell has called on voters to reject a charter repeal amendment backed by the league.

Henry A. Roemer, president of Sharon Steel Hoop Co., is elected chairman of the board of directors and will fill both positions.