Today in history

Today is Wednesday, June 24, the 175th day of 2009. There are 190 days left in the year. On this date in 1509, Henry VIII is crowned king of England; his wife, Catherine of Aragon, is crowned queen consort.

In 1314, the forces of Scotland’s King Robert I defeat the English in the Battle of Bannockburn. In 1497, the first recorded sighting of North America by a European takes place as explorer John Cabot spots land, probably in present-day Canada. In 1793, the first republican constitution in France is adopted. In 1807, a grand jury in Richmond, Va., indicts former Vice President Aaron Burr on charges of treason and high misdemeanor. (He is later acquitted).

June 24, 1984: A museum opens to tell the story of Pithole City, a boomtown in Venango County, Pa., about 14 miles from Drake’s first oil well, which had as many as 15,000 residents in the years immediately after the Civil War and died quickly when the oil wells ran dry.

Austintown Fire Chief Roy Ricker and Boardman Chief Donald Cover say Ohio’s wholesale fireworks law has loopholes that encourage individuals to buy fireworks for personal use. The law is a sham, says Ricker.

Capt. Henry E. Harris Jr. takes over the command of the Naval Reserve Readiness Command Region 5 in Ravenna from Capt. Donald L. Lukinbeal.

June 24, 1969: A plan to merge the G.M. McKelvey Co., the Youngstown district’s largest independent retail establishment, into the Higbee Co. of Cleveland is approved by McKelvey shareholders at a special meeting.

Boardman police raid the Esquire Barbershop and confiscate several hundred dollars worth of illegal fireworks.

Walter E. Gregg of Sewickley, Pa., is elected president of Sharon Steel Corp., chairman Victor Posner announces.

June 24, 1959: Youngstown City Council is asked to consider higher fares for school tickets on Youngstown Transit Co. buses. Traction Commissioner James W. Cannon estimates that the company has lost more than $29,000 so far in 1959 providing student transportation.

East Ohio Gas Co. is working on nearly 200 new wells in its territory that have a value estimated at between $6.5 and $10 million.

June 24, 1934: Congressman John G. Cooper, R-Youngstown, returns home after what he described as the most important session he has attended in his 20 years in Congress. He says that if President Roosevelt uses the power granted him in the tariff bill wisely, “it will mean a great deal more to the country than people imagine.”

Commander J.J. Burns of Youngstown Chapter No. 2 of Disabled American Veterans of the World War announces that the campaign for a $25,000 rehabilitation fund will be extended to June 30.