Years Ago

Today is Wednesday, Aug. 31, the 243rd day of 2011. There are 122 days left in the year.

ASSOCIATED PRESS

On this date in:

1886: At 9:51 p.m., an earthquake with an estimated magnitude of 7.3 devastates Charleston, S.C., killing at least 60 people, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

1888: Mary Ann Nichols, the apparent first victim of “Jack the Ripper,” is found slain in London’s East End.

1954: Hurricane Carol hits the northeastern Atlantic states; Connecticut, Rhode Island and part of Massachusetts bear the brunt of the storm and the nearly 70 deaths.

1969: Boxer Rocky Marciano dies in a light airplane crash in Iowa, a day before his 46th birthday.

1980: Poland’s Solidarity labor movement is born with an agreement signed in Gdansk that ends a 17-day-old strike.

1986: The Soviet passenger ship Admiral Nakhimov collides with a merchant vessel in the Black Sea, causing both to sink; up to 448 people reportedly died.

1991: Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan declare independence, raising to 10 the republics seeking to secede from the Soviet Union.

VINDICATOR FILES

1986: Unseasonably cold days and downright chilly nights put a damper on attendance during the first two days of Canfield Fair with only 128,313 going through the turnstiles.

Youngstown Mayor Patrick J. Ungaro acknowledges that he’s having second thoughts about keeping the Mahoning County Human Services Department in downtown Youngstown.

Youngstown Class B Baseball Inc., a nonprofit organization, proposes constructing a $400,000 gym at Pemberton Park, which the group has been leasing from the city to continue its sandlot baseball program.

1971: Just over 20 percent of young people between 18 and 21 who are eligible to vote have registered in Mahoning County; Election board officials expect to reach 50 percent before election day.

Tom Holden presents trophies to champion Springfield Stroh’s and runner up Youngstown Curve Form following the finals of the Ohio Slow Pitch Softball Tournament at Oakland Field.

The cost of cleaning up the murky Mahoning River to meet standards being sought by the federal government are estimated at $336 million by William J. Harnish, local consultant.

1961: Col. Clara Raven, a former Youngstown woman now living in Detroit, becomes the first woman in Army Medical Corps history to wear the silver eagles of a full colonel.

Willis Miller, 31, of Mineral Ridge saves himself from a fiery death by smashing out the rear window and scrambling to safety after his car left N. Meridian Road rolled over and caught fire.

1936: Despite morning rains and threatening skies throughout the day, Mayor Lionel Evans and several thousand Youngstowners throng to the Great Lakes Exposition in Cleveland on “Youngstown Day.”

Vindicator Political Writer Clingan Jackson predicts a record vote in Mahoning County when the electorate decides some of the stormiest local and national issues..

Yeggs open three office safes over the weekend escaping with at least $700 from the Marquette Furniture Co. on Federal Street, which had two safes, and the Isaly Dairy store on Himrod Avenue.

Mahoning County Deputies John Suciu and Frank French fire eight shots at a prowler who was spotted at the Walko Farm in Austintown.