Years Ago

Today is Friday, July 8, the 189th day of 2011. There are 176 days left in the year.

ASSOCIATED PRESS

On this date in:

1776: Col. John Nixon gives the first public reading of the Declaration of Independence, in Philadelphia.

1911: Cowgirl “Two-Gun Nan” Aspinwall becomes the first woman to make a solo trip by horse across the United States, arriving in New York 10 months after departing San Francisco.

1950: President Harry S. Truman names Gen. Douglas MacArthur commander-in-chief of United Nations forces in Korea. (Truman sacks MacArthur for insubordination nine months later.)

VINDICATOR FILES

1986: The Lordstown Board of Education hires Ronald Schuster, former Girard superintendent, as superintendent of Lordstown schools at a salary of $45,000.

Gov. Richard F. Celeste declares a state of emergency and orders the National Guard to provide personnel and equipment to alleviate a water shortage at Guilford Lake in Columbiana County.

1971: Channel 33 TV announcer, Michael Palgyi, 23, known as Mike Edwards on TV, and a Pittsburgh pilot are killed in the crash of a small plane near Pittsburgh.

An 18-month old girl found in a parked car on Carrol Street in Youngstown is placed in foster care while police attempt to identify her.

1961: Police raid the basement of the Victoria Restaurant on Belmont Avenue, which they describe as a breeding ground for teenage tragedy where young people could order anything from pop to straight whiskey.

1936: General Fireproofing Co. is spending $100,000 to increase capacity and employment and Truscon Steel reports it has doubled employment and tripled output over two months.

The winner of the Vindicator-Chevrolet Soap Box Derby will get a 16-inch trophy, a pen and pencil set and a pony, bridled, saddled and ready to go.

Chicago officials say record high temperatures in the city are responsible for 53 deaths.