Years Ago

Today is Wednesday, March 20, the 79th day of 2013. There are 286 days left in the year. Spring arrives at 7:02 a.m. EDT.

ASSOCIATED PRESS

On this date in:

1852: Harriet Beecher Stowe’s influential novel about slavery, “Uncle Tom’s Cabin,” is first published in book form after being serialized.

1912: A coal mine explosion in McCurtain, Okla., claims 73 lives.

1933: The state of Florida electrocutes Giuseppe Zangara for the shooting death of Chicago Mayor Anton J. Cermak at a Miami event attended by President-elect Franklin D. Roosevelt, the presumed target, the previous February.

1995: In Tokyo, 12 people die and more than 5,500 others are sickened when packages containing the poisonous gas sarin are leaked on five separate subway trains by Aum Shinrikyo cult members.

VINDICATOR FILES

1988: The Mathews High Lady Mustangs cap a 27-0 season with a 63-48 victory over Utica High to win the Division III State Championship at St. John’s Arena on the OSU campus. Dianne Rappach has 20 points, followed by Judy Santiago with 16 and Holly Bottar with 10.

John and Maria Boehm are honored as the Saxon Club man and woman of the year at a banquet at the South Meridian Road club.

1973: The FBI files a charge of destruction of interstate property against Pittsburgh Steeler Earnest Lee Holmes for allegedly firing at and striking an Avon products truck in I-76 near route 534.

Memorial Entrance Drive in Mill Creek Park is closed after a 25-foot section of the road splits. Engineers will determine the extent of the damage and what’s needed to repair it.

1963: U.S. Rep. Michael J. Kirwan announces a $1.3 million grant for Youngstown’s Urban Renewal project in the River Bend area.

Mayor Harry Savasten says a lack of a systematic follow-up on delinquent tickets is a major factor in the collection lag of thousands of parking tickets in 1962. City council discusses increasing the parking fine from $1 to $3 for violators who fail to pay within 72 hours.

1938: William Thorington, 23, is shot in the abdomen when his 32-caliber pistol falls from his pocket and discharges while he was helping the Rev. M.H. McDaniels change a tire. He is in St. Elizabeth Hospital in serious condition.

Mahoning County Relief Director Isadore L. Feuer says every relief recipient in the county will be asked to reregister in an effort to eliminate those who are no longer in absolute need.