YEARS AGO FOR MAY 4

Today is Saturday, May 4, the 124th day of 2019. There are 241 days left in the year.

ASSOCIATED PRESS

On this date in:

1626: Dutch explorer Peter Minuit lands on present-day Manhattan Island.

1886: At Haymarket Square in Chicago, a labor demonstration for an eight-hour work day turns into a deadly riot when a bomb explodes.

1925: An international conference opens in Geneva to forge an agreement against the use of chemical and biological weapons in war.

1959: The first Grammy Awards ceremony takes place at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. Domenico Modugno wins Record of the Year and Song of the Year for “Nel Blu Dipinto Di Blu (Volare)”; Henry Mancini won Album of the Year for “The Music from Peter Gunn.”

1961: The first group of “Freedom Riders” leaves Washington, D.C., to challenge racial segregation on interstate buses and in bus terminals.

1970: Ohio National Guardsmen open fire during an anti-war protest at Kent State University, killing four students, including Sandra Scheuer of Boardman, and wounding nine others.

VINDICATOR FILES

1994: Two challengers tied to Michael Morley’s Democrats for Change defeat incumbents backed by Mahoning Democratic Party Chairman Don L. Hanni Jr.in the Democratic primary. Anthony Vivo defeats Mahoning County Clerk of Courts Joseph Markovicth for clerk of courts and Dr. David Kennedy defeats Coroner Richard Fiorini.

Dennis Vitt, chairman of the Mahoning County Republican Party, loses his bid for re-election as a precinct committeeman in Poland Township, meaning he won’t be eligible to run for the party chairmanship.

U.S. Rep. James A. Traficant Jr. will meet with high- 1961: The first group of “Freedom Riders” leaves Washington, D.C., to challenge racial segregation on interstate buses and in bus terminals.

Ranking Defense Department finance officials will discuss ways in which the Pentagon can atone for the Clinton Administration’s snub of the Mahoning Valley in competition for a finance center.

1979: The Federal Aviation Administration informs Youngstown that it is in violation of FAA Act 308 and faces a cutoff of all federal funds at Youngstown Municipal Airport for refusing to allow private aircraft owners the right to refuel their planes.

A walkout by long-distance operators at the United Telephone Co. in Warren is joined by other union workers, curtailing company operations.

The city of Youngstown will increase its water rates by 10 percent in response to a projected deficit of $500,000 in the Water Department’s budget. The increase will cost the average residential customer $2 per quarter.

1969: Trophies are awarded to winners of the dance-band competition during Hi-Y and Tri-Hi-Y Day at Idora Park. Accepting the trophies are Al Teare, student director of the Beaver, Pa., band; Charles R. Short Jr., student director of the Rochester, Pa., band, and Dan Colaluca, student director of the Struthers Band.

President Nixon’s proposal to repeal the 7 percent investment tax credit, combined with merger problems, might prove a serious blow to the Youngstown district’s efforts to restore itself as a major business center.

Joyce Altrudi defeats 146 spellers to win The Vindicator’s 36th annual spelling bee, bringing the title to St. Patrick’s School for the ninth time.

1944: The Youngstown Hospital Association and St. Elizabeth Hospital have been selected by the War Production Board as depots for the distribution of penicillin for civilian medical use.

Six Youngstown men have been wounded in action in the Mediterranean area. They are Mason Dyer, James Fretlose, Willard Hartman Jr., Robert Kurtz, Harold Noday and Robert Beck.