Moments In Time

Jun 30, 20110

The History Channel

• On July 16, 1863, the draft riots enter their fourth day in New York City in response to the Enrollment Act. Although avoiding military service became much more difficult, wealthier citizens could still pay a commutation fee of $300 to remain at home.

• On July 11, 1899, E.B. White, the author of the popular children’s novels “Charlotte’s Web,” “Stuart Little” and “The Trumpet of the Swan,” is born in Mount Vernon, N.Y. White also updated and expanded “The Elements of Style,” an English usage guide that remains a standard text for many students.

• On July 15, 1903, the newly formed Ford Motor Company takes its first order, from Chicago dentist Ernst Pfenning. The $850 two-cylinder Model A automobile with a tonneau (or backseat) was produced at Ford’s plant on Mack Street (now Mack Avenue) in Detroit, and delivered to Dr. Pfenning just over a week later.

• On July 12, 1957, Dwight Eisenhower becomes the first president to ride in a helicopter, a Bell UH-13-J Sioux. Eisenhower suggested the idea to the Secret Service, which saw it as safer and more efficient than the traditional limousine motorcade.

• On July 14, 1968, Atlanta Braves slugger Henry “Hank” Aaron hits the 500th home run of his career in a 4-2 win over the San Francisco Giants. Aaron hit a three-run shot in the third inning off Giants’ pitcher Mike McCormick to become the seventh player in baseball history to hit 500 homers.

• On July 17, 1975, as part of a mission aimed at developing space rescue capability, the U.S. spacecraft Apollo 18 and the Soviet spacecraft Soyuz 19 rendezvous and dock in space. During the 44-hour Apollo-Soyuz embrace, the astronauts and cosmonauts conducted experiments, shared meals and held a joint news conference.

• On July 13, 1985, at Wembley Stadium in London, Prince Charles and Princess Diana officially open Live Aid, a worldwide rock concert organized to raise money for the relief of famine-stricken Africans. The 16-hour “superconcert” was globally linked by satellite to more than a billion viewers in 110 nations.