MOMENTS IN TIME

Jan 26, 20120

The History Channel

• On Feb. 7, 1812, the most violent of a series of earthquakes near Missouri causes a so-called fluvial tsunami in the Mississippi River, making the river run backward for several hours. The strongest of the aftershocks, an 8.8-magnitude, caused church bells to ring in Boston, more than a thousand miles away.

• On Feb. 8, 1924, the first execution by lethal gas in American history is carried out in Carson City, Nev. The executed man was Tong Lee, a member of a Chinese gang who was convicted of murdering a rival gang member.

• On Feb. 11, 1937, after a six-week sit-down strike by General Motors autoworkers in Flint, Mich., GM president Alfred P. Sloan signs the first union contract in the history of the American auto industry. Today, the UAW has more than 390,000 active members and more than a 600,000 retired members.

• On Feb. 6, 1952, King George VI of Great Britain and Northern Ireland dies in his sleep at the royal estate at Sandringham. Princess Elizabeth, the oldest of the king’s two daughters and next in line to succeed him, was crowned Queen Elizabeth II on June 2, 1953, at age 27.

• On Feb. 10, 1962, Francis Gary Powers, an American who was shot down over the Soviet Union while flying a CIA spy plane in 1960, is released by the Soviets in exchange for the U.S. release of a Russian spy. On May 1, 1960, Powers’ U-2 had been shot down by a Soviet missile. Although Powers was supposed to engage the plane’s self-destruct system (and commit suicide with poison furnished by the CIA), he and much of the plane were captured.

• On Feb. 9, 1971, pitcher Leroy “Satchel” Paige becomes the first Negro League veteran to be nominated for the Baseball Hall of Fame. He was inducted in August of that year. Joe DiMaggio once called Paige “the best and fastest pitcher I’ve ever faced.”

• On Feb. 12, 1988, two Soviet warships bump two U.S. navy vessels in waters claimed by the Soviet Union. The incident between the ships took place in the Black Sea within the 12-mile territorial limit claimed by the Soviet Union.