On this day in:
1534 Otto Brunfels died. A German botanist, author of 'Herbarum vivae eicones' (‘Living Pictures of Herbs’), one of the first great herbals. His work is considered to be a bridge between ancient and modern botany.
1553 Prospero Alpini was born. An Italian physician and botanist, he is said to have introduced coffee and bananas to Europe and to have been the first to artificially fertilize date palms.
1828 Cornelius Hoagland was born (died April 24, 1898). Co-founder of Royal Baking Powder Company in 1866 with his brother Joseph Christoffel Hoagland.
1835 Henry Burden was granted the first U.S. patent for a horseshoe manufacturing machine.
1869 The 3 masted clipper ship 'Cutty Sark' was launched at Dunbarton, Scotland. It was one of the last to be built, one of the fastest, and is the only one surviving today. It is 212 feet long and 36 feet wide. It was initially used in the English/Chinese tea trade, and retired to England for naval training in 1922. Fully restored in 1957, it is in dry berth in Greenwich, London as a sailing museum. Cutty Sark Scotch Whisky, created in 1923 was named after the clipper ship, and the ship’s image appears on the label.
1883 Archibald Gowanlock Huntsman was born (died Aug 8, 1973). Canadian oceanographer and fisheries biologist. Best known for research on Atlantic salmon. He also invented methods for quick freezing fish fillets.
1889 Louis Glass installed the first jukebox, actually called 'nickle-in-the-slot-phonograph' at the Palais Royal Saloon in San Francisco, California.
1894 Donald Deskey was born. An industrial designer, he designed the packaging for Tide laundry detergent and Crest toothpaste among others.
1897 John Lee Love of Fall River, Massachusetts received patent No. 594,114 for the simple portable pencil sharpener, the same type still used today.
1921 President Harding signs the Willis Campbell Act, which prohibits doctors from prescribing beer or liquor.
1945 Wartime rationing ended in the U.S.
1953 Rick Bayless was born. American Chef, restaurateur, cookbook author and host of television series 'Mexico: One Plate at a Time' on PBS. Chicago restaurants: Frontera Grill, Toplobampo, Xoco.
1958 The CBS TV program 'General Electric Theater' aired an episode titled 'A Turkey for the President.' It starred Nancy Davis (Reagan) with husband Ronald Reagan, future 40th president of the U.S. (1981-1989).
1977 The U.S. requires warning labels on products containing Saccharin as potentially carcinogenic. After further research, the warning was removed December 21, 2000.
1990 Roald Dahl died. British author, one of his most popular books was 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,' the film version was titled 'Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.' Some of his other books are 'A Piece of Cake,' 'Pig,' 'Royal Jelly,' 'Smell' and 'Lamb to the Slaughter.'