Latest news with #BenjaminHarrison
Axios
17-03-2025
- Politics
- Axios
New Orleans remembers mass lynching of Italians 134 years later
On March 14, 1891, 11 Italian-American immigrants were killed in New Orleans. It remains one of the country's largest single lynchings. Some of the victims were acquitted the day before in the murder of the city's police chief. Zoom out: Italy cut off diplomatic relations with the U.S in the aftermath and there was talk of war, according to the Washington Post. Read the Italian consul's statement at the time. The next year, President Benjamin Harrison, hoping to repair things, created Columbus Day to honor the Italian-born explorer. The U.S. also paid Italy about $760,000 in today's currency to make amends, the paper wrote. The bottom line: New Orleans officials formally apologized in 2019 for the lynchings. No one was charged in the deaths. No one was convicted in the police chief's death either. Go deeper
Chicago Tribune
24-02-2025
- Chicago Tribune
Today in Chicago History: ‘Great is Chicago. It gets the World's Fair.'
Here's a look back at what happened in the Chicago area on Feb. 24, according to the Tribune's archives. Is an important event missing from this date? Email us. Weather records (from the National Weather Service, Chicago) 1890: 'Great is Chicago. It gets the World's Fair.' The city was awarded the event by the U.S. House of Representatives on the eighth ballot. The Senate concurred on April 21, 1890. President Benjamin Harrison signed it into law on April 25, 1890. The World's Columbian Exposition opened in Chicago on May 1, 1893. 1993: A secret Chicago police internal report surfaced cataloging more than 50 instances of 'methodical' and 'systematic' torture by Jon Burge and his subordinates. Stories of the violence committed under Burge — including beatings, electric shock, suffocation with typewriter covers and games of Russian roulette — proved to have a long reach. Although most of Burge's alleged misconduct took place in the 1970s and '80s, his accusers played a fundamental role in former Gov. George Ryan's decision to vacate Illinois' death row in 2000 and declare a moratorium on capital punishment in the state. Burge himself never was charged directly in any of the torture allegations, though he was fired from the Chicago Police Department in 1993. Years later, in 2010, he was convicted of lying to federal authorities about his conduct and sentenced to prison. He was released in 2014 and returned to his waterfront home south of Tampa. Burge died in Florida in 2018. Lawsuits from Burge's victims have cost taxpayers many millions in settlements and judgments, much of it paid out of city coffers. 2001: The XFL's Chicago Enforcers played their first home game at Soldier Field — and lost 13-0 to the New York/New Jersey Hitmen. The league folded after one season. Want more vintage Chicago?
Yahoo
16-02-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Historic Altamonte Chapel along SR 436 ‘desperately needs' restoration
The small chapel — with white clapboard siding and bell tower steeple — is like a piece of a picturesque New England town tucked amid the cars, offices and fast-food joints along busy State Road 436. First built in 1885, the Altamonte Chapel near Forest Avenue in Altamonte Springs is one of the oldest structures in Seminole County. Former presidents Benjamin Harrison and Grover Cleveland attended services in the chapel. But now its prominent bell — rung countless times by pulling a long rope during weddings and Sunday services over decades — is on the verge of collapse. The steeple needs to be replaced. And the chapel, showing its age, needs serious renovation, according to its owners. To maintain the chapel's historic character, the restoration would require a meticulous and careful process likely to cost tens of thousands of dollars, according to members of the Altamonte Chapel's Board of Directors. The group recently started seeking bids from contractors. It also set up a GoFundMe account — titled 'Save the Altamonte Chapel Bell' — to raise $50,000 toward the project. 'It's such an iconic piece of our history,' said Tammy Snook Quezada, the board's vice president. 'We just can't let this bell tower go without repair. It would be a travesty. We have an obligation to the community to keep it in its original condition.' The chapel was originally constructed farther northwest near Lake Brantley by a Boston architect. Church services were attended by New Englanders who either settled in the area and grew citrus or visited during the winter months. After a hard freeze in 1895 destroyed many of the groves, many of the settlers moved away. One of the original owners offered the chapel to Rollins College. In 1905, a group of men bought it from the school for $600, cleared out the overgrown underbrush and weeds, dismantled the chapel and moved it in a wagon nearly five miles to its current location. Church services have been held ever since — first during the winter months, later extended to year round. Today, Crosspointe Church of Altamonte Springs holds services in the small chapel, which is barely 1,200 square feet. It is also used for baptisms, memorial services and weddings. The bell, however, has never been refurbished, 'so it needs to be cleaned,' and the tower needs to be rebuilt 'the sooner the better,' Quezada said. 'Once you go inside, you understand the value of this chapel,' she said. 'The wood is original. It's just glorious.'
