May 2-
Lou Gehrig's 2,130-game streak ended
1939: Lou Gehrig, the “Iron Horse” of the New York Yankees, was one of the most durable players in American professional baseball. Gehrig, a first baseman, was somewhat overshadowed by his colourful teammate Babe Ruth, whom he followed in the Yankees' batting order. Gehrig appeared in 2,130 consecutive games, beginning on June 1, 1925, and ending on this day in 1939. He later discovered that his skills were waning because of the onset of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)—a rare disease that later led to his death.
1935: The peasants of Luzon, Phillipines, rose up in arms against oppressive land tenancy laws.
1803: The United States purchased the Louisiana Territory from France at a rate of less than three cents per acre for 2,144,520 square km (828,000 square miles), which soon proved to be an tremendous bargain.
1889: Menilek II of Ethiopia signed the Treaty of Wichale with Italy, granting it territory in northern Ethiopia for money and weaponry.
1519: Renaissance artist Leonardo da Vinci died in Cloux, France
Manfred, Freiherr (baron) von Richthofen
Known as the Red Baron, Manfred, Freiherr (baron) von Richthofen, was Germany's top aviator and leading ace in World War I. He was born this day in 1892. Entering aerial combat in September 1916, he personally was credited with downing 80 enemy aircraft. He was killed in his red Fokker triplane during a battle near Amiens, France.
"During my whole life I have not found a happier hunting ground than in the course of the Somme Battle. In the morning, as soon as I had got up, the first Englishmen arrived, and the last did not disappear until long after sunset. [Lieutenant] Boelcke once said that this was the El Dorado of the flying men."
Richthofen The Red Fighter Pilot, chapter 8
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