Today in History: August 11, first prisoners reach Alcatraz
Three armored railroad cars arrive on a car ferry at the United States Penitentiary on Alcatraz Island, San Francisco, Calif., on August 22, 1934. Under the watchful eyes of guards carrying rifles, the prisoners, among them former Chicago gang leader Al Capone, leave the coaches for transfer to the cell house. (AP Photo)
Today in history:
On Aug. 11, 1934, the first federal prisoners arrived at Alcatraz Island, a former military prison, in San Francisco Bay; the island would be home to over 1,500 prisoners over the next three decades, including gangsters Al Capone and James “Whitey” Bulger, before the prison closed in 1963.
Also on this date:
In 1919, Germany’s Weimar Constitution was signed by President Friedrich Ebert.
In 1929, Babe Ruth became the first baseball player to reach 500 career home runs with a homer at Cleveland’s League Park.
In 1949, President Harry S. Truman nominated General Omar N. Bradley to become the first chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
King Hussein of Jordan smiles while celebrating his 17th birthday at the Jordanian Embassy in London, England, November 14, 1952. Hussein, who became a key force for stability in the turbulent Middle East in more than four decades as ruler of his strategically placed nation, died Sunday, February 7, 1999. The king was 63. The announcement was made by Information Minister Nasser Judeh. The cause of death was heart failure, said senior palace officials who were with the king when he died. Members of the royal family, including Queen Noor, his wife, were with him. (AP Photo/Eddie Worth)
King Hussein of Jordan smiles while celebrating his 17th birthday at the Jordanian Embassy in London, England, November 14, 1952. Hussein, who became a key force for stability in the turbulent Middle East in more than four decades as ruler of his strategically placed nation, died Sunday, February 7, 1999. The king was 63. The announcement was made by Information Minister Nasser Judeh. The cause of death was heart failure, said senior palace officials who were with the king when he died. Members of the royal family, including Queen Noor, his wife, were with him. (AP Photo/Eddie Worth)
In 1952, Hussein bin Talal was proclaimed King of Jordan, beginning a reign lasting nearly 47 years.
In 1956, abstract painter Jackson Pollock died in an automobile accident on Long Island, New York at age 44.
FILE - In this Aug. 14, 1965 file photo, firefighters battle a blaze set in a shoe store that collapses in flames during rioting in the Watts district of Los Angeles. It began with a routine traffic stop 50 years ago this month, blossomed into a protest with the help of a rumor and escalated into the deadliest and most destructive riot Los Angeles had seen. The Watts riot broke out Aug. 11, 1965 and raged for most of a week. When the smoke cleared, 34 people were dead, more than a 1,000 were injured and some 600 buildings were damaged.(AP Photo, File)
FILE - In this Aug. 14, 1965 file photo, firefighters battle a blaze set in a shoe store that collapses in flames during rioting in the Watts district of Los Angeles. It began with a routine traffic stop 50 years ago this month, blossomed into a protest with the help of a rumor and escalated into the deadliest and most destructive riot Los Angeles had seen. The Watts riot broke out Aug. 11, 1965 and raged for most of a week. When the smoke cleared, 34 people were dead, more than a 1,000 were injured and some 600 buildings were damaged.(AP Photo, File)
In 1965, rioting that claimed 34 lives and lasted six days broke out in the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles.
In 1972, the last U.S. ground combat troops in South Vietnam left to return to the United States.
In 1973, at a house party in the Bronx, 18-year-old DJ Kool Herc began extending the musical breaks of the records he was playing and speaking over the beat, marking the (unofficial) birth of hip-hop music.
In 1992, the Mall of America, the nation’s largest shopping-entertainment center, opened in Bloomington, Minnesota.
In 1997, President Bill Clinton made the first use of the historic line-item veto, rejecting three items in spending and tax bills. (The U.S. Supreme Court later struck down the veto as unconstitutional.)
In 2012, over 300 people were killed and over 3,000 injured after earthquakes struck near Tabriz, Iran.
Flowers are placed in memory of Robin Williams on his Walk of Fame star in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles Monday, Aug. 11, 2014. Williams, the Academy Award winner and comic supernova whose explosions of pop culture riffs and impressions dazzled audiences for decades died Monday in an apparent suicide at his San Francisco Bay area home. He was 63. (AP Photo/Kevork Djansezian)
Flowers are placed in memory of Robin Williams on his Walk of Fame star in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles Monday, Aug. 11, 2014. Williams, the Academy Award winner and comic supernova whose explosions of pop culture riffs and impressions dazzled audiences for decades died Monday in an apparent suicide at his San Francisco Bay area home. He was 63. (AP Photo/Kevork Djansezian)
In 2014, Academy Award-winning actor and comedian Robin Williams died in Tiburon, California at age 63.
