The Council House Fight – Today In Southern History
19 March 1840
On this date in 1840…
During a peace conference and prisoner exchange between the Comanche and Texas settlers at the San Antonio council house a fight erupted after the Texans saw how Matilda Lockhart had been mutilated by her captors. Seven whites and thirty-three Comanche including 12 chiefs died in what became known as the Council House Fight.
Other Years:
1687 – While searching for the mouth of the Mississippi River, French explorer Robert Cavelier de La Salle was murdered by his own men.
1865 – The Battle of Bentonville, North Carolina began. This was the last significant attempt to stop the invading federal army of W.T. Sherman.
1879 – Jim Currie opened fire on several actors near Marshall, Texas wounding Maurice Barrymore and killing Ben Porter.
1908 – The state of Maryland barred Christian Scientists from practicing without medical diplomas.
1918 - The US Congress approved the Standard Time Act, formally establishing time zones and instituting daylight saving time nationwide for the first time.
1953 – Tennessee Williams’ play “Camino Real” premiered in New York City.
1954 – The first rocket-sled on rails was tested in Alamogordo, New Mexico.
1968 – Students at Howard University seized the administration building.
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