What Happened on March 17

Continental Affairs

1776 — British Quit Boston; Washington's First Triumph

The King's troops and navy depart for Nova Scotia — the town is delivered, and the colonies are heartened.

BOSTON, March 17 — The long toil of the siege is ended, and the town is at last delivered from the King's garrison. General William Howe, his position made untenable, has evacuated his troops and navy to Nova Scotia, closing an eleven-month investment that began with the bloodshed at Lexington and Concord. It is the first victory of the war for General George Washington, and a prodigious encouragement to the Thirteen Colonies.

The immediate cause of the British departure was the fortification of Dorchester Heights, where Washington planted the heavy cannon brought from Fort Ticonderoga by Colonel Henry Knox. That officer's labours, concluded in January, conveyed the artillery over frozen rivers and rough roads in a manner that has excited general admiration. Seeing the heights commanding the town and harbour, Howe judged further resistance hopeless and chose to withdraw.

The town is now quiet, and the inhabitants may return to their dwellings. Evacuation Day, as it will be remembered, falls this year upon Saint Patrick's Day, giving the Irish among us double cause for festivity.

• The 11-month siege of Boston ended on March 17, 1776, when British General William Howe evacuated his garrison and navy to Nova Scotia.
• George Washington fortified Dorchester Heights with cannons captured at Fort Ticonderoga, threatening the British position.
• Henry Knox brought the heavy artillery from Fort Ticonderoga to Boston in January 1776 in a technically complex operation.
• The British evacuation was Washington's first victory of the war and a huge morale boost for the Thirteen Colonies.
• Evacuation Day is observed on March 17 in Suffolk County, Massachusetts, coinciding with Saint Patrick's Day.

Science Desk

1950 — California's New Element: Berkeley Team Makes 98

Synthesis of californium, sixth transuranium element, announced — atomic weight 98; half-life but 44 minutes.

The swift progress of nuclear science has brought forth yet another element from the cyclotron, with an announcement this week from the University of California's Radiation Laboratory marking a notable step in exploring the periodic table. Californium, the sixth transuranium element synthesized, bears the atomic number 98. The discovery came from bombarding curium with alpha particles in the laboratory's 60-inch cyclotron. A team including Stanley Gerald Thompson, Kenneth Street Jr., Albert Ghiorso, and Glenn T. Seaborg produced about 5,000 atoms of the element, which has a half-life of 44 minutes. Breaking from the naming of elements 95 through 97—americium, curium, and berkelium—the new element honors the university and state where the work was done. The experiment marks the first synthesis beyond berkelium and suggests heavier elements may yet be produced as cyclotrons grow more powerful.

• Californium was first synthesized by bombarding curium with alpha particles in a 60-inch cyclotron at Berkeley.
• Only about 5,000 atoms of californium were produced in the experiment, with a half-life of 44 minutes.
• The element was named after the University of California and the state of California, breaking the naming convention for elements 95 to 97.
• The discovery team included researchers Stanley Gerald Thompson, Kenneth Street Jr., Albert Ghiorso, and Glenn T. Seaborg.
• Californium is the sixth transuranium element to be synthesized and has atomic number 98.

Foreign Desk

1963 — Agung Erupts; 1,100 Killed on Bali

Giant cloud rises 10 miles, lava sweeps villages — cold lahars add 200 dead; island's sacred mountain awakens

DJAKARTA, March 17 — Mount Agung, the sacred peak that dominates the island of Bali, exploded today with a violence that has killed at least 1,100 persons, devastating villages on its slopes and sending a column of debris eight to ten kilometers into the sky.

The great eruption, the most powerful in Indonesia since Krakatoa, sent pyroclastic flows racing down the mountain's flanks, overwhelming settlements in their path. The mountain had been restless for weeks; on February 18, residents heard loud explosions and saw clouds rising from the crater, and on February 24 lava began flowing down the northern slope, traveling seven kilometers over the next twenty days.

By February 19, the volcano had already claimed seventeen lives after more than a century of dormancy, and officials had warned of worse to come. That warning was borne out today as the eruption, rated at 5 on the volcanic explosivity index, hurled debris high into the atmosphere and sent deadly lahars, or mudflows, coursing through river valleys. Those cold lahars, officials here say, have killed an additional two hundred persons.

The full toll is not yet known. Many villages are buried under ash and rock, and relief teams are struggling to reach isolated areas. The mountain's fury is not spent; volcanologists warn that further activity may be expected in the coming weeks.

• On February 18, 1963, local residents heard loud explosions and saw clouds rising from the crater of Mount Agung.
• On February 24, lava began flowing down the northern slope, traveling 7 km over the next 20 days.
• On March 17, the volcano erupted with a VEI of 5, sending debris 8 to 10 km into the air and generating massive pyroclastic flows.
• The eruption devastated numerous villages, killing an estimated 1,100–1,500 people, with cold lahars killing an additional 200.
• A second eruption on May 16 led to pyroclastic flows that killed another 200 inhabitants.

United Nations

2011 — UN Votes to Protect Libyan Civilians

Security Council votes 10-0 to authorize military intervention in Libya.

UNITED NATIONS, March 17 — The Security Council tonight authorized military intervention in Libya, imposing a no-fly zone and approving 'all necessary measures' to protect civilians from attack. The resolution, passed 10-0 with five abstentions, came as Gaddafi's forces pressed toward Benghazi.

• The UN Security Council authorized a no-fly zone over Libya and 'all necessary measures' to prevent attacks on civilians.
• The authorization turned into a NATO bombing campaign against Libyan military installations and vehicles.
• Gaddafi's government announced a ceasefire after the resolution, but fighting and bombing continued.

Hockey

1955 — Montreal Riots Over Richard Suspension: 100 Arrests, 37 Injured

NHL President's Appearance at Forum Sparks Violence — $100,000 Damage

MONTREAL, March 17 — Montreal hockey fans rioted tonight to protest the suspension of Canadiens star Maurice Richard, causing an estimated $100,000 in property damage, thirty-seven injuries, and 100 arrests. Fans mobbed president Clarence Campbell at the Forum, hurling abuse and tomatoes before police cleared the streets.

• The riot occurred on March 17, 1955, Saint Patrick's Day, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
• NHL president Clarence Campbell suspended Maurice Richard for the remainder of the 1954–55 season, including playoffs.
• The riot caused an estimated $100,000 in property damage, thirty-seven injuries, and 100 arrests.
• Campbell appeared at the Montreal Forum for the Canadiens' first game after Richard's suspension, provoking the riot.
• Montreal fans claimed the suspension was motivated by Richard's French Canadian ethnicity.

National Affairs

1957 — Magsaysay Dies in Plane Crash; Garcia Succeeds Him

President and 24 Others Killed on Mount Manunggal — Cebu Tragedy

CEBU, March 17 — The wreckage of the presidential plane Mt. Pinatubo lies scattered on the slopes of Mount Manunggal, the third-highest peak in Cebu, rising 982 meters above sea level. President Ramon Magsaysay and 24 others were killed in the crash.

• President Magsaysay died in a plane crash on March 17, 1957, in Cebu.
• The crash of the presidential plane Mt. Pinatubo killed President Magsaysay and 24 others.
• The crash site is on Mount Manunggal, the third-highest peak in Cebu, rising 982 meters above sea level.
• Magsaysay was the seventh president of the Philippines, serving from 1953 until his death.
• His successor, Carlos P. Garcia, assumed the presidency after the crash.

Photography

1973 — Pulitzer-Winning Photo Captures POW's Return, Symbolizing War's End

AP Photographer Veder's 'Burst of Joy' Shows Stirm Reunion at Travis Air Force Base

A photograph taken at Travis Air Force Base on March 17, 1973, has come to symbolize the end of United States involvement in the Vietnam War. Associated Press photographer Slava 'Sal' Veder captured Lieutenant Colonel Robert L. Stirm reuniting with his family after five years as a POW in North Vietnam. The image, which won the Pulitzer Prize, shows Stirm's 15-year-old daughter Lorrie greeting her father with arms outstretched. Veder developed the picture in less than half an hour in a makeshift darkroom in the base's ladies' room. Stirm received a Dear John letter from his wife Loretta three days before his return, ending their marriage. Veder also captured the embrace for United Press International, and his frame was printed on front pages across the country the next morning. Stirm’s four other children were nearby in the shot.

• The photograph was taken by Associated Press photographer Slava 'Sal' Veder on March 17, 1973, at Travis Air Force Base in California.
• The photo shows Lieutenant Colonel Robert L. Stirm reuniting with his family after five years as a POW in North Vietnam.
• Stirm's 15-year-old daughter Lorrie, centerpiece of the image, excitedly greeted her father with arms outstretched.
• Veder developed the image in less than half an hour in a makeshift darkroom in the base's ladies' room.
• Stirm received a Dear John letter from his wife Loretta three days before his return, ending their marriage.

Maritime

1891 — Utopia Sinks in Gibraltar Bay; 562 Lives Lost

Steamship Rammed by HMS Anson — Captain Arrested, Released on Bail

GIBRALTAR, March 17 — The annals of maritime disaster have gained a tragic entry with the sinking of the transatlantic steamship Utopia, which collided with the battleship HMS Anson in the Bay of Gibraltar. The collision tore a 16-foot hole below the waterline, flooding the vessel within minutes. Captain John McKeague survived and was arrested, then released on £480 bail.

• 562 of 880 passengers and crew of SS Utopia, plus two rescuers from HMS Immortalité, died in the accident.
• Captain John McKeague survived the sinking and was arrested, released on bail of £480 the same day.
• The collision tore a hole 5 metres (16 ft) wide below Utopia's waterline, causing rapid flooding.
• The British court of inquiry blamed the sinking on 'grave error of judgement' by Captain McKeague.
• Third mate Francis Wadsworth noted the impact occurred at 6:36 p.m.