January 5, 1832 – The Mad River and Lake Erie Railroad was chartered, becoming the first railroad to be built in Ohio and the first west of the Allegheny Mountains. It played a vital role in connecting inland Ohio to Lake Erie.

January 6, 1803 – The first session of the Ohio General Assembly convened in Chillicothe, marking the start of legislative governance in what would soon officially become the State of Ohio on March 1, 1803.

January 6, 1834 – The Ohio Penitentiary officially opened in Columbus. It would operate for over 150 years and become one of the largest and oldest prisons in the country before closing in 1984.

January 6, 1913 – Ohio enacted state legislation banning child labor for those under a certain age, reflecting growing Progressive Era reforms aimed at protecting children and improving working conditions.

January 7, 1842 – The Plain Dealer was founded as a weekly newspaper in Cleveland by Joseph William Gray, marking the beginning of what would become one of Ohio’s longest‑running and most influential newspapers.

January 7, 2015 – The Ohio State Buckeyes won the inaugural College Football Playoff National Championship, defeating the Oregon Ducks 42–20. It was a significant moment in Ohio sports history under coach Urban Meyer.

World History

January 5, 1531 – Pope Clement VII formally forbade King Henry VIII of England from remarrying under penalty of excommunication, escalating a dispute that contributed to England’s eventual separation from the Roman Catholic Church.

January 6, 2021 – Individuals entered the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C., during the congressional certification of the 2020 presidential election results. The incident led to several deaths, injuries, and widespread disruption.

January 7, 1979 – Vietnamese troops entered Phnom Penh, Cambodia, and removed the Khmer Rouge government from power, ending nearly four years of its control under Pol Pot.

January 8, 1790 – President George Washington delivered the first State of the Union Address to Congress in New York City, then the U.S. capital, outlining national priorities and administrative goals.

January 10, 1946 – The first session of the United Nations General Assembly convened in London, attended by representatives from 51 countries, marking a major step in post–World War II international diplomacy.

The post This Week in History ~ January 5th – 11th first appeared on The Bedford Tribune.

January 1, 1883 – The Valley Railway Company completed its main line connecting Cleveland to Bowerston, Ohio. This expanded Cleveland’s industrial and coal transportation links to southern Ohio and connected it to the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad network.

January 2, 1914 – The Cleveland Foundation was officially established. It is widely recognized as the first community foundation in the world and has played a major role in Cleveland’s civic, educational, and philanthropic development.

January 3, 1941 – Groundbreaking took place for a new research laboratory in Cleveland under the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), which later became NASA Glenn Research Center. This marked Cleveland’s role in national aerospace research.

January 4, 1903 – The Cleveland Grand Orchestra performed its inaugural concert at Gray’s Armory. This group would eventually merge into what became the Cleveland Orchestra, one of the top orchestras in the world.

World History

December 29, 1890 – The Wounded Knee Massacre occurred in South Dakota, where U.S. Army troops killed over 250 Lakota Sioux, marking the last major conflict of the American Indian Wars.

December 30, 1922 – The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) was officially established, uniting Russia and several neighboring republics into a single communist state.

December 31, 1879 – Thomas Edison gave the first public demonstration of his incandescent light bulb in Menlo Park, New Jersey.

January 1, 1863 – President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, freeing enslaved people in Confederate-held territories during the American Civil War.

January 4, 2007 – Nancy Pelosi was sworn in as the first female Speaker of the United States House of Representatives.

The post This Week in History ~ December 29th – January 4th first appeared on The Bedford Tribune.

December 23, 1814 – Cleveland received its charter as a village, officially establishing a local government and formal civic identity for the growing settlement in the Connecticut Western Reserve.

December 27, 1964 – The Cleveland Browns defeated the Baltimore Colts 27–0 in the NFL Championship Game at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. This was Cleveland’s last major sports championship until 2016.

December 28, 1907 – The Cleveland Trust Company Building was completed at East 9th Street and Euclid Avenue. Designed by George B. Post with murals by Francis Millet, it remains a prominent Beaux-Arts architectural landmark.

World History

December 22, 1894 – French army officer Alfred Dreyfus was convicted of treason and sentenced to life imprisonment. The case became one of the most controversial political scandals in French history, known as the Dreyfus Affair. His wrongful conviction highlighted deep antisemitism in French society.

December 23, 1972 – The “Immaculate Reception” took place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In one of the most iconic moments in American football, Franco Harris of the Pittsburgh Steelers made a game-winning touchdown catch after the ball was deflected, defeating the Oakland Raiders.

December 24, 1914 – The Christmas Truce began on the Western Front during World War I. British and German troops spontaneously ceased fire, sang carols, and even exchanged gifts and played soccer in no man’s land. It remains one of the most well-known instances of wartime peace.

December 25, 1776 – George Washington led Continental troops across the icy Delaware River, surprising Hessian forces in Trenton, New Jersey the next morning. The bold move resulted in a key Revolutionary War victory that boosted American morale.

December 26, 2004 – A 9.1-magnitude earthquake off the coast of Sumatra, Indonesia, triggered a massive tsunami across the Indian Ocean, killing approximately 230,000 people in over a dozen countries. It is one of the deadliest natural disasters in modern history.

The post This Week in History ~ December 22nd – 28th first appeared on The Bedford Tribune.

December 15, 1978 – Cleveland defaulted on $14 million in loans, becoming the first major U.S. city to default financially since the Great Depression. The crisis was triggered by economic decline and political tensions during Mayor Dennis Kucinich’s administration.

December 17, 1947 – WEWS-TV (Channel 5) aired its first broadcast, becoming Cleveland’s first commercial television station and the first TV station in Ohio. The station was a pioneer in local programming and media innovation.

World History

December 15, 1791 – The United States ratified the first 10 amendments to the Constitution, known as the Bill of Rights, guaranteeing fundamental civil liberties such as freedom of speech, religion, and the press.

December 16, 1773 – The Boston Tea Party took place when American colonists, protesting the Tea Act, boarded British ships and dumped 342 chests of tea into Boston Harbor, a key event leading to the American Revolution.

December 17, 1903 – Orville and Wilbur Wright made the first successful powered, controlled, and sustained flight of a heavier-than-air aircraft near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, with the first flight lasting 12 seconds.

December 18, 1916 – After 302 days of fighting, the Battle of Verdun ended during World War I. It was one of the longest and costliest battles in history, with French and German casualties estimated at over 700,000.

December 20, 1989 – The United States launched Operation Just Cause, a military invasion of Panama to depose leader Manuel Noriega, who was later captured and taken to the U.S. to face drug trafficking charges.

The post This Week in History ~ December 15th – 21st first appeared on The Bedford Tribune.

December 9, 1994 – Frederick C. Crawford, prominent Cleveland industrialist, philanthropist, and aviation enthusiast, passed away. He was instrumental in the growth of TRW Inc. and founded the Crawford Auto-Aviation Museum, preserving the city’s industrial and automotive heritage.

December 11, 1918 – The Cleveland Orchestra performed its first concert at Grays Armory under founding music director Nikolai Sokoloff. This marked the beginning of what would become one of the world’s most respected symphonic ensembles.

World History

December 8, 1980 – Former Beatle John Lennon was shot and killed outside his New York City apartment by Mark David Chapman, shocking fans around the world.

December 8, 1941 – The United States declared war on Japan, entering World War II, one day after the attack on Pearl Harbor.

December 11, 1901 – Guglielmo Marconi successfully transmitted the first transatlantic radio signal from Cornwall, England to Newfoundland, Canada.

December 14, 1900 – Max Planck presented his quantum theory to the German Physical Society, laying the groundwork for modern quantum mechanics.

December 14, 1943 – Nazi forces massacred 22 monks and civilians at the historic Mega Spilaio Monastery in Greece during World War II occupation efforts.

The post This Week in History ~ December 8th – 14th first appeared on The Bedford Tribune.

December 1, 1906 – Cleveland implemented a major standardization of street names and house numbers to improve consistency and navigation, reflecting the city’s rapid growth and modernization in the early 20th century.

World History

December 1, 1913 – The first moving assembly line for mass production of automobiles was introduced by Henry Ford at the Ford Motor Company, revolutionizing industrial manufacturing.

December 1, 1955 – Rosa Parks was arrested in Montgomery, Alabama, for refusing to surrender her seat to a white passenger on a city bus, sparking the Montgomery Bus Boycott and becoming a pivotal moment in the U.S. Civil Rights Movement.

December 2, 1823 – U.S. President James Monroe delivered the address that would become known as the Monroe Doctrine, warning European powers against further colonization in the Americas.

December 4, 1533 – Ivan IV, later known as Ivan the Terrible, was crowned Grand Prince of Moscow at the age of three following the death of his father, Grand Prince Vasili III.

December 7, 1941 – The Imperial Japanese Navy launched a surprise military strike on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, leading to the United States’ formal entry into World War II.

The post This Week in History ~ December 1st – 7th first appeared on The Bedford Tribune.

November 24, 1862 – Ohio Governor David Tod visited Camp Cleveland in what is now Tremont. He was greeted by a 15-gun salute from the 20th Ohio Independent Battery as part of his inspection of Civil War training facilities.

November 24, 1950 – A massive blizzard struck the Cleveland area as part of the Great Appalachian Storm of 1950. The city recorded 22.1 inches of snow, closed its airport, and saw over 10,000 cars abandoned in the streets.

World History

November 24, 1863 – Union forces captured Lookout Mountain in Tennessee, weakening the Confederate hold on the Cumberland Gap during the American Civil War.

November 24, 1963 – Jack Ruby shot Lee Harvey Oswald on live television in Dallas, two days after Oswald assassinated President John F. Kennedy.

November 26, 1942 – The film Casablanca premiered in New York City, launching one of the most enduring classics of world cinema.

November 29, 1947 – The United Nations General Assembly passed Resolution 181, calling for the partition of Palestine into Arab and Jewish states.

November 30, 1782 – The United States and Great Britain signed preliminary peace articles in Paris, setting the stage for the formal Treaty of Paris (1783) that ended the American Revolutionary War.

The post This Week in History ~ November 24th – 30th first appeared on The Bedford Tribune.

November 19, 1831 – James A. Garfield was born in Orange Township (now Moreland Hills), Cuyahoga County, Ohio.

World History

November 17, 1947 – The in the U.S. implemented an anti‑Communist loyalty oath, reflecting rising Cold War tensions.

November 17, 1989 – The began in Prague as a student protest that grew into a national movement, eventually ending Communist rule in Czechoslovakia.

November 22, 1946 – French forces issued an ultimatum to the Vietnamese in Haiphong harbor, triggering a major colonial conflict that would lead to the First Indochina War.

November 23, 1946 – The French naval cruiser bombarded Haiphong, Vietnam, killing thousands in one of the early violent episodes in the Vietnam‑Indochina conflict.

The post This Week in History ~ November 17th – 23rd first appeared on The Bedford Tribune.

November 16, 1907 – Actor Burgess Meredith was born in Cleveland, Ohio. He achieved global fame for roles like boxing trainer Mickey Goldmill in the “Rocky” films and the villainous Penguin in the 1960s “Batman” TV series.

World History

November 10, 1775 – The Continental Congress authorized the creation of the Continental Marines, laying the foundation for what would become the United States Marine Corps.

November 10, 1928 – Emperor Hirohito (Shōwa) was formally enthroned in Kyoto, Japan, marking the ceremonial start of his reign that would last until 1989.

November 12, 1954 – Ellis Island closed as an immigrant processing station after welcoming over 12 million immigrants to the United States between 1892 and 1954.

November 16, 1532 – Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro captured Inca Emperor Atahualpa at Cajamarca, Peru, initiating the downfall of the Inca Empire.

The post This Week in History ~ November 10th – 16th first appeared on The Bedford Tribune.

November 3, 1964 – The Rolling Stones performed at Cleveland Public Hall. That evening, Mayor Ralph S. Locher announced a ban on The Beatles and similar groups from performing at the venue, claiming they did not contribute to the city’s culture or entertainment.

November 4, 1975 – Ralph J. Perk was reelected as Mayor of Cleveland for a third term. On the same ballot, Dennis Kucinich was elected Clerk of the Municipal Court, paving the way for his future rise in city politics.

World History

November 3, 1903 – Panama declared independence from Colombia, clearing the way for U.S. construction of the Panama Canal and reshaping global maritime trade.

November 3, 1992 – Bill Clinton was elected the 42nd President of the United States, defeating incumbent George H. W. Bush and ushering in a new era of centrist Democratic leadership.

November 4, 1995 – Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated in Tel Aviv following a peace rally, a pivotal moment that deeply impacted the Israeli–Palestinian peace process.

November 5, 1605 – The Gunpowder Plot was foiled in England when Guy Fawkes was discovered guarding explosives beneath Parliament, preventing the assassination of King James I.

November 9, 1989 – The Berlin Wall fell as East Germany opened its borders, allowing citizens to cross freely into West Berlin—marking a symbolic end to the Cold War.

The post This Week in History ~ November 3rd – 9th first appeared on The Bedford Tribune.