OCTOBER 3 — 1862 2nd Battle of Corinth; 1995 O.J. Simpson acquitted; S1931 Griffith Park inL.A. burns down
OCTOBER 3
1862 – Second battle of Corinth.
…Union Maj. Gen. William Rosecrans V Conf. Maj. Gen. Earl Van Dorn’s Army of the West Tennessee and Maj. Gen. Sterling Price. The result: Another Rosecrans victory over the Confederates. Rosecrans had already defeated Van Dorn at the Battle of Iuka in northern Mississippi just two weeks prior. Price and the Army of the West marched from Baldwyn to Ripley to join Van Dorn, where Van Dorn would take command of the combined forces of 22,000 soldiers. The Rebels marched to Corinth where a strategic rail junction was located. Rosecrans was informed that Van Dorn and his men were headed towards them, and prepared his 23,000 men and began placing troops around the outer line of Union-built fortifications.
On October 3, Van Dorn arrived, and the fighting began. The Confederates pushed the Yankees back, and then Price took advantage of a Union gap, pushing the Union back almost two miles towards the town. By nightfall, Van Dorn was so confident he could win an overwhelming victory in the morning; he didn’t take into consideration that his troops were exhausted and thirsty. Meanwhile that night, Rosecrans used his time to close Union gaps and prepare fortifications. The following morning, Conf. Brig. Gen. Louis Hebert was not feeling well, and the battle was postponed until 9:00.
But then, the Confederates began a ruthless attack against the Union’s inner trenches, they were repulsed with heavy casualties. However they continued to fight, but with every advance they were slaughtered by Union battery cannon and muskets. Some of the Rebels stormed Battery Powell and closed on Battery Robinett, and faced a Union bayonet charge, where desperate hand to hand fighting took place. The Yankees recaptured Battery Powell, and Van Dorn retreated. The Union lost around 2,300 casualties, while the South around 4,200 dead, wounded or captured. This Confederate defeat would allow the Union to take the last grip on the Mississippi River at Vicksburg.
1995 – O.J. Simpson is acquitted.
…And one hundred million people stopped what they were doing to watch the verdict. I’m not sure what the best part about the whole story is, the police chase, the glove, Judge Ito, Simpson’s lawyers, the fact that Simpson was a Heisman trophy winner, or the verdict itself. According to Wikipedia, the verdict had been reached after four hours of deliberation the previous day, but Judge Ito decided to postpone it until the next morning. Around the country, long distance calls declined by 58%. Trading on Wall Street wen down by 41%. Water usage decreased as people avoided using bathrooms, and government officials postponed meetings. So much work stopped that the verdict cost an estimated $400M in lost productivity.
1999 – Chargers beat the Chiefs 21-14 despite being outyarded 314 to 132.
1999 – In the last game of the season, Mark McGwire hits his 65th HR, Sammy Sosa his 63rd.
1931 — Griffith Park burns to ashes.
Hundreds of construction workers from the Reconstruction Finance Corporation were hired to clean debris and build trails in Griffith Park in Los Angeles. But when a smolder in the debris ignited, the workers and supervisors had no idea what to do. Foreman would build sloppy firebreaks. The fire department was called in but by then the fire was too big and besides there wasn’t any water piped into the city.
The fire continued to blaze and jumped up Dam Canyon, killing a dozen and injuring well over a hundred. The Griffith Park fire burned 47 acres of Los Angeles, and would be considered one of the worst wildfires in American history.