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Baseball history unpacked, March 21

A thrice-weekly look at #Cubs, #MLB, and #MiLB history, with world history factoids and other fun facts.

Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images

On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, Bleed Cubbie Blue brings a you a light-hearted, Cubs-centric look at baseball’s colorful past, with plenty of the lore and deep dives into various narratives that expand over the course of time. Here’s a handy Cubs timeline, to help you follow along. We also add a bit of world history, for perspective’s sake.

Today in baseball history:

Cubs birthdays: Oscar Bielaski, John Sullivan, Jim Hughes, Owen Friend, Tommy Davis, Len Church, Bill Plummer, Shawon Dunston.

**Pictured.

Today in history:

  • 717 - Battle of Vincy fought in the Cambrai during Frankish Civil War; Charles Martel’s forces defeat those of King Chilperic II and his mayor Ragenfrid.
  • 1188 - Accession to the throne of Japan by emperor Antoku.
  • 1413 - Henry of Monmouth, Prince of Wales, becomes King Henry V of England.
  • 1804 - Napoleonic Code adopted in France, stresses clearly written and accessible law.
  • 1844 - The original date predicted by William Miller of Massachusetts for the return of Christ and the end of the world.
  • 1871 - Journalist Henry Morton Stanley begins his famous expedition to Africa.
  • 1935 - Persia is officially renamed Iran.
  • 1955 - Brooklyn Bulletin ask Dodger fans not to call their team “Bums”.
  • 1961 - The Beatles’ first appearance at the Cavern Club in Liverpool.
  • 1963 - Alcatraz prison in San Francisco Bay is closed.
  • 1965 - Martin Luther King Jr. begins march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama.
  • 1984 - NFL owners passed the infamous anti-celebrating rule.

Common sources:

There is a very active baseball history community and there are many facets to their views. We strive for clarity. Please be aware that we are trying to make the historical record as represented by our main sources coherent and as accurate as is possible. No item is posted here without corroboration. Some of these items spread from site to site without being verified. That is exactly why we ask for reputable sources, so that we can address them to the originators. BBRef is very cooperative in this regard, as are SABR and the Baseball Almanac. We have removed thenationalpastime from our sourcing list, as there have been multiple complaints about their content and they do not respond to attempts to communicate.

Also please remember that this is supposed to be fun.

Thank you for your cooperation. And thanks for reading!