May 25, 1787

1787 The convention to revise the Articles of Confederation assembled in Philadelphia. William Few was the only Georgia delegate present at the opening session.

May 25, 1849

1849 Musician Thomas Greene "Blind Tom" Bethune was born in Harris County, Georgia. Blind from birth and born a slave, Bethune exhibited a natural ability to imitate and create music at a very early age. In 1857, at only age eight, he performed on the piano in public, playing works by Mozart, Beethoven, as well as original compositions. The next year his owner hired Bethune out on a three-year contract; he toured Georgia and other parts of the country playing and learning new pieces, which he could learn and play by rote. During the Civil War he played for sick and injured Confederate soldiers. After the war and a controversy over who had the right to manage his incredible talents, Bethune returned to touring and performing, including three successful European tours. He continued to play publicly up until his death in Hoboken, New Jersey on June 13, 1908.

May 25, 1864

1864 Sherman’s Atlanta Campaign renewed in earnest as the Battle of New Hope Church began. Sherman, however, miscalculated Johnston’s defense preparations and would suffer 1,600 casualties in the May 25-26 battle.

May 25, 1892

1892 In Atlanta, Grady Hospital was formally dedicated. Including the lot, the building cost $205,000 to construct.

May 25, 1907

1907 Three years after his death, a statue of former Confederate general and Georgia governor John B. Gordon aboard his horse Marye was unveiled on the state capitol grounds. The bronze statue was created by Solon H. Borglum, brother of Gutzon Borglum.

May 25, 1913

1913 Details of prosecutor Hugh Dorsey’s presentation to the grand jury in the Leo Frank case were beginning to emerge. No bill of indictment had been handed down against Newt Lee -- all the evidence presented was aimed at Frank. Neither of statements given by Frank or Lee were mentioned. Jim Conley had not been called to testify, nor had the notes found near Phagan’s body been presented. The undertaker who embalmed Phagan’s body said there was evidence of sexual assault, but the county physician said there was not sufficient evidence to make such a claim. Meanwhile, Newt Lee’s attorney requested that he be kept in custody, for fear the murderer of Mary Phagan would try to influence his testimony.

May 25, 1918

1918 Actor Claude Akins was born in Nelson, Ga.

May 25, 1937

1937 African-American artist Henry Ossawa Tanner died. Born June 21, 1859 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Tanner would become best known for his sensitive painting,"The Banjo Lesson." He later became a professor of art at Clark College in Atlanta.

May 25, 1940

1940 At Oglethorpe University’s Hearst Hall in Atlanta, school president Thornwell Jacobs presided at the sealing of the Crypt of Civilization time capsule, joined by RCA president David Sarnoff and a host of state and local officials. Four years earlier, Jacobs had conceived the idea of a time capsule that would preserve a record of popular culture of the times as well as the knowledge accumulated over the past 6,000 years. For three years, a wide variety of documents, devices, and artifacts were collected. Over 640,000 pages from books were microfilmed for the vault, joined by photographs, motion pictures, and sound recordings. Other items ranged from a bottle of Coke to a typewriter to a pair of false teeth. If the earth and the foundation of Hearst Hall are still in existence, the time capsule is scheduled to be opened in the year 8113. [Jacobs determined this date by calculating 6,177 years between the beginning of the Egyptian calendar to 1936 (when he got the idea), and then adding 6,177 years into the future.]

May 25, 1962

1962 In Atlanta, the federal district court for the northern district of Georgia issued a ruling in the case of Toombs v. Fortson that found both houses of the Georgia General Assembly to be malapportioned in violation of the Fourteenth Amendment. The judge further ordered the legislature to reapportion one of its houses prior to the 1963 session.

May 25, 1976

1976 Six presidential primaries were held on this day. Jimmy Carter won three -- Arkansas, Tennessee, and Kentucky -- giving him 103 delegates and 848 of the 1505 needed to win the Democratic nomination. Idaho Senator Frank Church won the three western primaries in Idaho, Nevada, and Oregon.

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Today in History

1542 Hernando de Soto, the first European to explore Georgia’s interior, died of fever near the Mississippi River while leading an army of soldiers and adventurers across the Southeast in … read more