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100 years ago: Notable events from April 1926
April 100

The month of April has been home to many historical events over the years. Here’s a look at some that helped to shape the world in April 1926.

The United States House of Representatives votes to impeach District Court Judge George W. English on April 1. Judge English, who was accused of abuse of powers and violation of bankruptcy laws, ultimately resigns on November 4.

Residents of Watts, California, vote to become part of the city of Los Angeles on April 2. Residents vote 1,338 to 535 in favor of consolidation.

Warplanes of Manchurian warlord Zhang Zuolin begin bombing portions of Beijing on April 3. The areas targeted by the bombings are areas of the city under the control of the Guominjun paramilitary group.

The national basketball team of Italy plays its first game on April 4. The team earns a 23-17 victory over the French national team.

The first recorded death of a person caused by a cassowary is noted in Mossman, Queensland, Australia on April 6. Phillip McClean, the 16-year-old victim, was attacked by the large, flightless bird while he and his brother were trying to kill it.

Italian Premier Benito Mussolini is shot by Violet Gibson in Rome on April 7. Mussolini is unharmed, and Gibson is ultimately released without charges. However, Gibson is sent to a psychiatric hospital in England, where she remains until her death in 1956.

The German subsidiary of the Ford Motor Company assembles its first vehicle, a Model T, on April 8.

Twenty-seven sailors are killed when the United States oil tanker the Gulf of Venezuela explodes as the ship sits in harbor at Port Arthur, Texas, on April 11.

Walter Johnson of the Washington Senators defeats Eddie Rommel of the Philadelphia Athletics on Opening Day on April 13. The game lasts 15 innings and ends with a score of 1-0.

Australian politician Frederick McDonald disappears while on his way to a meeting with Jack Lang, the Premier of New South Wales, on April 15. McDonald, who had recently lost a re-election bid to the Australian House of Representatives, challenged the result of that election and asked that his opponent, Thomas Ley, be removed from office. McDonald’s disappearance is never solved, and Ley is later convicted of the murder of John Mudie in 1947.

Canadian distance runner Johnny Miles wins the Boston Marathon on April 19. The marathon marked the first time Miles had competed in a race of more than 10 miles.

Elizabeth II is born to the Duchess of York and the Duke of York on April 21 in London. Elizabeth grows up to serve as Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a reign that begins in 1952 and lasts until her death in 2022.

Germany and the Soviet Union sign the Treaty of Berlin on April 24. Each country pledges neutrality in the event of attack on the other by a third party within the ensuing half decade.

The Pahlavi dynasty begins in Iran on April 25 when Reza Khan is formally crowned the Shah of Iran.

Illinois prosecutor William H. McSwiggin is killed during a shootout involving Al Capone and Jack McGurn on April 27. Capone and McGurn did not know McSwiggin was in the car of a rival gang at the time of the shootout.

African American pilot Bessie Coleman plunges 600 feet to her death while preparing for an air show in Jacksonville, Florida, on April 30. Prior to flying, Coleman had been urged not to pilot the aircraft, which friends and family did not deem safe. Coleman insisted on flying, and an examination of the wreckage of the aircraft after the crash found that a wrench used to service the engine had jammed the controls.