St. Louis People 365

First airmail flight; a pitcher wins doubleheader

The country's first airmail flight-in a hot-air balloon-originated in St. Louis in July, 1859. And a St. Louis baseball pitcher won both ends of a doubleheader in 1924.

Also, in a past July, a white man was sold into servitude in St. Louis in July, 1847.

These are some of the local historical events from past Julys in St. Louis author Joe Sonderman's book, St. Louis People 365.

(Young Saint Louis.com has received permission from Sonderman to quote some items from his book. If you'd like to purchase a copy of the book, check local book stores or go to www.booksonstlouis.com.)

Here are 10 of the 125 items in the July chapter of the book:

July 1, 1859: John LaMountain, O.A. Gager, John Wise and reporter William Hyde took off from St. Louis in a balloon bound for New York. Some mail was also on board. The balloon came down 19 hours later near Henderson, New York. The mail was put on a train for New York City. Some historians say this was the very first airmail flight.

July 5, 1995: Over 70 followers of the Grateful Dead were injured in the collapse of a deck at the Pinewoods Lodge near Wentzville. The Deadheads were trying to take cover during a thunderstorm. A few weeks earlier, 3,000 Dead fans had rioted in Indianapolis. Fans were devastated again when Jerry Garcia died, one month after the accident.

July 8, 1962: Karen Hantze Susman, a teenaged bride from St. Louis, arrived home after sweeping the singles and doubles titles at Wimbledon. Her doubles partner was 17-year-old Billie Jean Moffitt. A year earlier, they had become the youngest team to win the women's doubles. Moffitt would become better know as Billy Jean King.

July 10, 1904: In response to complaints from citizens about the "automobile menace," the St. Louis Police Department became one of the first in the nation to use automobiles to go after the "scorchers," as speeders were known at the time. The department bought two high-speed autos, known as "skidoo wagons."

July 12, 1808: Joseph Charless published the first newspaper west of the Mississippi, the Missouri Gazette. Charless was not afraid to stand up for his views, even in the face of threats and violence. He often criticized the city's elite. Charless said, "It is evident that in every country where the rays of the press are not clouded by despotic power that the people have arrived at the highest grade of civilization."

July 19, 1924: Herman Bell of the Cardinals became the last major leaguer to complete and win both games of a doubleheader. He threw a two-hitter in the first game against the Boston Braves and a four-hitter in the second! Bell would win only one more game that season. Later in his career, he would again win both games of a doubleheader but in the minor leagues.

July 20, 1954: Freeman Bosley Jr. was born in St. Louis. On April 6, 1993, he won election as the first African-American Mayor of St. Louis. His administration led the fight against the 1993 flood and for efforts to bring the Rams to St. Louis. He also worked on the $70 million bailout of TWA. His father is a long-time alderman who ran for mayor and lost in 1985.

July 28, 1943: William Warren Bradley was born in Crystal City. The only former pro basketball player to make it to the U.S. Senate, he was considered the best high school player in Missouri. He went on to star with Princeton and the New York Knicks. Bradley was elected to the Senate in 1978.

July 29, 1947: A newspaper account told of the sale of a white man named Jack Bowers to a stable keeper. In those days, vagrants or those with no visible means of support were sold for six months to the highest bidder at a courthouse auction. The inhabitants of St. Louis thought it helped rid the town of shady characters.

July 30, 1998: After 27 years, the family of Michael Blassie of Florissant learned he had rested in the Tomb of the Unknowns in Washington, D.C. The family planned to bury him at Jefferson Barracks.