March 1937
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The following events occurred in March 1937:


March 1, 1937 (Monday)

*Former Prime Minister
Kyösti Kallio Kyösti Kallio (, 10 April 1873 – 19 December 1940) was a Finnish politician who served as the fourth president of Finland from 1937 to 1940. His presidency included leading the country through the Winter War; while he relinquished the post ...
was sworn into office as the fourth
President of Finland The president of the Republic of Finland (; ) is the head of state of Finland. The incumbent president is Alexander Stubb, since 1 March 2024. He was elected president for the first time in 2024 Finnish presidential election, 2024. The presi ...
after being selected by a vote of Finland's 300-member Electoral College on February 15. *The
Camp of National Unity ''Obóz Zjednoczenia Narodowego'' (, OZN; ), often called ''Ozon'' (Polish for "ozone"), was a Polish political party founded in 1937 by sections of the leadership in the Sanation movement. A year after the 1935 death of Poland's Chief of Stat ...
political party (OZN or ''Obóz Zjednoczenia Narodowego'') was founded in Poland. *The government of
Manchukuo Manchukuo, officially known as the State of Manchuria prior to 1934 and the Empire of Great Manchuria thereafter, was a puppet state of the Empire of Japan in Northeast China that existed from 1932 until its dissolution in 1945. It was ostens ...
, the Japanese-occupied puppet state formed from the three northeastern provinces of the Republic of China, passed a law on royal succession making
Puyi Puyi (7 February 190617 October 1967) was the final emperor of China, reigning as the eleventh monarch of the Qing dynasty from 1908 to 1912. When the Guangxu Emperor died without an heir, Empress Dowager Cixi picked his nephew Puyi, aged tw ...
's brother
Pujie Pujie (; 16 April 1907 – 28 February 1994) was a Qing dynasty imperial prince of the Aisin-Gioro. Pujie was the younger brother of Puyi, the last Emperor of China. After the fall of the Qing dynasty, Pujie went to Japan, where he was educated ...
the next in line for the throne. Puyi, the last Emperor of China, had been married for 14 years but had no children. *The French steamer ''Marie-Thérèse le Borgne'' hit a
naval mine A naval mine is a self-contained explosive weapon placed in water to damage or destroy surface ships or submarines. Similar to anti-personnel mine, anti-personnel and other land mines, and unlike purpose launched naval depth charges, they are ...
in the same area where the British ship ''Llandovery Castle'' was damaged a week previously. The ship was able to make port at
Palamós Palamós () is a town and municipality in the Mediterranean Costa Brava, located in the ''comarca'' of Baix Empordà, in the province of Girona, Catalonia, Spain. Palamós is located at the northern end of a large bay. The town is by-passed by th ...
. *Born: **
Eugen Doga Eugen Doga (1 March 1937 – 3 June 2025) was a Moldovan composer. He made significant contributions to various forms of music during his career. He created ballets, ''Luceafărul'', ''Venancia'', and ''Queen Margot'', the opera ''Dialogues of ...
, Moldovan composer; in
Mocra Mocra (; ; ) is a commune in the Rîbnița District of Transnistria, Moldova. It is composed of four villages: Basarabca (Бессарабка), Mocra, Șevcenco (Шевченко) and Zaporojeț (Запорожець, Запорожец). It has ...
,
Moldavian ASSR The Moldavian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, shortened to Moldavian ASSR, was an Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republics, autonomous republic of the Ukrainian SSR between 12 October 1924 and 2 August 1940, encompassing the modern territory ...
,
Ukrainian SSR The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, abbreviated as the Ukrainian SSR, UkrSSR, and also known as Soviet Ukraine or just Ukraine, was one of the Republics of the Soviet Union, constituent republics of the Soviet Union from 1922 until 1991. ...
,
Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
**
Jimmy Little James Oswald Little, AO (1 March 19372 April 2012) was an Australian Aboriginal musician, actor and teacher, who was a member of the Yorta Yorta tribe and was raised on the Cummeragunja Reserve, New South Wales. Little started his professi ...
, Australian aboriginal musician; at the
Cummeragunja Reserve Cummeragunja Reserve or Cummeragunja Station, alternatively spelt Coomeroogunja, Coomeragunja, Cumeroogunga and Cummerguja, was a settlement on the New South Wales side of the Murray River, on the Victorian border near Barmah. It was also refe ...
in
New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...
(d. 2012) ** Anis Ud Dowla, Bangladeshi businessman and chairman of the conglomerate
ACI Limited Advanced Chemical Industries, more commonly marketed and known as ACI ( CSE: ACI, DSE: ACI), is a Bangladeshi conglomerate company, present in pharmaceuticals and chemical industry. Founded in 1973, the firm is headquartered in the thana of ...
; in Faridpur, Bengal Province,
British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...
*Died: **Major General
John Antill John Henry Antill, CMG, OBE (8 April 190429 December 1986) was an Australian composer best known for his ballet ''Corroboree''. Biography Antill was born in Sydney in 1904, and was educated and trained in music at Trinity Grammar School, Sydn ...
, 71, Australian Army officer whose command decisions during the
Battle of the Nek The Battle of the Nek () was a minor battle that took place on 7 August 1915, during the Gallipoli campaign of World War I. "The Nek" was a narrow stretch of ridge on the Gallipoli Peninsula. The name derives from the Afrikaans word for a "mount ...
in the Gallipoli campaign of World War I helped contribute to the casualty rate of 372 killed or wounded of 600 members of the
3rd Light Horse Brigade The 3rd Light Horse Brigade was a mounted infantry brigade of the First Australian Imperial Force, Australian Imperial Force (AIF), which served in the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I. The brigade was initially formed as a part-time Austra ...
. **
DeWitt Jennings DeWitt Clarke Jennings (June 21, 1871 – March 1, 1937) was an American film and stage actor. He appeared in 17 Broadway plays between 1906 and 1920, and in more than 150 films between 1915 and 1937. Biography He was born in Cameron, Miss ...
, 65, American stage and film actor


March 2, 1937 (Tuesday)

*The British House of Commons voted, 243 to 134, to endorse the government's rearmament program. Italy replied by ordering every male in the country between 18 and 55 to be fit for "integral militarization". *In the U.S., the
Steel Workers Organizing Committee The Steel Workers Organizing Committee (SWOC) was one of two precursor labor organizations to the United Steelworkers. It was formed by the CIO ( Committee for Industrial Organization) on June 7, 1936. It disbanded in 1942 to become the United Ste ...
(SWOC), led by
Philip Murray Philip Murray (May 25, 1886 – November 9, 1952) was a Scottish-born steelworker and an American labor leader. He was the first president of the Steel Workers Organizing Committee (SWOC), the first president of the United Steelworkers ...
, signed a collective bargaining agreement with the United States Steel Company, recognizing the SWOC as the sole bargaining agent for U.S. Steel employees. *Mexican President
Lázaro Cárdenas Lázaro Cárdenas del Río (; 21 May 1895 – 19 October 1970) was a Mexican army officer and politician who served as president of Mexico from 1934 to 1940. Previously, he served as a general in the Constitutional Army during the Mexican Revo ...
announced that the government would take over control of the country's oil resources. *A re-editing of the
Frank Capra Frank Russell Capra (born Francesco Rosario Capra; May 18, 1897 – September 3, 1991) was an Italian-American film director, producer, and screenwriter who was the creative force behind Frank Capra filmography#Films that won Academy Award ...
-directed drama-fantasy film ''
Lost Horizon ''Lost Horizon'' is a 1933 novel by the English writer James Hilton. The book was turned into a film, also called '' Lost Horizon'', in 1937 by the director Frank Capra and a musical remake in 1973 by the producer Ross Hunter with music by Bu ...
'' starring
Ronald Colman Ronald Charles Colman (9 February 1891 – 19 May 1958) was an English-born actor who started his career in theatre and silent film in his native country, then emigrated to the United States where he had a highly successful Cinema of the United ...
premiered in
San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
after a trial run of a longer version on February 18 in
Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...
. *
Cecilia Colledge Magdalena Cecilia Colledge (28 November 1920 – 12 April 2008) was a British figure skater. She was the 1936 Olympic silver medalist, the 1937 World Champion, the 1937–1939 European Champion, and a six-time (1935–1939, 1946) British ...
of the United Kingdom won the ladies' competition of the
World Figure Skating Championships The World Figure Skating Championships are an annual figure skating competition sanctioned by the International Skating Union (ISU). The first World Championships were held in 1896 in Saint Petersburg, Russia, and they have been held e ...
in London. *Born:
Abdelaziz Bouteflika Abdelaziz Bouteflika (; ; 2 March 1937 – 17 September 2021) was an Algerian politician and diplomat who served as the seventh president of Algeria from 1999 to his resignation in 2019. Before his stint as an Algerian politician, Bouteflika s ...
,
President of Algeria The president of the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria (, ) is the head of state and chief executive of Algeria, as well as the commander-in-chief of the Algerian People's National Armed Forces. The current president is Abdelmadjid Tebbo ...
from 1999 to 2019; in
Oujda Oujda (, ) is a major city in northeast Morocco near the Algeria–Morocco border, border with Algeria. Oujda is the capital city of the Oriental (Morocco), Oriental region of northeastern Morocco and has a population of 506,224 people (2024 censu ...
,
French Morocco The French protectorate in Morocco, also known as French Morocco, was the period of French colonial rule in Morocco that lasted from 1912 to 1956. The protectorate was officially established 30 March 1912, when Sultan Abd al-Hafid signed the ...
(d. 2021)


March 3, 1937 (Wednesday)

*The Holmes Foundry Riot occurred in
Sarnia, Ontario Sarnia is a city in Lambton County, Ontario, Canada. It had a Canada 2021 Census, 2021 population of 72,047, and is the largest city on Lake Huron. Sarnia is located on the eastern bank of the junction between the Upper and Lower Great Lakes, ...
, in
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
. Workers engaging in a
sitdown strike A sit-down strike (or simply sitdown) is a labour strike and a form of civil disobedience in which an organized group of workers, usually employed at factories or other centralized locations, take unauthorized or illegal possession of the workpl ...
were attacked by non-striking employees who wanted to go back to work. Fifty people were injured, including 9 who were hospitalized. *Lieutenant-Colonel
Germán Busch Víctor Germán Busch Becerra (23 March 1903 – 23 August 1939) was a Bolivian military officer and statesman who served as the 36th president of Bolivia from 1937 until his death in 1939. Prior to his presidency, he served as the Chief of t ...
, Chief of the General Staff of
Bolivia Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in central South America. The country features diverse geography, including vast Amazonian plains, tropical lowlands, mountains, the Gran Chaco Province, w ...
, announced his resignation to President
David Toro José David Toro Ruilova (24 June 1898 – 25 July 1977) was a Bolivian military officer and politician who served as the 35th president of Bolivia from 1936 to 1937. He previously served as minister of development and minister of governme ...
as a test of Busch's support within the military. Toro refused the resignation and would be forced out of office on July 13, with Busch becoming the new president. *New York City's Mayor Fiorello H. La Guardia made a speech to a Jewish women's group proposing that the
1939 World's Fair The 1939 New York World's Fair (also known as the 1939–1940 New York World's Fair) was an international exposition at Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in Queens, New York City, New York, United States. The fair included exhibitions, activities ...
include a "Hall of Horrors" with a figure of "that brown-shirted fanatic who is now menacing the peace of the world." The next day, the German newspaper ''
Der Angriff ''Der Angriff'' (in English "The Attack") was the official newspaper of the Berlin ''Gau'' of the Nazi Party. Founded in 1927, the last edition of the newspaper was published on 24 April 1945. History The newspaper was set up by Joseph Goebb ...
'' dedicated its entire front page to attacking Mayor La Guardia, calling him a "scoundrel" and an "impudent Jew" who governed New York with "the terror of the revolvers and clubs of his gangster friends." The German government directed its Ambassador to Washington
Hans Luther Hans Luther () (10 March 1879 – 11 May 1962) was a German politician and Chancellor of Germany for 482 days in 1925 to 1926. As Minister of Finance he helped stabilize the Mark during the hyperinflation of 1923. From 1930 to 1933, Luther was h ...
to make a formal protest against La Guardia's remarks. *Born: **
Bobby Driscoll Robert Cletus Driscoll (March 3, 1937 – March 30, 1968) was an American actor who performed on film and television from 1943 to 1960. He starred in some of the The Walt Disney Studios (division), Walt Disney Studios' best-known live-action pict ...
, child actor; in
Cedar Rapids, Iowa Cedar Rapids is a city in Linn County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. The population was 137,710 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Iowa, second-most populous city in Iowa. The city lies o ...
(d. 1968) **
Tsukasa Hosaka was a former Japanese football player and manager. He played for Japan national team. Club career Hosaka was born in Kofu on March 3, 1937. After graduating from Meiji University, he joined Furukawa Electric in 1959. He won 1960, 1961 and 196 ...
, Japanese footballer with 19 caps for the Japan national team; in Kofu,
Yamanashi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu. Yamanashi Prefecture has a population of 787,592 (1 February 2025) and has a geographic area of 4,465 km2 (1,724 sq mi). Yamanashi Prefecture borders Saitama Prefecture to the n ...
(d. 2018)


March 4, 1937 (Thursday)

*The
9th Academy Awards The 9th Academy Awards were held on March 4, 1937, at the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles, California to honor films released in 1936. They were hosted by George Jessel, with music by the Victor Young Orchestra, with Spike Jones on drums. This ...
were held in Los Angeles. ''
The Great Ziegfeld ''The Great Ziegfeld'' is a 1936 American musical film, musical drama film directed by Robert Z. Leonard and produced by Hunt Stromberg. It stars William Powell as the theatrical impresario Florenz Ziegfeld Jr., Florenz "Flo" Ziegfeld Jr., Lui ...
'' won for Best Picture;
Frank Capra Frank Russell Capra (born Francesco Rosario Capra; May 18, 1897 – September 3, 1991) was an Italian-American film director, producer, and screenwriter who was the creative force behind Frank Capra filmography#Films that won Academy Award ...
won Best Director for ''
Mr. Deeds Goes to Town ''Mr. Deeds Goes to Town'' is a 1936 American comedy-drama romance film directed by Frank Capra and starring Gary Cooper and Jean Arthur in her first featured role. Based on the 1935 short story "Opera Hat" by Clarence Budington Kelland, whi ...
'';
Paul Muni Paul Muni (born Frederich Meshilem Meier Weisenfreund; September 22, 1895 – August 25, 1967) was an American stage and film actor from Chicago. He started his acting career in the Yiddish theater and during the 1930s, he was considered one of ...
and
Luise Rainer Luise Rainer ( , ; 12 January 1910 – 30 December 2014) was a German-born film actress. She was the first thespian to win multiple Academy Awards, and the first to win back-to-back; at the time of her death, thirteen days shy of her 105th birt ...
for Best Actor and Best Actress;
Walter Brennan Walter Andrew Brennan (July 25, 1894 – September 21, 1974) was an American actor and singer. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for ''Come and Get It (1936 film), Come and Get It'' (1936), ''Kentucky (film), Kentucky'' (19 ...
and
Gale Sondergaard Gale Sondergaard (born Edith Holm Sondergaard; February 15, 1899 – August 14, 1985) was an American actress. Sondergaard began her acting career in theater and progressed to films in 1936. She was the first recipient of the Academy Award ...
for Best Supporting Actor and Actress, respectively. *The Greek freighter ''Loukia'' sank after hitting a mine floating in the sea off the coast of Cape San Sebastian in Spain, killing all but one of the 24 men aboard. *Born: **
Graham Dowling Graham Thorne Dowling (born 4 March 1937) is a former cricketer who played 39 Test matches for New Zealand and captained the national team in 19 of those matches. He led New Zealand to its first victory in a Test series, against Pakistan in No ...
, New Zealand cricketer; in
Christchurch Christchurch (; ) is the largest city in the South Island and the List of cities in New Zealand, second-largest city by urban area population in New Zealand. Christchurch has an urban population of , and a metropolitan population of over hal ...
** Leslie H. Gelb, American political scientist and newspaper columnist; in
New Rochelle, New York New Rochelle ( ; in ) is a Political subdivisions of New York State#City, city in Westchester County, New York, Westchester County, New York (state), New York, United States. It is a suburb of New York City, located approximately from Midtow ...
(d. 2019) **
Yuri Senkevich Yuri Aleksandrovich Senkevich () (March 4, 1937 in Choibalsan, Mongolia – September 25, 2003 in Moscow, Russia) was a Soviet physician, voyager, scientist, and Candidate of Sciences (PhD equivalent degree). Senkevich became famous in t ...
, Soviet and Russian doctor, adventurer and scientist; in
Choibalsan Choibalsan () may refer to: *Khorloogiin Choibalsan, a former communist leader in Mongolia *Choibalsan (city), a city in eastern Mongolia *Choibalsan Airport Choibalsan Airport (, ) is a public airport located in Choibalsan, the capital of D ...
(Mongolia) (d. 2003) **
Barney Wilen Bernard "Barney" Jean Wilen (4 March 1937 – 25 May 1996) was a French jazz tenor and soprano saxophonist and composer. Biography Wilen was born in Nice, France; his father was an American dentist turned inventor, and his mother was French. His ...
, jazz saxophonist; in
Nice Nice ( ; ) is a city in and the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative city limits, with a population of nearly one millionAlice Cooper Vincent Damon Furnier (born February 4, 1948), known by his stage name Alice Cooper, is an American rock singer and songwriter whose career spans sixty years. With a raspy voice and a stage show that features numerous props and stage illusion ...
, 62, American sculptor best known for her statue '' Sacajawea and Jean-Baptiste'' **
John A. Gilruth John Anderson Gilruth (17 February 1871 – 4 March 1937) was a Scottish-Australian veterinary scientist and administrator. He is particularly noted for being Administrator of the Northern Territory from 1912 to 1918, when he was recalled afte ...
, 66, controversial Australian Administrator of the Northern Territory and former veterinarian, died of a
respiratory infection Respiratory tract infections (RTIs) are infectious diseases involving the lower or upper respiratory tract. An infection of this type usually is further classified as an upper respiratory tract infection (URI or URTI) or a lower respiratory tra ...
.


March 5, 1937 (Friday)

*The
Battle of Cape Machichaco The battle of Cape Machichaco was a naval battle which took place on 5 March 1937 off Bermeo, during the Spanish Civil War, between the Spanish Nationalist heavy cruiser and four Basque Navy trawlers escorting a Republican convoy. The trawle ...
was fought off the coast of Spain, when the Spanish Nationalist cruiser ''Canarias'' intercepted the transport ship ''Galdames'' and its 173 passengers, engaging the escort of four
Basque Auxiliary Navy The Basque Auxiliary Navy (, ) was a section of the Spanish Republican Navy operating in the Bay of Biscay between 1936 and 1937. The naval force began their operations in October 1936 at the behest of the autonomous Basque Government. The main Ba ...
trawlers in battle. The Basque ships ''Bizcaya'', ''Gipuzkoa'', ''Donostia'' and ''Nabarra'' had set sail with ''Galdames'' from
Bayonne Bayonne () is a city in southwestern France near the France–Spain border, Spanish border. It is a communes of France, commune and one of two subprefectures in France, subprefectures in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques departments of France, departm ...
in
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
toward
Bilbao Bilbao is a city in northern Spain, the largest city in the Provinces of Spain, province of Biscay and in the Basque Country (greater region), Basque Country as a whole. It is also the largest city proper in northern Spain. Bilbao is the List o ...
. The trawler ''Nabarra'' was sunk, with the loss of 29 men, while 20 others were treated and then imprisoned. Four passengers on ''Galdames'' were killed and one, Catalan legislator
Manuel Carrasco Formiguera Manuel Carrasco i Formiguera (3 April 1890 – 9 April 1938), was a Spanish lawyer and Christian democracy, Christian democrat Catalan nationalist politician. His execution, by order of Francisco Franco, provoked protests from Catholic jou ...
, was imprisoned and would be executed in 1938. *The
Communist Party of Spain The Communist Party of Spain (; PCE) is a communist party that, since 1986, has been part of the United Left coalition, which is currently part of Sumar. Two of its politicians are Spanish government ministers: Yolanda Díaz (Minister of L ...
demanded that
POUM The Workers' Party of Marxist Unification (, POUM; , POUM) was a Spanish communist party formed during the Second Spanish Republic, Second Republic and mainly active around the Spanish Civil War. It was formed by the fusion of the Trotskyism, Tro ...
be eliminated. *The Hungarian government revealed a plot by the National Socialist Party and arrested its leader
Ferenc Szálasi Ferenc Szálasi (; 6 January 1897 – 12 March 1946) was a Hungarian military officer, politician, Nazi sympathizer and founder of the far-right Arrow Cross Party who List of prime ministers of Hungary, headed the government of Hungary duri ...
. *The
U.S. Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or simply the State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs o ...
officially apologized to the German government for Fiorello La Guardia's remarks. *Born:
Olusegun Obasanjo Chief Olusegun Matthew Okikiola Ogunboye Aremu Obasanjo (; ; born 5 March 1937) is a Nigerian former army general, politician and statesman who served as Nigeria's head of state from 1976 to 1979 and later as its president from 1999 to 200 ...
, President of Nigeria from 1976 to 1979 and 1999 to 2007; in Ibogun-Olaogun,
Colonial Nigeria Colonial Nigeria was ruled by the British Empire from the mid-nineteenth century until 1st of October 1960 when Nigeria achieved independence. Britain Lagos Treaty of Cession, annexed Lagos Colony, Lagos in 1861 and established the Oil River ...
*Died: **Sir
Frederic Lang Sir Frederic William Lang (1852 – 5 March 1937) was a New Zealand politician, from 1909 a member of the Reform Party (New Zealand), Reform Party, he was the eighth Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives, Speaker of the House of R ...
, 85,
Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives In New Zealand, the speaker of the House of Representatives, commonly known as the speaker of the House (), is the presiding officer and highest authority of the New Zealand House of Representatives The House of Representatives () is the ...
from 1913 to 1922 ** Jujiro Wada, 65, Japanese adventurer and entrepreneur in Alaska, co-creator of the
Iditarod Trail The Iditarod Trail, also known historically as the Seward-to-Nome Trail, is a thousand-plus mile (1,600 km) historic and contemporary trail system in the US state of Alaska. The trail began as a composite of trails established by Alaska n ...
** Charles "Blondy" Wallace, 37, early American pro football player for the Canton Bulldogs in 1905 and 1906, college football All-American, later convicted of tax evasion. ** Hong Taechawanit (Zheng Ziyong), 69, Chinese and Thai philanthropist


March 6, 1937 (Saturday)

*The Battle of Pozoblanco began in Spain. * A two-question referendum was held in Australia. Neither proposal to alter the
Australian Constitution The Constitution of Australia (also known as the Commonwealth Constitution) is the fundamental law that governs the political structure of Australia. It is a written constitution, which establishes the country as a Federation of Australia, ...
was carried. *The Belgian student association "Academicus Sancti Michaëlis Ordo" was founded. *Born: **
Valentina Tereshkova Valentina Vladimirovna Tereshkova (born 6 March 1937) is a Russian engineer, member of the State Duma, and former Soviet cosmonaut. She was the first Women in space, woman in space, having flown a solo mission on Vostok 6 on 16 June 1963. S ...
, Soviet cosmonaut and the first woman in space, on
Vostok 6 Vostok 6 () was the first human spaceflight to carry a woman, cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova, into space. Mission The spacecraft was launched on 16 June 1963. It set the record for highest orbital inclination of a crewed spacecraft at 65°, a rec ...
on June 16, 1963; in
Bolshoye Maslennikovo Bolshoye Maslennikovo () is a village in Yaroslavl Oblast, Russia, located in the municipality of the Chebakovskoye rural settlement, Tutayevsky District. It lies about 20 km to the west from Yaroslavl. In 2010, the village was inhabited by 9 ...
,
Yaroslavl Oblast Yaroslavl Oblast is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast), which is located in the Central Federal District, surrounded by the Tver Oblast, Tver, Moscow Oblast, Moscow, Ivanovo Oblast, Ivanovo, Vladimir Oblast, Vlad ...
,
USSR The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
**
Cyriaco Dias Santana Filomena Ceirico Camilo "Cyriaco" Dias (born 16 March 1937) is an Indian actor, playwright, theatre director, singer, freedom fighter, and social worker known for his work in Konkani films and ''tiatr'' productions. Throughout his care ...
, Indian actor in ''
tiatr ''Tiatr'' (; ) is a type of musical theatre that is popular in the state of Goa on the west coast of India, as well as in Mumbai and among the Goan expatriate communities in the Middle East, United Kingdom, and other cities with a significant pr ...
'' stage productions and
Konkani cinema Konkani cinema is an Indian film industry, where films are made in the Konkani language, which is spoken mainly in the Indian states of Goa, Maharashtra and Karnataka and to a smaller extent in Kerala. The films have been produced in Goa, Kar ...
; in
Raia, Goa Raia () is a quaint village in the Salcete ''taluka'' of South Goa district, Goa state, India. It is located east from the district headquarters of Margao and from the state capital Panjim. Location Gogol (two kilometres), Margao (three kilo ...
,
Portuguese India The State of India, also known as the Portuguese State of India or Portuguese India, was a state of the Portuguese Empire founded seven years after the discovery of the sea route to the Indian subcontinent by Vasco da Gama, a subject of the ...


March 7, 1937 (Sunday)

* Voting was held in
Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...
for all 146 seats of the Cámara de Diputados and for 20 of the 45 seats of the
Chilean Senate The Senate of the Republic of Chile is the upper house of Chile's bicameral National Congress, as established in the current Constitution of Chile. Composition According to the present Constitution of Chile, the Senate is composed of forty ...
. The
Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...
and the Conservative Party each won 35 seats in the Cámara, with the Radical Party close with 29 and the new
Socialist Party Socialist Party is the name of many different political parties around the world. All of these parties claim to uphold some form of socialism, though they may have very different interpretations of what "socialism" means. Statistically, most of th ...
having 19. At the end of the election of 20 seats, the 45-seat balance in the Senate was 12 Liberals, 12 Conservatives, 11 for Radicals, and the other 10 divided among four parties. *The
Percy Grainger Percy Aldridge Grainger (born George Percy Grainger; 8 July 188220 February 1961) was an Australian-born composer, arranger and pianist who moved to the United States in 1914 and became an American citizen in 1918. In the course of a long and ...
composition ''
Lincolnshire Posy ''Lincolnshire Posy'' is a musical composition by Percy Grainger for concert band commissioned in 1937 by the American Bandmasters Association. Considered by John Bird, the author of Grainger's biography, to be his masterpiece, the work has six ...
'' was first performed, premiering in the U.S. in
Milwaukee Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...
. *Born: Aby Har Even, Romanian-born Israeli scientist and Director General of the
Israeli Space Agency The Israel Space Agency (ISA; , ''Sokhnut heKhalal haYisraelit'') is a governmental body, a part of Israel's Ministry of Science and Technology (Israel), Ministry of Science and Technology, that coordinates all Israeli space research programs w ...
from 1995 to 2004; in
Rociu Rociu is a commune in Argeș County, Muntenia, Romania. It is composed of four villages: Gliganu de Jos, Gliganu de Sus, Rociu, and Șerbănești. History The oldest relics come from the Bronze Age, from Șerbănești village. Then, much later, ...
(killed in a fire, 2021)


March 8, 1937 (Monday)

*The
Battle of Guadalajara The Battle of Guadalajara (March 8–23, 1937) saw the victory of the Spanish Republican Army (''Ejército Popular Republicano'', or EPR) and of the International Brigades over the Italian and Nationalist forces attempting to encircle Madrid dur ...
began in Spain, as 35,000 men of Italy's ''Corpo Truppe Volontarie'', with 81 tanks, attacked troops of the Spanish Republic. Because of heavy rains, the Italian troops were limited by heavy mud and under bombardment by the Spanish Air Force. *The steamship ''Mar Cantabrico'', carrying war materiel from the United States to the
Spanish Republic The Spanish Republic (), commonly known as the Second Spanish Republic (), was the form of democratic government in Spain from 1931 to 1939. The Republic was proclaimed on 14 April 1931 after the deposition of King Alfonso XIII. It was dissol ...
, was intercepted in the
Bay of Biscay The Bay of Biscay ( ) is a gulf of the northeast Atlantic Ocean located south of the Celtic Sea. It lies along the western coast of France from Point Penmarc'h to the Spanish border, and along the northern coast of Spain, extending westward ...
by the
Nationalists Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation, Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Theory, Id ...
who shot 26 members of the crew. *The title of
Duke of Windsor Duke of Windsor was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 8 March 1937 for the former monarch Edward VIII, following his Abdication of Edward VIII, abdication on 11 December 1936. The Duchy, dukedom takes its name from ...
was created for the former King
Edward VIII Edward VIII (Edward Albert Christian George Andrew Patrick David; 23 June 1894 – 28 May 1972), later known as the Duke of Windsor, was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Empire, and Emperor of India, from 20 January ...
. The title would exist until Edward's death, without issue in 1972. *Born:
Juvénal Habyarimana Juvénal Habyarimana (; ; 8 March 19376 April 1994) was a Rwandan politician and military officer who was the second president of Rwanda, from 1973 until Assassination of Juvénal Habyarimana and Cyprien Ntaryamira, his assassination in 1994. H ...
, the second
President of Rwanda This article lists the presidents of Rwanda since the creation of the office in 1961 (during the Rwandan Revolution), to the present day. The president of Rwanda is the head of state and head of executive of the Republic of Rwanda. The presi ...
from 1973 to 1994; in
Gisenyi Gisenyi, historically rendered as Kisenyi, is the second largest city in Rwanda, located in the Rubavu district in Rwanda's Western Province. Gisenyi is contiguous with Goma as it was formerly also part of now Democratic Republic of the Congo, t ...
Ruanda-Urundi Ruanda-Urundi (), later Rwanda-Burundi, was a geopolitical entity, once part of German East Africa, that was occupied by troops from the Belgian Congo during the East African campaign in World War I and was administered by Belgium under milit ...
(assassinated 1994) *Died:
Howie Morenz Howard William Morenz (September 21, 1902 – March 8, 1937) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player. Beginning in 1923, he played centre for three National Hockey League (NHL) teams: the Montreal Canadiens (in two stints), the Chicago Bla ...
, 34, Canadian ice hockey player, died of a coronary embolism caused by complications from an injury during an NHL game on January 28.


March 9, 1937 (Tuesday)

*Germany's Interior Minister
Heinrich Himmler Heinrich Luitpold Himmler (; 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945) was a German Nazism, Nazi politician and military leader who was the 4th of the (Protection Squadron; SS), a leading member of the Nazi Party, and one of the most powerful p ...
ordered the arrest of "professional criminals" who had committed two or more crimes but were now free after serving their sentences. Over the next few days some 2,000 people were arrested without charges and sent to concentration camps. *U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt gave a
fireside chat The fireside chats were a series of evening radio addresses given by Franklin D. Roosevelt, the 32nd President of the United States, between 1933 and 1944. Roosevelt spoke with familiarity to millions of Americans about recovery from the Great D ...
on his judicial reform bill, asking listeners the rhetorical question, "Can it be said that full justice is achieved when a court is forced by the sheer necessity of its business to decline, without even an explanation, to hear 87% of the cases presented by private litigants?", prompting a response and denial by U.S. Chief Justice
Charles Evans Hughes Charles Evans Hughes (April 11, 1862 – August 27, 1948) was an American politician, academic, and jurist who served as the 11th chief justice of the United States from 1930 to 1941. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...
, but also leading to a perceived shift by the Court in favor of Roosevelt's
New Deal The New Deal was a series of wide-reaching economic, social, and political reforms enacted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the United States between 1933 and 1938, in response to the Great Depression in the United States, Great Depressi ...
policies. *The Soviet Union began its first experimental television broadcsts, using broadcast and receiving equipment manufactured by the Radio Corporation of America (RCA) for the
343-line television system 343-line is the number of scan lines in some early electronic monochrome analog television systems. Systems with this number of lines were used with 30 interlaced frames per second by the United States from 1935 to 1938, and with 25 interlaced fr ...
that was the standard in the U.S. at the time. The U.S. would move to the
525 lines 525-line (or EIA 525/60) is an American standard-definition television resolution used since July 1, 1941, mainly in the context of analog TV broadcast systems. It consists of a 525-line raster, with 486 lines carrying the visible image at 30 ...
system for analog television by 1941. *Born: **
Harry Neale Harold Watson Neale (born March 9, 1937) is a Canadian retired NCAA, NHL and WHA coach and general manager, and ice hockey broadcaster. Coaching career Following his playing career, Neale got his head coaching start at Hill Park Secondary Sch ...
, Canadian ice hockey coach and commentator; in
Sarnia, Ontario Sarnia is a city in Lambton County, Ontario, Canada. It had a Canada 2021 Census, 2021 population of 72,047, and is the largest city on Lake Huron. Sarnia is located on the eastern bank of the junction between the Upper and Lower Great Lakes, ...
**
Bernard Landry Bernard Landry (; March 9, 1937 – November 6, 2018) was a Canadian politician who served as the 28th premier of Quebec from 2001 to 2003. A member of the Parti Québécois (PQ), he led the party from 2001 to 2005, also serving as the leader ...
, Canadian politician and premier of the province of Quebec from 2001 to 2003; in
Saint-Jacques, Quebec Saint-Jacques () is a 26 mi² (67.34 km²) rural municipality in the Lanaudière region of Quebec, Canada, part of the Montcalm Regional County Municipality with a population of 4,300 year-round residents.Statistics Canada: 2001, 2006, 2011, ...
(d.2018) ** Paul Hunt, British author and disability rights activist; in
Angmering Angmering () is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish between Littlehampton and Worthing in West Sussex on the southern edge of the South Downs National Park, England. About two-thirds of the parish (mostly north of the A27 road ...
,
Sussex Sussex (Help:IPA/English, /ˈsʌsɪks/; from the Old English ''Sūþseaxe''; lit. 'South Saxons'; 'Sussex') is an area within South East England that was historically a kingdom of Sussex, kingdom and, later, a Historic counties of England, ...
(d.1979) **
Azio Corghi Azio Corghi (9 March 1937 – 17 November 2022) was an Italian composer, academic teacher and musicologist. He composed mostly operas and chamber music. His operas are often based on literature, especially in collaboration with José Saramago a ...
, Italian composer; in
Cirié Cirié (; or ''Siriè'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Turin in the Italian region Piedmont, located about northwest of Turin. Cirié borders the following municipalities: Nole, San Carlo Canavese, San Maurizio Ca ...
(d.2022) *Died:
Paul Elmer More Paul Elmer More (December 12, 1864 – March 9, 1937) was an American journalist, critic, essayist and Christian apologist. Biography Paul Elmer More, the son of Enoch Anson and Katherine Hay Elmer, was born in St. Louis, Missouri. He was edu ...
, 72, American journalist, essayist and Christian apologist


March 10, 1937 (Wednesday)

*
Pope Pius XI Pope Pius XI (; born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti, ; 31 May 1857 – 10 February 1939) was head of the Catholic Church from 6 February 1922 until his death in February 1939. He was also the first sovereign of the Vatican City State u ...
issued the encyclical ''
Mit brennender Sorge ''Mit brennender Sorge'' ( , in English "With deep it. 'burning'anxiety") is an encyclical of Pope Pius XI, issued during the Nazi era on 10 March 1937 (but bearing a date of Passion Sunday, 14 March)."Church and state through the centu ...
'' (German for "With deep anxiety"), with a publication date of March 14, condemning breaches of the ''
Reichskonkordat The ''Reichskonkordat'' ("Concordat between the ... between the Holy See"> ... between the Holy See and the German Reich") is a treaty negotiated between the Vatican and the emergent Nazi Germany">Holy See and the German Reich">Holy See"> .. ...
'' by the Nazi regime in Germany. Unlike most papal encyclicals, the publication was written in
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
rather than
Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
. *German and Italian
POW POW is "prisoner of war", a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict. POW or pow may also refer to: Music * P.O.W (Bullet for My Valentine song), "P.O.W" (Bull ...
s who fought for the Nationalists in the
Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...
were interviewed in
Valencia Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...
by a correspondent of the British newspaper ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...
''. The captured fighters confirmed they were regular soldiers of their country's army and not civilian volunteers. *Italy's Premier
Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who, upon assuming office as Prime Minister of Italy, Prime Minister, became the dictator of Fascist Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 un ...
sailed for
Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...
to conduct an inspection tour and review the Italian fleet. *
Jersey Airport Jersey Airport is an international airport located in the parish of Saint Peter, west northwest of Saint Helier in Jersey, in the Channel Islands. History Foundation and early years Air service to Jersey before 1937 consisted of biplane airl ...
opened in the
Channel Islands The Channel Islands are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They are divided into two Crown Dependencies: the Jersey, Bailiwick of Jersey, which is the largest of the islands; and the Bailiwick of Guernsey, ...
. *Born:
Joe Viterelli Joseph Viterelli (March 10, 1937 – January 28, 2004) was an American actor. He was best known for playing Italian-American mobsters. He gained widespread recognition for portraying Jelly in '' Analyze This'' (1999) and ''Analyze That'' (2002). ...
, American character actor known for portraying organized crime henchmen, supporting actor in the films ''
Analyze This ''Analyze This'' is a 1999 American crime comedy film directed by Harold Ramis, who co-wrote the screenplay with playwrights Kenneth Lonergan and Peter Tolan. It follows a crisis-stricken mafioso ( Robert De Niro) who solicits the assista ...
'' and its sequel ''
Analyze That ''Analyze That'' is a 2002 American crime comedy film directed by Harold Ramis and produced by Paula Weinstein and Jane Rosenthal. It is a sequel A sequel is a work of literature, film, theatre, television, music, or video game that con ...
''; in New York City (d.2004) *Died: **
Yevgeny Zamyatin Yevgeny Ivanovich Zamyatin ( rus, Евге́ний Ива́нович Замя́тин, p=jɪvˈɡʲenʲɪj ɪˈvanəvʲɪdʑ zɐˈmʲætʲɪn; – 10 March 1937), sometimes anglicized as Eugene Zamyatin, was a Russian author of science fictio ...
, 53, Russian dissident in the Soviet Union and author, known for the 1921 science fiction novel '' We'', died of a heart attack while in exile in
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
. **Major General Samuel Hof, 66,
Chief of Ordnance of the United States Army The Chief of Ordnance of the United States Army is a general officer who is responsible for the Army Ordnance Corps and serves as the Commandant of the U.S. Army Ordnance School at Fort Gregg-Adams. The Chief of Ordnance is primarily focused on ...
from 1930 to 1934


March 11, 1937 (Thursday)

*The French language opera ''
L'Aiglon ''L'Aiglon'' is a play in six acts by Edmond Rostand based on the life of Napoleon II, who was the son of Emperor Napoleon I and his second wife, Empress Marie Louise. The title of the play comes from a nickname for Napoleon II, the French ...
'' ("The Eaglet), composed by
Arthur Honegger Arthur Honegger (; 10 March 1892 – 27 November 1955) was a Swiss-French composer who was born in France and lived a large part of his life in Paris. Honegger was a member of Les Six. For Halbreich, '' Jeanne d'Arc au bûcher'' is "more even ...
and
Jacques Ibert Jacques François Antoine Marie Ibert (15 August 1890 – 5 February 1962) was a French composer of 20th-century classical music, classical music. Having studied music from an early age, he studied at the Conservatoire de Paris, Paris Conservatoir ...
was performed for the first time, premiering in
Monte Carlo Monte Carlo ( ; ; or colloquially ; , ; ) is an official administrative area of Monaco, specifically the Ward (country subdivision), ward of Monte Carlo/Spélugues, where the Monte Carlo Casino is located. Informally, the name also refers to ...
. *A coal mine explosion in the U.S. near
Logan, West Virginia Logan is a city in Logan County, West Virginia, Logan County, West Virginia, United States, along the Guyandotte River. The population was 1,438 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Logan County. History What is now Logan was initially c ...
, killed 18 underground miners. The blast at the MacBeth mine was in the worst mine disaster in more than a decade in the state of
West Virginia West Virginia is a mountainous U.S. state, state in the Southern United States, Southern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.The United States Census Bureau, Census Bureau and the Association of American ...
p.38 *The funeral of
Howie Morenz Howard William Morenz (September 21, 1902 – March 8, 1937) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player. Beginning in 1923, he played centre for three National Hockey League (NHL) teams: the Montreal Canadiens (in two stints), the Chicago Bla ...
was held in the
Montreal Forum Montreal Forum () is a historic building located facing Cabot Square, Montreal, Cabot Square in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Called "the most storied building in hockey history" by ''Sporting News'', it was an indoor arena which served as the home o ...
, marking the first and only time that the sports arena was used for that purpose. *
Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...
's King
Ibn Saud Abdulaziz bin Abdul Rahman Al Saud (; 15 January 1875Ibn Saud's birth year has been a source of debate. It is generally accepted as 1876, although a few sources give it as 1880. According to British author Robert Lacey's book ''The Kingdom'', ...
issued a decree officially adopting the flag currently used by the Middle Eastern nation, a green banner with the Islamic creed, "There is no god but
God In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...
;
Muhammad Muhammad (8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious and political leader and the founder of Islam. Muhammad in Islam, According to Islam, he was a prophet who was divinely inspired to preach and confirm the tawhid, monotheistic teachings of A ...
is the Messenger of God.". *Died: **
Joseph S. Cullinan Joseph Stephen Cullinan (December 31, 1860 – March 11, 1937) was a U.S. oil industrialist. Although he was a native of Pennsylvania, his lifetime business endeavors would help shape the early phase of the oil industry in Texas. He founded The T ...
, 76, American oil industrialist and founder of
Texaco Texaco, Inc. ("The Texas Company") is an American Petroleum, oil brand owned and operated by Chevron Corporation. Its flagship product is its Gasoline, fuel "Texaco with Techron". It also owned the Havoline motor oil brand. Texaco was an Independ ...
**
Paul Scheinpflug Paul Scheinpflug (10 September 1875 near Dresden – 11 March 1937) was a German conductor and composer. Born in Loschwitz, Scheinpflug studied at the Hochschule für Musik Carl Maria von Weber Dresden from 1890 to 1894, among others with Feli ...
, 61, German composer and conductor for the Dresden Philharmonic Orchestra, died of pneumonia.


March 12, 1937 (Friday)

*
Aimo Cajander Aimo Kaarlo Cajander (4 April 1879 – 21 January 1943) was the Prime Minister of Finland up to the Winter War. Cajander was born in Uusikaupunki, and became a botanist, a professor of forestry 1911–34; director-general for Finland's Fores ...
became
Prime Minister of Finland The prime minister of Finland (; ) is the leader of the Finnish Government. The prime minister and his or her cabinet exercise executive authority in the state. The prime minister is formally ranked third in the protocol after the president ...
for the third time as he formed a new government of ministers and was appointed by President Kyosti Kallio. Cajander included five Socialists, who had been absent from a cabinet for 10 years, and an equal number of Agrarian Party members, as well as others from his own Liberal Party. *
Ernst Udet Ernst Udet (26 April 1896 – 17 November 1941) was a German pilot during World War I and a ''Luftwaffe'' Colonel-General (''Generaloberst'') during World War II. Udet joined the Imperial German Air Service in April 1915 at the age of 19 ...
, a German World War One fighter ace, became the first person to land an airplane on top of a flying dirigible. Udet touched down on top the airship ''
LZ 129 Hindenburg LZ 129 ''Hindenburg'' (; Aircraft registration, Registration: D-LZ 129) was a German commercial passenger-carrying rigid airship, the lead ship of Hindenburg class airship, its class, the longest class of flying machine and the largest airship ...
'', which would be destroyed less than two months later, on May 6, in a fiery explosion. *While in Libya, a colony of Italy at the time, Italian Prime Minister
Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who, upon assuming office as Prime Minister of Italy, Prime Minister, became the dictator of Fascist Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 un ...
opened a new highway for the North African area, built at a cost of more than five million U.S. dollars. *Dr. Francis E. Townsend, the U.S. activist who had campaigned for a government pension for elderly people, was sentenced by federal judge Peyton Gordon to 30 days in jail and a $100 fine for contempt of the U.S. House of Representatives. *The U.S. Ambassador to Germany, William Dodd, protested to German Foreign Minister
Konstantin von Neurath Konstantin Hermann Karl Freiherr von Neurath (2 February 1873 – 14 August 1956) was a German politician, diplomat and convicted Nazi war criminal who served as Foreign Minister of Germany between 1932 and 1938. Born to a Swabian noble famil ...
about recent attacks on the United States in the German press. Von Neurath said he regretted the violent tone of the articles but did not give a formal reply. *The critically acclaimed Indian
Tamil language Tamil (, , , also written as ''Tamizhil'' according to linguistic pronunciation) is a Dravidian language natively spoken by the Tamil people of South Asia. It is one of the longest-surviving classical languages in the world,. "Tamil is one of ...
film '' Chintamani'', directed by Y. V. Rao and starring
M. K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar Mayavaram Krishnasamy Thiyagaraja Bhagavathar (1 March 1910 – 1 November 1959), also known by his initials as M. K. T. was an Indian actor and carnatic singer. Critics and film historians acknowledge Bhagavathar as the "First superstar of Ta ...
, premiered. *Died:
Charles-Marie Widor Charles-Marie-Jean-Albert Widor (21 February 1844 – 12 March 1937) was a French organist, composer and teacher of the late Romantic era. As a composer he is known for his ten organ symphonies, especially the toccata of his fifth organ sympho ...
, 93, French organist, composer and teacher


March 13, 1937 (Saturday)

*The
National Labor Relations Board The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is an Independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States that enforces United States labor law, U.S. labor law in relation to collect ...
issued a ruling in the Remington Rand strike, finding that
Remington Rand Remington Rand, Inc. was an early American business machine manufacturer, originally a typewriter manufacturer and in a later incarnation the manufacturer of the UNIVAC line of mainframe computers. Formed in 1927 following a merger, Remington ...
had committed acts of deceit, economic warfare and union breaking. The company was ordered to reinstate all strikers with back pay and recognize the union, but owner
James Rand, Jr. James Henry Rand Jr. (November 18, 1886 – June 3, 1968)"James Henry Rand Dead At 81," ''New York Times,'' June 4, 1968.Ingham, ''Biographical Dictionary of American Business Leaders,'' 1983. was an American Business magnate, industrialist who re ...
refused and the strike continued. *With labor leader
Philip Murray Philip Murray (May 25, 1886 – November 9, 1952) was a Scottish-born steelworker and an American labor leader. He was the first president of the Steel Workers Organizing Committee (SWOC), the first president of the United Steelworkers ...
negotiating on its behalf, the Steel Workers Organizing Committee (SWOC) signed a
collective bargaining Collective bargaining is a process of negotiation between employers and a group of employees aimed at agreements to regulate working salaries, working conditions, benefits, and other aspects of workers' compensation and labour rights, rights for ...
agreement with
U.S. Steel The United States Steel Corporation is an American steel company based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It maintains production facilities at several additional locations in the U.S. and Central Europe. The company produces and sells steel products, ...
. The agreement provided for a standard pay scale, an 8-hour work day, and time and a half for overtime. *American motorcyclist Joe Petrali set a motorcycling land speed record of , which would remain unbroken until September 13, 1948. *One of the few tank-vs.-tank engagements of the
Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...
was fought near Trijueque when some Republican
T-26 The T-26 tank was a Soviet light tank used during many conflicts of the Interwar period and in World War II. It was a development of the British Vickers 6-Ton tank and was one of the most successful tank designs of the 1930s until its light ...
s destroyed five Italian-made CV 3/35 tankettes and severely damaged two more. *Born: ** Virginia Holsinger, American nutrition researcher; in
Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
(d. 2009) **
Ian Clough Ian Clough (1937–1970) was a British mountaineer who was killed on the 1970 British Annapurna expedition led by Sir Chris Bonington to climb the south face of the Himalayan massif. He was later described by Bonington as "the most modest man ...
, British mountaineer; in
Baildon Baildon is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the City of Bradford, Bradford Metropolitan Borough in West Yorkshire, England and within the Historic counties of England, historic boundaries of the West Riding of Yorkshire. ...
,
Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...
(killed in climbing accident, 1970) *Died: **
Elihu Thomson Elihu Thomson (March 29, 1853 – March 13, 1937) was an English-American engineer and inventor who was instrumental in the founding of major electricity, electrical companies in the United States, the United Kingdom and France. Early life He ...
, 83, English engineer and inventor **
Nikolai Glebov-Avilov Nikolai Pavlovich Glebov-Avilov (; 11 October 1887 – 13 March 1937) was a prominent Bolshevik revolutionary and the first People's Commissar of Posts and Telegraphs. He was executed during the Great Purge. Early career Born in Kaluga in ...
, 49, Soviet Communist revolutionary and the former People's Commissar of Posts and Telegraphs, was executed during the
Great Purge The Great Purge, or the Great Terror (), also known as the Year of '37 () and the Yezhovshchina ( , ), was a political purge in the Soviet Union that took place from 1936 to 1938. After the Assassination of Sergei Kirov, assassination of ...
by
Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...
after being found guilty of "being in a revolutionary terrorist organization," and being shot to death in prison.


March 14, 1937 (Sunday)

*Beginning at midnight the naval powers of France,
Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...
, Italy and Germany began patrolling the seas off the coast of Spain to keep foreign arms and volunteers out of the
Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...
. *Born: **
Galina Samsova Galina Samsova (born Galina Martynovna Samtsova, 14 March 1937 – 11 December 2021) was a Russian ballet dancer and company director. Early life and training Samsova was born as Galina Martynovna Samtsova (she later simplified the spelling of ...
, Soviet Russian ballet dancer who later emigrated to
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
; in
Stalingrad Volgograd,. geographical renaming, formerly Tsaritsyn. (1589–1925) and Stalingrad. (1925–1961), is the largest city and the administrative centre of Volgograd Oblast, Russia. The city lies on the western bank of the Volga, covering an area o ...
(now Volgograd) (d. 2021) **
Baltasar Porcel Baltasar Porcel i Pujol (; Andratx, Majorca, 14 March 1937 – Barcelona, 1 July 2009) was a Spanish writer, journalist and Literary criticism, literary critic. His enormous legacy credited him as one of the greatest authors in Catalan literature ...
, Spanish Catalan literary critic and authority on
Catalan literature Catalan literature (or Valencian literature) is the name conventionally used to refer to literature written in the Catalan language. The focus of this article is not just the literature of Catalonia, but literature written in Catalan from anywhe ...
; in
Andratx Andratx () is a municipality on Mallorca, one of the Balearic Islands, along the Mediterranean east coast of Spain. It is located on the western tip of the island. Port d'Andratx, located a few miles south of Andratx, is an exclusive resort. His ...
,
Majorca Mallorca, or Majorca, is the largest of the Balearic Islands, which are part of Spain, and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, seventh largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. The capital of the island, Palma, Majorca, Palma, i ...
(d. 2009)


March 15, 1937 (Monday)

*The first "
blood bank A blood bank is a center where blood gathered as a result of blood donation is stored and preserved for later use in blood transfusion. The term "blood bank" typically refers to a department of a hospital usually within a clinical pathology labora ...
" in the United States was opened, as Dr.
Bernard Fantus Bernard Fantus (September 1, 1874 – April 14, 1940) was a Hungarian Jewish-American physician. He established the first hospital blood bank in the United States in 1937 at Cook County Hospital, Chicago while he served there as director of the ph ...
and Dr. Elizabeth Schermer of the
Cook County Hospital The John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County (shortened ''Stroger Hospital'', formerly Cook County Hospital) is a public hospital in Chicago, Illinois, United States. It is part of Cook County Health, along with Provident Hospital of Cook Cou ...
, in
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
,
Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...
, implemented an idea that had originated in the Soviet Union in 1930 for short-term preservation of blood from donors for the benefit of recipients. *An anti-Nazi rally in
Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as the Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh and Eighth Avenue (Manhattan), Eig ...
in New York City attracted 20,000 people. Banners hanging from the rafters called for a boycott of Nazi goods.
Hugh S. Johnson Hugh Samuel Johnson (August 5, 1882 – April 15, 1942) was a United States Army officer, businessman, speech writer, government official and newspaper columnist. He was a member of the Brain Trust of Franklin D. Roosevelt from 1932 to 1934. He ...
, the former director of the
National Recovery Administration The National Recovery Administration (NRA) was a prime agency established by U.S. president Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR) in 1933. The goal of the administration was to eliminate "cut throat competition" by bringing industry, labor, and governmen ...
, was a featured speaker at the event, declaring that "Hitler and his immediate staff of Nazipathics have become a sort of monster, threatening the peace of the world." *The tall Arco dei Fileni, known in Libya as "El Gaus", was dedicated on the border of
Tripolitania Tripolitania (), historically known as the Tripoli region, is a historic region and former province of Libya. The region had been settled since antiquity, first coming to prominence as part of the Carthaginian empire. Following the defeat ...
and
Cyrenaica Cyrenaica ( ) or Kyrenaika (, , after the city of Cyrene), is the eastern region of Libya. Cyrenaica includes all of the eastern part of Libya between the 16th and 25th meridians east, including the Kufra District. The coastal region, als ...
. Italian architect
Florestano Di Fausto Florestano Di Fausto (16 July 1890 – 11 January 1965) was an Italian architect, engineer and politician who is best known for his building designs in the Italian overseas territories around the Mediterranean. He is considered the most importa ...
had designed the arch at the request of General
Italo Balbo Italo Balbo (6 June 1896 – 28 June 1940) was an Fascist Italy (1922–1943), Italian fascist politician and Blackshirts' leader who served as Italy's Marshal of the Air Force, Governor-General of Italian Libya and Commander-in-Chief of Italian ...
, the Governor-General of Italian Libya, in advance of a visit by Italy's Premier
Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who, upon assuming office as Prime Minister of Italy, Prime Minister, became the dictator of Fascist Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 un ...
. *Died: **
H. P. Lovecraft Howard Phillips Lovecraft (, ; August 20, 1890 – March 15, 1937) was an American writer of Weird fiction, weird, Science fiction, science, fantasy, and horror fiction. He is best known for his creation of the Cthulhu Mythos. Born in Provi ...
, 46, American
weird fiction Weird fiction is a subgenre of speculative fiction originating in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Weird fiction either eschews or radically reinterprets traditional antagonists of supernatural horror fiction, such as ghosts, vampires, ...
author, died of
intestinal cancer Colorectal cancer (CRC), also known as bowel cancer, colon cancer, or rectal cancer, is the development of cancer from the colon or rectum (parts of the large intestine). Signs and symptoms may include blood in the stool, a change in bowel ...
. **
Scipione Riva-Rocci Scipione Riva Rocci (7 August 1863 in Almese, Piedmont – 15 March 1937 in Rapallo, Liguria) was an Italian internist, pathologist and pediatrician. He is best known for the invention of an easy-to-use cuff-based version of the mercury sphy ...
, 73, Italian pediatrician and internal medicine specialist known for his invention (in 1896) of the
blood pressure cuff A sphygmomanometer ( ), also known as a blood pressure monitor, blood pressure machine, or blood pressure gauge, is a device used to measure blood pressure, composed of an inflatable cuff to collapse and then release the artery under the cuff in ...
for ease of operation of the mercury sphygmomanometer. **
Catherine Edith Macauley Martin Catherine Edith Macauley Martin (1848 – 15 March 1937) was an Australian novelist who used the pseudonyms M.C. and Mrs Alick MacLeod, also published anonymously. Biography Martin was born in Ben Mohr Estate, Snizort, Isle of Skye, Inverne ...
, 89, Australian novelist who wrote '' An Australian Girl'' in 1890 under the pen name Mrs. Alick MacLeod


March 16, 1937 (Tuesday)

*In the Soviet Union, the
OBKhSS The Department Against Misappropriation of Socialist Property (abbreviation: OBKhSS, ) was the Soviet financial police. It was responsible for the regulation of economic laws combating theft of property in the organizations and institutions of s ...
, Department Against Misappropriation of Socialist Property, was established as a unit within the Soviet interior ministry, the
NKVD The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (, ), abbreviated as NKVD (; ), was the interior ministry and secret police of the Soviet Union from 1934 to 1946. The agency was formed to succeed the Joint State Political Directorate (OGPU) se ...
, to monitor financial crimes. *The
Corpo Truppe Volontarie The Corps of Volunteer Troops () was a Fascist Italian expeditionary force of military volunteers, which was sent to Spain to support the Nationalist forces under General Francisco Franco against the Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil ...
from Italy was routed during the Battle of Guadalajara in the Spanish Civil War. *The
Civil List A civil list is a list of individuals to whom money is paid by the government, typically for service to the state or as honorary pensions. It is a term especially associated with the United Kingdom, and its former colonies and dominions. It was ori ...
of
George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until Death and state funeral of George VI, his death in 1952 ...
was presented in the House of Commons.
Edward, Duke of Windsor Edward VIII (Edward Albert Christian George Andrew Patrick David; 23 June 1894 – 28 May 1972), later known as the Duke of Windsor, was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Empire, and Emperor of India, from 20 January ...
, was absent from the list, ending the speculation over whether he would receive a government pension. Whatever income Edward was to receive would be a matter purely within the family. *Born: David Del Tredici, American composer and 1980 Pulitzer Prize for Music winner; in
Cloverdale, California Cloverdale is a city in Sonoma County, California, United States; it is both the westernmost and the northernmost city in the San Francisco Bay Area. The San Francisco and North Pacific Railroad reached the area in 1872. The Cloverdale Ranche ...
(d.2023) *Died: Sir
Austen Chamberlain Sir Joseph Austen Chamberlain (16 October 1863 – 16 March 1937) was a British statesman, son of Joseph Chamberlain and older half-brother of Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain. He served as a Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of ...
, 73, former British Foreign Secretary (1924-1929) and 1925 Nobel Peace Prize laureate


March 17, 1937 (Wednesday)

*In the Soviet Union,
Vasily Sharangovich Vasily Fomich Sharangovich (; , Vasil Sharanhovich; March 4, 1897 – March 15, 1938) was a Belarusian Soviet politician and the first secretary of the Communist Party of Byelorussian SSR in the Soviet Union. He was executed after the last of the ...
was appointed as the First Secretary of the
Communist Party of Byelorussia Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, ...
, becoming the ''de facto'' leader of what is now
Belarus Belarus, officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east and northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Belarus spans an a ...
. He took part in a purge of
Byelorussian SSR The Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic (BSSR, Byelorussian SSR or Byelorussia; ; ), also known as Soviet Belarus or simply Belarus, was a republic of the Soviet Union (USSR). It existed between 1920 and 1922 as an independent state, and ...
officials, including the head of government, Nikolay Goloded, and the chairman of the presidium (nominally the head of Belarus),
Alexander Chervyakov Alexander Grigoryevich Chervyakov (Aliaksandr Charviakou, , ''Aliaksandr Ryhoravič Čarviakoŭ'' , ''Aleksandr Grigor'evič Červjakov''; 25 February 1892 — 16 June 1937) was a Soviet Union, Soviet Politician and revolutionary and one of the f ...
, as a part of a stated campaign "destroing to the end the remnants of the Japanese-German and Polish spies and saboteurs, the remnants of the
Trotsky Lev Davidovich Bronstein ( – 21 August 1940), better known as Leon Trotsky,; ; also transliterated ''Lyev'', ''Trotski'', ''Trockij'' and ''Trotzky'' was a Russian revolutionary, Soviet politician, and political theorist. He was a key figure ...
ist-
Bukharin Nikolai Ivanovich Bukharin (; rus, Николай Иванович Бухарин, p=nʲɪkɐˈlaj ɪˈvanəvʲɪdʑ bʊˈxarʲɪn; – 15 March 1938) was a Russian revolutionary, Soviet politician, and Marxist theorist. A prominent Bolshevik ...
gang." Sharangovich's reign of terror lasted only the end of July before he was himself arrested on charges of sabotage and espionage. He would be executed on March 15, 1938. *
Hans von Tschammer und Osten Hans von Tschammer und Osten (25 October 1887 – 25 March 1943) was a German sport official, SA leader and a member of the '' Reichstag'' for the Nazi Party of Nazi Germany. He was married to Sophie Margarethe von Carlowitz. Hans von Tschamme ...
, Nazi Germany's ''Reichssportführer'', called upon all German athletes to join the
Hitler Youth The Hitler Youth ( , often abbreviated as HJ, ) was the youth wing of the German Nazi Party. Its origins date back to 1922 and it received the name ("Hitler Youth, League of German Worker Youth") in July 1926. From 1936 until 1945, it was th ...
. *The former French ambassador to Italy, Charles de Chambrun, was shot in the thigh by a woman who blamed him for breaking up her friendship with Mussolini. *Born: ** Frank Calabrese, Sr., American mobster; in
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
(d. 2012) **
Terry Dicks Terence Patrick "Phil" Dicks (17 March 1937 – 17 June 2020) was a British Conservative Party politician. He was MP for the constituency of Hayes and Harlington from 1983 to his retirement in 1997, having unsuccessfully contested Bristol S ...
, British Conservative Member of Parliament born with cerebral palsy, serving Hayes and Harlington from 1983 to 1997; in
Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...
(d. 2020)


March 18, 1937 (Thursday)

*At 3:10 p.m., before the New London Consolidated School was scheduled to be dismissed, a
natural gas Natural gas (also fossil gas, methane gas, and gas) is a naturally occurring compound of gaseous hydrocarbons, primarily methane (95%), small amounts of higher alkanes, and traces of carbon dioxide and nitrogen, hydrogen sulfide and helium ...
explosion killed at least 295 people in
New London, Texas New London is a city in Rusk County, Texas, Rusk County, Texas, United States. The population was 1,181 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. New London was originally known as just "London", but because Kimble County, Texas, Kimble Co ...
, although initial reports set the death toll at more than 400. The explosion remains the worst school disaster in American history. The disaster was later traced to the moment when a teacher, unaware of the accumulation of natural gas beneath the first floor of the school, the walls, of turning on an electric sanding machine during a manual arts class. *Arabs in
Tripoli, Libya Tripoli, historically known as Tripoli-of-the-West, is the capital city, capital and largest city of Libya, with a population of about 1.317 million people in 2021. It is located in the northwest of Libya on the edge of the desert, on a point ...
, presented Benito Mussolini with the "Sword of Islam" to symbolize his leadership and present him as a protector of the Muslim faith. A famous
propaganda Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded l ...
photo depicted Mussolini on horseback raising this sword above his head. *The army of the Second Spanish Republic took
Brihuega Brihuega is a municipality located in the province of Guadalajara, Spain. According to the 2007 census ( INE), the municipality had a population of 2,835 inhabitants. In 1710 a hard-fought battle took place in the township between Lord Stanhope ...
and defeated Francisco Franco's Nationalists in a violent clash within the battle of Guadalajara. *Soviet Russian novelist
Ivan Kataev Ivan Ivanovich Kataev (; 27 May 1902 – 19 August 1937) was a Soviet novelist, short story writer, and journalist. Early years Kataev was born in Moscow. His father Ivan was a historian and university professor and the uncle of Andrey Kolmogorov, ...
was arrested as part of the
Great Purge The Great Purge, or the Great Terror (), also known as the Year of '37 () and the Yezhovshchina ( , ), was a political purge in the Soviet Union that took place from 1936 to 1938. After the Assassination of Sergei Kirov, assassination of ...
initiated by
Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...
on charges of "participating in an anti-Soviet counter-revolutionary terrorist organization." He was executed five months later. *The
Phoenix Islands The Phoenix Islands, or Rawaki, are a group of eight atolls and two submerged coral reefs that lie east of the Gilbert Islands and west of the Line Islands in the central Pacific Ocean, north of Samoa. They are part of the Kiribati, Republic ...
, a group of eight
atoll An atoll () is a ring-shaped island, including a coral rim that encircles a lagoon. There may be coral islands or cays on the rim. Atolls are located in warm tropical or subtropical parts of the oceans and seas where corals can develop. Most ...
s in the South Pacific Ocean, were transferred by the British Secretary of State for the Colonies to the jurisdiction of the
Gilbert and Ellice Islands The Gilbert and Ellice Islands (GEIC as a colony) in the Pacific Ocean was part of the British Empire from 1892 to 1976. It was a British protectorate, protectorate from 1892 to 12 January 1916, and then a crown colony, colony until 1 January 1 ...
(now the separate republics of Kiribati and Tuvalu). Of the Phoenix group, only
Canton Island Canton Island (also known as Kanton or Abariringa), previously known as Mary Island, Mary Balcout's Island or Swallow Island, is the largest, northernmost, and , the sole inhabited island of the Phoenix Islands, in the Republic of Kiribati. It i ...
is inhabited, and is more than away from Kiribati. *Born:
Elizabeth Rauscher Elizabeth A. Rauscher (March 18, 1937Elizabeth Valerie Ann Rauscher, PhD1937-2019/ref> – July 3, 2019) was an American physicist and parapsychologist. She was a former researcher with the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Lawrence Liverm ...
, American
physicist A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe. Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate cau ...
and parapsychologist; in
Berkeley, California Berkeley ( ) is a city on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay in northern Alameda County, California, United States. It is named after the 18th-century Anglo-Irish bishop and philosopher George Berkeley. It borders the cities of Oakland, Cali ...
(d. 2019) *Died:
Lucy Fitch Perkins Lucy Fitch Perkins (July 12, 1865 – March 18, 1937) was an American illustrator and writer of children's books, known best for ''Dutch Twins'' (1911) and its sequels, the ''Twins'' series. Biography Lucy Fitch was born on July 12, 1865, in ...
, 71, American children's book writer and illustrator known for the "''Twins'' series" of popular children's books between 1911 and 1934


March 19, 1937 (Friday)

*
Pope Pius XI Pope Pius XI (; born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti, ; 31 May 1857 – 10 February 1939) was head of the Catholic Church from 6 February 1922 until his death in February 1939. He was also the first sovereign of the Vatican City State u ...
promulgated the anti-Communist encyclical ''
Divini Redemptoris ''Divini Redemptoris'' (from the incipit "", Latin for "the promise of a Divine Redeemer") is an anti-communist encyclical issued by Pope Pius XI. It was published on 19 March 1937. In this encyclical, the pope sets out to "expose once more i ...
'', five days after publishing the anti-Fascist encyclical ''Mit brennender Sorge''. The Pope chastised the "non-Catholic press" for what he called "a conspiracy of silence" (''rem ex condicto silentio premunt'') for not giving news coverage to persecutions carried out by extremists. *Royal Mail, a thoroughbred ridden by Evan Williams and a longshot with 100/6 odds, won the
Grand National The Grand National is a National Hunt horse race held annually at Aintree Racecourse in Aintree, Merseyside, England. First run in 1839, it ...
steeplechase SteepleChase Records is a jazz record company and label based in Copenhagen, Denmark. SteepleChase was founded in 1972 by Nils Winther, who was a student at Copenhagen University at the time. He began recording concerts at Jazzhus Montmartre, ...
horse race, held at
Aintree Aintree is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, England. Historically in Lancashire, it lies between Walton and Maghull on the A59 road, northeast of Liverpool city centre. In 2011 the parish had a p ...
and witnessed by 300,000 people. Royal Mail delivered at the course in less than 10 minutes, finishing in 9 minutes, 39 seconds. *
Cesare Del Cancia Cesare Del Cancia (6 May 1915 – 25 April 2011) was an Italian road cyclist. After finishing fifth in the road race at the 1935 World Championships he turned professional and competed until 1945. He won the 1936 Milano–Torino, 1937 Milan–S ...
of the Ganna team won the world's premier one-day cycling race, the
Milan–San Remo Milan–Sanremo (in italian language, Italian ''Milano-Sanremo''), also called "''The Spring classic''" or "''La Classicissima''", is an annual road bicycle racing, road cycling race between Milan and Sanremo, in Northwest Italy. With a distance ...
, covering the distance in 7 hours and 30 minutes. *Born:
Clarence "Frogman" Henry Clarence Henry II (March 19, 1937 – April 7, 2024), known as Clarence "Frogman" Henry, was an American rhythm and blues singer and pianist, best known for his hits " Ain't Got No Home" (1956) and "(I Don't Know Why) But I Do" (1961). Life a ...
, African-American R&B singer; in
New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...
(d. 2024)


March 20, 1937 (Saturday)

*
Lou Gehrig Henry Louis Gehrig ( ; June 19, 1903June 2, 1941), also known as Heinrich Ludwig Gehrig, was an American professional baseball first baseman who played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees (1923–1939). Gehrig was ...
signed a new contract with the
New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...
for $36,000 plus a $750 signing bonus, making him the highest-paid player in baseball. *
Amelia Earhart Amelia Mary Earhart ( ; July 24, 1897 – January 5, 1939) was an American aviation pioneer. On July 2, 1937, she disappeared over the Pacific Ocean while attempting to become the first female pilot to circumnavigate the world. During her li ...
's plane crashed and burst into flames as she and navigators Harry Manning and
Fred Noonan Frederick Joseph Noonan (born April 4, 1893 – disappeared July 2, 1937, declared dead June 20, 1938) was an American flight navigator, sea captain and aviation pioneer, who first charted many commercial airline routes across the Pacific Ocean ...
were attempting to take off from Luke Field in
Honolulu Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...
. One of the wings on the
Lockheed Electra Lockheed Electra refers to two distinct aircraft designs: * Lockheed Model 10 Electra, a ten-passenger piston engine aircraft of the 1930s, which had two immediate variants: ** Lockheed Model 12 Electra Junior, a six-passenger scaled-down version o ...
clipped the ground and the landing gear collapsed. The three escaped injury, but Manning chose not to accompany Earhart on another flight. *Born: **
Jerry Reed Jerry Reed Hubbard (March 20, 1937 – September 1, 2008), known professionally as Jerry Reed, was an American country singer, guitarist, composer, songwriter and actor who appeared in more than a dozen films. His signature songs included " Gui ...
, American country musician and songwriter, inductee to the Musicians Hall of Fame; in
Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...
(d. 2008) **
Lois Lowry Lois Ann Lowry (; née Hammersberg; born March 20, 1937) is an American writer. She is the author of many books for children and young adults, including '' The Giver Quartet'', '' Number the Stars'', the Anastasia series, and '' Rabble Starkey''. ...
, American children's book author; in
Honolulu Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...
,
Hawaii Territory The Territory of Hawaii or Hawaii Territory ( Hawaiian: ''Panalāʻau o Hawaiʻi'') was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from April 30, 1900, until August 21, 1959, when most of its territory, excluding ...
*Died: **
Harry Vardon Henry William Vardon (9 May 1870 – 20 March 1937) was a professional golfer from Jersey. He was a member of the Great Triumvirate with John Henry Taylor and James Braid. Vardon won The Open Championship a record six times, and also won the ...
, 66, English golfer and six-time winner of the British Open between 1896 and 1911, as well as the 1900 U.S. Open, died of lung disease. The PGA's
Vardon Trophy The Vardon Trophy was awarded by the PGA of America to the PGA Tour's leader in scoring average. When the award was first given in 1937, it was awarded on the basis of a points system. No award was given from 1942–1946 due to World War II. In ...
is named in his honor. ** André Raynaud, 32, French bicyclist and 1936 UCI World Champion, was killed while competing at a motor-paced bicycle race at the
Sportpaleis The Antwerps Sportpaleis () (to be renamed to AFAS Dome effective 1 September, 2025), also called Sportpaleis Antwerpen, Sportpaleis Merksem or simply the Sportpaleis, is an arena in Antwerp, Belgium. It is a multipurpose hall used for organizin ...
in
Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...
when he was struck by another competitor's pacer.


March 21, 1937 (Sunday)

*The
Ponce massacre The Ponce massacre was an event that took place on Palm Sunday, March 21, 1937, in Ponce, Puerto Rico, when a peaceful civilian Marching, march turned into a police shooting in which 17 civilians and two policemen were killed, and more than 200 ...
occurred in
Ponce, Puerto Rico Ponce ( , , ) is a city and a Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality on the southern coast of Puerto Rico. The most populated city outside the San Juan, Puerto Rico, San Juan metropolitan area, Ponce was founded on August 12, 1692Some publ ...
, when police opened fire with machine guns on an initially peaceful civilian march, killing 21 people and wounding more than 200. *''
Mit brennender Sorge ''Mit brennender Sorge'' ( , in English "With deep it. 'burning'anxiety") is an encyclical of Pope Pius XI, issued during the Nazi era on 10 March 1937 (but bearing a date of Passion Sunday, 14 March)."Church and state through the centu ...
'', the encyclical issued by Pope Pius XI, was read out from the pulpits of German Catholic churches. Copies of the encyclical had to be secretly smuggled into the country. *Died: ** Sayed Jaffar, 25, Pakistani
field hockey Field hockey (or simply referred to as hockey in some countries where ice hockey is not popular) is a team sport structured in standard hockey format, in which each team plays with 11 players in total, made up of 10 field players and a goalk ...
player for the British India team, drowned in the Ravi River near
Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...
. **
Levan Gogoberidze Levan Davidovich Gogoberidze ( ka, ლევან ღოღობერიძე; ; 21 January 1896 – 21 March 1937) was a Soviet and Georgian Bolshevik and politician. He served as First Secretary of the Georgian Communist Party from 6 May t ...
, Soviet Georgian Communist who served in 1930 as the
First Secretary of the Georgian Communist Party The First Secretary of the Georgian Communist Party (; ) was the leading position in the Georgian Communist Party (Soviet Union), Georgian Communist Party during the Soviet Union, Soviet era. Its leaders were responsible for many of the affairs in ...
, was executed by gunshot three months after he had been arrested as part of the
Great Purge The Great Purge, or the Great Terror (), also known as the Year of '37 () and the Yezhovshchina ( , ), was a political purge in the Soviet Union that took place from 1936 to 1938. After the Assassination of Sergei Kirov, assassination of ...
by Soviet Communist Party First Secretary
Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...
.


March 22, 1937 (Monday)

*The only acknowledgement of the papal encyclical ''Mit brennender Sorge'' in the German press appeared in the ''
Völkischer Beobachter The ''Völkischer Beobachter'' (; "'' Völkisch'' Observer") was the newspaper of the Nazi Party (NSDAP) from 25 December 1920. It first appeared weekly, then daily from 8 February 1923. For twenty-four years it formed part of the official pub ...
'', where an editorial said that "even an agreement with the Holy See has not sacrosanct, untouchable and eternal value." *
Mary Russell, Duchess of Bedford Mary Du Caurroy Russell, Duchess of Bedford, (née Tribe; 26 September 1865 – ca. 22 March 1937) was a British aviator and ornithologist. She was honoured for her work in founding hospitals and working in them during the First World War. She ...
, 71, an ornithologist as well as a private pilot, disappeared after departing from
Woburn Abbey Woburn Abbey (), occupying the east of the village of Woburn, Bedfordshire, England, is a country house, the family seat of the Duke of Bedford. Although it is still a family home to the current duke, it is open on specified days to visitors, ...
in England for a short flight in a
de Havilland DH.60 Moth The de Havilland DH.60 Moth is a 1920s British two-seat touring and training aircraft that was developed into a series of aircraft by the de Havilland Aircraft Company. Development The DH.60 was developed from the larger DH.51 biplane. T ...
airplane. Wreckage of the Moth airplane was found in the
North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...
off the coast of
Great Yarmouth Great Yarmouth ( ), often called Yarmouth, is a seaside resort, seaside town which gives its name to the wider Borough of Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, England; it straddles the River Yare and is located east of Norwich. Its fishing industry, m ...
. The body of Russell was never found. *Born: **
Armin Hary Armin Hary (; (born 22 March 1937) is a retired German sprinter who won the 1960 Olympic 100 meters dash. He was the first non-American to win the event since Percy Williams of Canada took the gold medal in 1928, the only German to ever win t ...
, German Olympic sprinter who won a gold medal for the 100 meter dash in the 1960 Olympics; in
Quierschied Quierschied () is a municipality in the Saarbrücken (district), district of Saarbrücken, in Saarland, Germany. It is situated approximately 11 km northeast of the city of Saarbrücken. Notable people *Armin Hary (born 22 March 1937), Germa ...
**
Angelo Badalamenti Angelo Daniel Badalamenti (March 22, 1937 – December 11, 2022) was an American composer and arranger best known for his film music, notably the scores for his collaborations with director David Lynch, '' Blue Velvet'' (1986), ''Twin Peaks'' (1 ...
, American composer of film scores; in
Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
(d. 2022) ** Foo Foo Lammar (stage name for Francis Joseph Pearson), British nightclub owner and female impersonator; in
Ancoats Ancoats is an area of Manchester, England, next to the Northern Quarter, the northern part of Manchester city centre. Historically in Lancashire, Ancoats became a cradle of the Industrial Revolution and has been called "the world's first ind ...
,
Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...
(d. 2003) *Died: Alfred Dyke Acland, 78, British Army officer


March 23, 1937 (Tuesday)

*The Spanish Republic won the
Battle of Guadalajara The Battle of Guadalajara (March 8–23, 1937) saw the victory of the Spanish Republican Army (''Ejército Popular Republicano'', or EPR) and of the International Brigades over the Italian and Nationalist forces attempting to encircle Madrid dur ...
over the Nationalists, temporarily preventing Generalissimo Francisco Franco and allies from Italy from encircling
Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
. *Born:
Craig Breedlove Norman Craig Breedlove Sr. (March 23, 1937 – April 4, 2023) was an American professional race car driver and a five-time world land speed record holder. He was the first person in history to reach , and , using several turbojet-powered vehi ...
, American race car driver known for his record-setting land speed records, as the first person in history to reach (10/13/1964) and the first to reach (11/15/1965); in
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
(d. 2023) *Died: **
Mikas Petrauskas Mikas Petrauskas (1873–1937) was a Lithuanian composer and choirmaster best known as the author of the first Lithuanian Birutė (opera), opera ''Birutė'' (1906). He was an elder brother of the singer Kipras Petrauskas. Petrauskas learned to p ...
, 63, Soviet Lithuanian opera composer known for the first
Lithuanian language Lithuanian (, ) is an East Baltic languages, East Baltic language belonging to the Baltic languages, Baltic branch of the Indo-European language family. It is the language of Lithuanians and the official language of Lithuania as well as one of t ...
opera, ''
Birutė Birutė (died 1382) was the Grand Duchess of Lithuania as the second wife of Kęstutis, Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Grand Duke of Lithuania, and mother of Vytautas the Great. There is very little known about Birutė's life, but after her death a cu ...
'' ** William Harrison, 61, English first-class cricketer


March 24, 1937 (Wednesday)

*A strike of 60,000 auto workers against
Chrysler FCA US, LLC, Trade name, doing business as Stellantis North America and known historically as Chrysler ( ), is one of the "Big Three (automobile manufacturers), Big Three" automobile manufacturers in the United States, headquartered in Auburn H ...
ended after 17 days when a tentative settlement was reached. *The Social Credit backbenchers' revolt took place in the Canadian province of
Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...
. By a vote of 27 to 25, a motion was carried in the legislature to adjourn the debate on his government's budget, despite the protest of Premier
William Aberhart William Aberhart (December 30, 1878 – May 23, 1943), also known as "Bible Bill" for his radio sermons about the Bible, was a Canadian politician and the seventh premier of Alberta from 1935 to his death in 1943. He was the founder and first le ...
. *A fiery bus crash near
Salem, Illinois Salem is a city in and the county seat of Marion County, Illinois, United States. The population was 7,282 at the 2020 census. History Salem was founded in 1823 as the county seat of the newly formed Marion County. It is situated halfway betw ...
, in the U.S. killed 20 members of a touring group of
roller derby Roller derby is a roller skating contact sport played on an oval track by two teams of five skaters. It is played by approximately 1,250 amateur leaguesA Roller Derby league is synonymous with an individual club or team in other team sports, as ...
skaters who were traveling from
St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...
to
Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...
as part of the Transcontinental Roller Derby Association circuit operated by
Leo Seltzer Leo A. Seltzer (April 5, 1903 – January 30, 1978) is generally credited as the creator of the sport of roller derby, and was the founder and head of the original Roller Derby league from 1935 until his son Jerry Seltzer took over the business in ...
. Only five people, including the bus driver, survived when the bus suffered a tire blowout while on U.S. Highway 50, sideswiped a bridge rail and overturned, trapping the victims on the bridge. *
Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...
won the 89th Boat Race, ending
Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...
's streak of 13 consecutive wins. *The romantic drama film '' Seventh Heaven'', starring
Simone Simon Simone Thérèse Fernande Simon (23 April 1910 or 1911 – 22 February 2005) was a French film actress who began her film career in 1931. She is perhaps best remembered for her role in the American horror film ''Cat People (1942 film), Cat Peop ...
and
James Stewart James Maitland Stewart (May 20, 1908 – July 2, 1997) was an American actor and military aviator. Known for his distinctive drawl and everyman screen persona, Stewart's film career spanned 80 films from 1935 to 1991. With the strong morali ...
, premiered at
Grauman's Chinese Theatre Grauman's Chinese Theatre, known as the Chinese colloquially and officially billed as TCL Chinese Theatre for sponsorship reasons, is a movie palace on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in the Hollywood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, Unite ...
in Hollywood. *Born:
Elaine McKenna Elaine McKenna Evans (, 24 March 19376 January 1992), was an Australian singer and actress. She is known for her television appearances from the late 1950s to the 1960s, particularly on GTV-9's ''Tarax Show'' and ''In Melbourne Tonight''. For he ...
, Australian singer and actor, 1961 Logie Award winner for Best Singer; in
Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
(d. 1992)


March 25, 1937 (Thursday)

*Italy and
Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...
signed a five-year non-aggression and neutrality pact. Yugoslavia recognized
Ethiopia Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...
as Italian territory while Italy made trade concessions and granted language and school rights for its Yugoslav minority. *TWA Flight 15A, operated by what was then called Trans World Airlines, Trans Continental & Western Air, crashed in the U.S. at Clifton, Pennsylvania, killing all 15 people aboard. The Douglas DC-2 airliner was approaching Pittsburgh after departing Camden, New Jersey when icing on the wings froze the controls. *The Lewiston–Auburn shoe strike began in Maine. *Born: Vadim G. Vizing, Soviet Ukrainian mathematician known for Vizing's theorem; in Kiev (d. 2017) *Died: Georges Valmier, 51, French abstract and impressionist painter


March 26, 1937 (Friday)

*William H. Hastie became the first African-American federal magistrate in U.S. history when he was confirmed as judge of the Federal District Court for the United States Virgin Islands, U.S. Virgin Islands. *Born: Wayne Embry, American basketball player and executive, known for being the first African-American general manager and team president in NBA history, for the Toronto Raptors; in Springfield, Ohio *Died: Henry Alfred Pegram, Henry Pegram, 74, British sculptor


March 27, 1937 (Saturday)

*A decree by Hermann Göring was published declaring that anyone who owned land suitable for agriculture was obligated to cultivate it. Landowners who did not comply would be forced to lease part or all of their property to an approved expert. *De Kuip (officially the Feijenoord Stadion), the iconic stadium of the Netherlands' soccer football team Feyenoord, held its first game, an exhibition (or friendly) in Rotterdam with a match against Beerschot A.C. Feyenoord won the match, 5 to 2 in front of 37,825 spectators. *The 1936–37 Stanford Indians men's basketball team, Stanford University Indians defeated the 1936–37 Washington State Cougars men's basketball team, Washington State Cougars, 41 to 40, to win the Pacific Coast Conference men's basketball tournament and to finish with one of the best records in the nation, 25 wins against only 2 losses for the best percentage (.926). Although the NCAA had no nationwide tournament until the 1939 season, it would recognize a 1943 retroactive poll by the Helms Athletic Foundation declaring Stanford as 1936–37 NCAA men's basketball season, the season's champion. *Born: Johnny Copeland, American blues musician; in Haynesville, Louisiana (d. 1997) *Died: Henry Kitchener, 2nd Earl Kitchener, 90, British soldier and peer


March 28, 1937 (Sunday)

*
Pope Pius XI Pope Pius XI (; born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti, ; 31 May 1857 – 10 February 1939) was head of the Catholic Church from 6 February 1922 until his death in February 1939. He was also the first sovereign of the Vatican City State u ...
published the encyclical ''Nos es muy conocida'' about the religious situation in Mexico. *Eddie "Rochester" Anderson, Eddie Anderson, African-American actor and comedian, made his first appearance on ''The Jack Benny Program'' on the NBC radio network as "Rochester Van Jones" and was so popular as a character that he became the first black American to be a regular actor in an American broadcast series. *Born: **David Lockton, American lawyer, inventor and entrepreneur known for the Ontario Motor Speedway and WinView, Inc.; in Indianapolis **Arne Fjørtoft, Norwegian news anchorman and journalist, later a politician and leader of the Liberal Party (Norway), Venstre Party, 1986 to 1990; in Sauda *Died: **Frances Brundage, 82, American illustrator **Manger Hotels#Julius Manger, Julius Manger, 69, founder and owner of the Manger Hotels chain of luxury hotels and upscale motor inns and motels, the largest in the U.S. at the time **Veronica Gedeon, 20, American model, was murdered along with her mother and a resident of their apartment building in the upscale Beekman Place neighborhood on Manhattan's East Side. Robert George Irwin, a sculptor who had once been a boarder at the apartment, was later convicted of the triple homicide.


March 29, 1937 (Monday)

*The United States Supreme Court, U.S. Supreme Court decided ''West Coast Hotel v. Parrish'', ''Wright v. Vinton Branch'' and ''Virginia Railway v. Federation'' on the same day, reversing the Court's pattern of striking down
New Deal The New Deal was a series of wide-reaching economic, social, and political reforms enacted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the United States between 1933 and 1938, in response to the Great Depression in the United States, Great Depressi ...
legislation. Conservative Justice Owen Roberts made the jurisprudential shift known as "the switch in time that saved nine" in the ''Parrish'' case, being the factor in a 5 to 4 ruling upholding the minimum wage law in the U.S. state of Washington, and preventing further attempts to add justices to the Court. *In the Soviet Union,
NKVD The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (, ), abbreviated as NKVD (; ), was the interior ministry and secret police of the Soviet Union from 1934 to 1946. The agency was formed to succeed the Joint State Political Directorate (OGPU) se ...
Secretary Pavel Bulanov, who had organized the Moscow trials#The "Parallel anti-Soviet Trotskyist Center", January trial of 17 Communist Party officials arrested on orders of
Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...
, found himself arrested on Stalin's orders, along with former
NKVD The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (, ), abbreviated as NKVD (; ), was the interior ministry and secret police of the Soviet Union from 1934 to 1946. The agency was formed to succeed the Joint State Political Directorate (OGPU) se ...
Director Genrikh Yagoda. The two would be among 18 people executed in 1938 after being convicted in the case of the Anti-Soviet "Bloc of Rightists and Trotskyites". *French cyclist Georges Paillard broke the world record for fastest speed of pedaling a bicycle at on the Autodrome de Linas-Montlhéry near
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
while behind a motorcycle pacer. *Born: Billy Carter, American businessman, politician and younger brother of Jimmy Carter; in Plains, Georgia (d. 1988) *Died: **Karol Szymanowski, 54, Polish composer and pianist, died of tuberculosis. **Kim You-jeong, 29, Korean novelist, died of pulmonary tuberculosis.


March 30, 1937 (Tuesday)

*A Nationalist offensive at Almadén was repulsed in Spain. *German Führer Adolf Hitler was reported to have reconciled his feud with Erich Ludendorff going back to the failed 1923 Beer Hall Putsch. *Born: Warren Beatty, American actor and filmmaker, winner of the 1982 Academy Award for Best Director for ''Reds (film)'' and the 1979 Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy; as Henry Warren Beaty in Richmond, Virginia *Died: Auguste Wilbrandt-Baudius, 93, German-born Austrian stage actress


March 31, 1937 (Wednesday)

*The bombing of Durango by Spanish Nationalist forces resulted in the city's destruction and the deaths of almost 250 residents. *The
Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...
campaigns known as the War in the North and Biscay Campaign began. *At the behest of Japanese army and navy leaders, an Imperial ordinance was passed which dissolved the Diet and 1937 Japanese general election, set a new general election for its 466 seats to be held on April 30. *Died: Ahmed Izzet Pasha, 72, former Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire and its last Foreign Minister prior to the creation of the Turkey, Turkish Republic


References

{{Events by month links March 1937, March by year, 1937 Months in the 1930s, *1937-03