On This Day: Monday June 27, 2005 This is the 178th day of the year, with 187 days remaining in 2005. Fact of the Day: Pirate "A pirate or buccaneer was a person who seized a ship and took the property aboard. They stole from any ship that came by and disrupted the trade of many nations. There are many tales - tall and true - about pirates. The stories go back 4,000 years, but we are most familiar with those who were active between 1500-1800 - Captain Kidd, Blackbeard, Anne Bonny, and Jean Lafitte. Pirates used small, fast ships that were easy to maneuver. They had lots of weapons and cannons. There are still pirates today - especially in the South China Sea close to Vietnam. Pirates are often confused with privateers who have the blessing of their nation to seize enemy property. Famous ones were Sir Francis Drake, Sir John Hawkins, and Sir Walter Raleigh. True pirates only stole for themselves. Pirates often buried their stolen treasure in secret places and some drew up treasure maps and charts marking the spot with an X." Holidays Feast day of St Cyril of Alexandria, St Zoilus, St Samson of Constantinople, St George Mtasmindeli, the Martyrs of Arras, St John of Chinon, and St Ladislas, king of Hungary. Djibouti: Independence Day. Events 1829 - English scientist James Smithson died after a long illness, leaving behind a will which established the Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC -- providing for a museum, a library, and a program of research, publication, and collection in the sciences, arts, and history. Today, the Smithsonian is composed of 18 museums and galleries and many research facilities throughout the United States and the world. 1847 - New York and Boston were linked by telegraph wires. 1871 - The yen becomes the new form of currency in Japan. 1893 - The New York stock market crashed. 1929 - Scientists at Bell Laboratories reveal a system for transmitting television pictures. 1950 - President Harry Truman ordered the Air Force and Navy into the Korean conflict following a call from the UN Security Council for member nations to help. 1973 - Former White House counsel John W. Dean told the Senate Watergate Committee about an "enemies list" kept by the Nixon White House. Births 1859 - Mildred J. Hill, composer of Happy Birthday to You and Good Morning to All (with sister, Patty Smith Hill). 1880 - Helen Keller, author, educator, advocate for the blind. 1927 - Bob Keeshan, American television actor, best known as Captain Kangaroo. Deaths 1844 - Mormon leader Joseph Smith and his brother, Hyrum, killed by a mob in Carthage, IL.