On This Day: Saturday September 17, 2005 This is the 260th day of the year, with 105 days remaining in 2005. Fact of the Day: Taft William Howard Taft (1857-1930) was the 27th president of the United States (1909-13), following the successful presidency of Theodore Roosevelt. He had been a judge, solicitor general of the U.S., governor of the Philippines, and secretary of war before his election. He did not want to run for president but agreed when Roosevelt asked him and promised to carry on Roosevelt's policies. He angered many when he did not do so but he did accomplish reforms of several government agencies. Forced to run again in 1912, he faced Roosevelt of the Bull Moose Party and Woodrow Wilson of the Democratic Party, Taft came in third in electoral votes. What he really wanted was to be chief justice of the Supreme Court, which he became 1921. Holidays Angola: Day of the National Hero. Chile: Independence Day (Aniversario Nacional). Events 1394 - Jews were expelled from France by order of King Charles VI. 1787 - The Constitution of the United States of America was completed and signed by 38 of 41 delegates attending the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. Narrowly approved in some states, the Constitution of the United States of America became law by June 1789. 1796 - President George Washington delivered his "Farewell Address" to Congress before concluding his second term in office. 1862 - This was the bloodiest single day of fighting in the American Civil War; more than 26,000 men were killed, wounded, or missing in action at the Battle of Antietam in western Maryland. 1908 - The first aircraft fatality, during a demonstration at Fort Myer in Arlington, Virginia, occurred. A propeller came loose on a plane piloted by Orville Wright and Lieutenant Thomas Selfridge of the U.S. Signal Corps, a passenger on the plane, died of a skull fracture. 1920 - The American Professional Football Association, the precursor of the National Football League, was formed in Canton, Ohio. 1930 - Construction began on Hoover Dam (then Boulder Dam near Las Vegas. 1939 - The Soviet Union invaded Poland, just weeks after Nazi Germany launched its assault there. 1942 - British Prime Minister Winston Churchill met with Soviet Premier Josef Stalin in Moscow as the German army attacks Stalingrad. 1944 - British and American air forces attempted an invasion of German-occupied Netherlands but many of the British airmen surrendered. 1947 - James Forrestal was sworn in as first the U.S. Secretary of Defense. 1948 - United Nations mediator for Palestine, Count Folke Bernadotte, was assassinated in Jerusalem by Jewish extremists. 1963 - "The Fugitive" debuted on TV. 1964 - TV show "Bewitched" premiered. 1967 - "Mission Impossible" premiered on television. 1972 - "M*A*S*H" premiered on TV. 1976 - NASA unveiled the first space shuttle, the Enterprise, in Palmdale, California. 1978 - At Camp David, Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin and Egyptian President Anwar Sadat signed the first peace treaty between Israel and one of its Arab neighbors. 1983 - Vanessa Williams of New York became the first black Miss America. 1994 - Heather Whitestone of Alabama was crowned "Miss America," the first deaf contestant to win the title. Births 879 - Charles III (Charles The Simple), King of France (893-923). 1271 - Wenceslas II, King of Poland and Bohemia (1278-1305). 1883 - William Carlos Williams, American physician, poet, playwright, essayist, writer, and Pulitzer Prize winner. 1900 - J. (John) Marriott, American hotel entrepreneur. 1902 - Esther Ralston, American actress. 1907 - U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice Warren E. Burger. 1923 - Hank Williams, Sr., American singer and songwriter. 1934 - Maureen "Little Mo" Connolly, American tennis player, first woman to win the Grand Slam in professional tennis. 1935 - Ken Kesey, American author. 1939 - Supreme Court Justice David H. Souter. Deaths 1985 - Laura Ashley, Welsh fashion designer, manufacturer, and retail entrepreneur. 1997 - Red Skelton, American radio and television comedian and host of variety show.