October 6 in San Antonio history..

1968
HemisFair ’68 comes to a close with a final total of 6,384,482 attendees.

1978
The Majestic Theater re-opens as the Majestic Music Hall with performances from Arthur Godfrey, Henny Youngman, Alvino Rey and the King Family.

1992
The Hearst Corp. announces it will purchase the Express-News for $185 million in cash and the Light will be sold.

October 3 in San Antonio history…

1860
A crowd of at least two thousand people turned out to hear Governor Sam Houston speak in San Pedro Springs park.  His speech was followed by a barbecue dinner on the grounds.

1893
West Texas Military Academy opens on Government Hill.

1942
H.E.B. opens its first grocery store in San Antonio at 1802 N. Main St.

July 30 in San Antonio history…

1958
County Commissioners Court changed the name of Bexar County Coliseum to Joe Freeman Coliseum.  In changing the name of the building, members of the court noted that “through his untiring efforts and unslefish and liberal donations, Joe Freeman, an outstanding citizen of San Antonio and Bexar County, is responsible for a coliseum of which all Bexar County may be proud.”

1990
Sixty feet of the new flood-control tunnel under construction collapses, leaving a 620-ton boring machine stuck 150 feet beneath Brackenridge High School.  The collapse boosted the price of the tunnel by $10 million and left the Ohbayashi Corporation and the Army Corps of Engineers perplexed as to how to complete the boring through unstable soil.

1992
Foley’s department store opens in Rolling Oaks Mall.

June 14 in San Antonio history…

1929
The “Greater” Majestic Theater opens its doors offering “The Singing Brakeman” Jimmie Rodgers on stage along with the Movietone Follies of 1929.

1992
Due to a very rainy winter and spring, the water in the J-17 Edwards Aquifer monitoring well reaches an all-time high of 703.3 feet.

2014
The San Antonio Spurs (right) cap their “Drive for Five” with a 104-87 win over the Miami Heat, avenging the previous year’s heartbreaking Finals loss and earning their fifth NBA Championship.

May 23 in San Antonio history…

1968
The San Antonio Express newspaper reports that County Commissioner A. J. Ploch has received death threats as a result of controversial comments he made about the CBS News program “Hunger in America,” filmed in San Antonio, that aired two nights ago.

1992
The San Antonio Riders play their final game and lose to Sacramento, 27-21, in front of 19,273 fans in San Marcos’s Bobcat Stadium.

2008
The temperature has never reached 100 degrees on this date but today’s high of 99 ties the record set in 1996.

May 22 in San Antonio history…

1958
Construction contracts have been awarded for the new San Antonio “Oldfield 5” dial telephone building to be built by Southwestern Bell to serve the Fratt vicinity.

1968
The Rodriguez Brothers, known since 1920 for their beautiful and original memorial art, have just erected marble reproductions of Michaelangelo’s statues of Lorenzo De Medici and Giuliano De Medici.  These statues were imported from Carrara, Italy and are now on display at the South Entrance of Central Park Mall Shopping Center.

1992
Fiesta Texas amusement park opens in northwest San Antonio.

April 24 in San Antonio history…

1891
The first Battle of Flowers parade is held (right).

1938
According to Jack White, chairman of the committee of property owners along the San Antonio River, plans are underway to make San Antonio the “Venice of America” by adding walkways, bridges, lighting and boat landings along the river.

1992
La Semana Alegre’s East Stage features guitar wizards Peter Frampton and Eric Johnson.

April 13 in San Antonio history…

1917
General John “Black Jack” Pershing throws out the first pitch (to Mayor Clinton Brown) to begin the season at League Park. However the San Antonio Bronchos lose to the Beaumont Oilers, 7 to 4.

1936
Robert Minor, a member of the central committee of the Communist Party, speaks at Lincoln Heights Methodist Church, after being denied use of City property for a meeting tonight. Homer Brooks vows that “next time we are going to start our plans early so any question of a location can be thoroughly fought out.”

1992
Taco Cabana buys rival Sombrero Rosa.

 

February 8 in San Antonio history…

1883
James P. Newcomb is appointed Postmaster of San Antonio.

1900
Many leading citizens of San Antonio have suggested that the new Carnegie Library be placed in the center of Main Plaza or one of the other centrally located parks, like the City Hall and Market House are.  “As Travis Park is to have a Confederate monument at its center, Milam Square a monument in its center and Alamo Plaza some day a monument to the fallen heroes of the Alamo in its center, Main Plaza appears to be the only plaza left free for this purpose.” – San Antonio Light

1992
Willie Nelson comes to San Antonio for a promotional photo shoot for Jose Cuervo tequila.  The shoot takes place inside Rosario’s restaurant at 1014 S. Alamo Street (right).

December 18 in San Antonio history…

1909
Hugo Haas of San Francisco and Charles Baldwin of New Orleans demonstrate the Burlingame Telegraphic Typewriter (right) in the Bexar Hotel to great acclaim.  But, it turns out it was a scam and the whole enterprise went bankrupt in June 1911.

1936
Arturo Trevino, a local grocer, paid $3 for an airplane flight over the city and jumped to his death 3,500 feet above his grocery store.  He misses the store and his body crashes through the residence of Frank Padalecki next door.  Trevino’s body goes through the tin roof, ceiling and floor, breaking a gas main under the house.

1992
Jerry Tarkanian is fired as head coach of the San Antonio Spurs after going 9-11 in only 20 games.  He is replaced with John Lucas.