On this date in...
1809...New York City Mayor Dewitt Clinton opens the city's first public school, on the site of today's P.S. 2 on Henry Street.
1929...New York Governor Al Smith announces that a mooring mast for blimps will be built atop the Empire State Building. After the mast is constructed, the first blimp to land on the building is blown over by the wind and nearly sweeps away bystanders. The idea is abandoned and a television tower later replaces the mast.
1992...A state of emergency is declared when a furious Nor'easter blows into the Big Apple, destroying homes, flooding streets, and halting transportation.