On This Day, Sept. 12: Hurricane Gilbert slams into Jamaica

Sept. 12 (UPI) -- On this date in history:

In 1609, Henry Hudson discovered what is now known as the Hudson River.

In 1940, near Montignac, France, the prehistoric Lascaux cave paintings, believed to be 15,000-17,000 years old, were discovered by four teenagers who stumbled upon the ancient artwork after following their dog down a narrow entrance into a cavern.

In 1953, U.S. Sen. John Fitzgerald Kennedy married Jacqueline Lee Bouvier at St. Mary's Church in Newport, Rhode Island.

In 1958, Little Rock High School in Arkansas was ordered by the U.S. Supreme Court to admit black students.

In 1974, military officers deposed Emperor Haile Selassie from the Ethiopian throne he had occupied for more than half a century.

In 1977, Steven Biko, leader of South Africa's Black Consciousness Movement, died of severe head trauma on the stone floor of a prison cell in Pretoria. Six days earlier, he had suffered a major blow to his skull during a police interrogation.

In 1988, Hurricane Gilbert made landfall in Jamaica before eventually moving over Mexico and Texas, killing more than 300 people.

In 1992, actor Anthony Perkins, best known for his role of Norman Bates in Psycho, died from complications of AIDS. He was 60.

In 1992, Mae Jamison became the first African-American woman to fly in space, and Jan Davis and Mark Lee became the first married couple to go into space together aboard the Endeavor.

In 1994, a pilot crashed his small plane on the White House lawn, killing himself and creating an alarm about presidential security.

In 2001, after meeting with his national security team, U.S. President George W. Bush said at a news conference: "The deliberate and deadly attacks which were carried out yesterday against our country were more than acts of terror. They were acts of war. .... The American people need to know that we're facing a different enemy than we have ever faced. This enemy hides in shadows. ...This enemy attacked not just our people, but all freedom-loving people everywhere in the world. ... This will be a monumental struggle of good versus evil. But good will prevail."

File Photo by Ricardo Watson/UPI

In 2004, Iran announced it planned to start processing 37 tons of uranium yellowcake, which Western intelligence officials estimated could be used to build five nuclear bombs.

In 2005, the last of Israeli troops left the Gaza Strip, as planned, and the Palestinians immediately reclaimed the area Israel had controlled since the 1967 war.

In 2006, Pope Benedict XVI, in his first papal trip to his native Bavaria, in Germany, angered Muslims in a speech with a 14th century quote criticizing Islam, leading to church bombings and other protests. The pope apologized for any offense caused, saying the words didn't reflect his own views.

File Photo by Stefano Spaziani/UPI

In 2009, thousands of tax protesters gathered at the U.S. Capitol in the largest anti-government demonstration since U.S. President Barack Obama took office. The rally marked the final stop for the Tea Party Express in a 30-city protest campaign.

In 2011, a leaking gasoline pipeline exploded in a densely populated slum in Nairobi, the Kenyan capital, engulfing a crowd of onlookers in an inferno that killed more than 100 people and injured a similar number. Police said the fire may have been touched off after the pipeline was punctured in an effort to steal fuel.

In 2013, officials in Britain announced that Prince William, 31, had left the armed forces after more than 7 1/2 years of service -- first in the army, then as a Royal Air Force search-and-rescue helicopter pilot -- "to focus on royal duties and charity work."

In 2014, Ian Paisley, longtime, hardline Protestant leader in Northern Ireland who eventually made peace with Irish Catholics, died in Belfast. He was 88.

In 2017, Apple unveiled its newest mobile phones, the iPhone X and iPhone 8. The former featured edge-to-edge glass, OLED display and Face ID.