Cyril Johson (1849 - 1976)

Refresh this page to see various historical events that occurred during Cyril's lifetime.

In 1849, in the year that Cyril Johson was born, on March 4th, a Sunday, Zachary Taylor became the 12th US President. However, he refused to be sworn in on a Sunday - the Sabbath - so he was inaugurated the following Monday.

In 1878, he was 29 years old when on September 12th, Cleopatra's Needle, built in Egypt in 1450 B.C. and transported to England, was erected in London. It had arrived in England on January 21st, having been towed by boat.

In 1885, he was 36 years old when on June 17th, the Statue of Liberty arrived in New York Harbor. Two hundred thousand people and hundreds of boats greeted the statue. It had to be assembled but that had to wait until the pedestal was completed the following April.

In 1927, by the time he was 78 years old, the first "talkie" (a movie with music, songs, and talking), The Jazz Singer, was released. Al Jolson starred as a cantor's son who instead of following in his father's footsteps as expected, becomes a singer of popular songs. Banished by his father, they reconcile on his father's deathbed. It was a tear-jerker and audiences went wild - especially when they heard the songs. Thus begun the demise of silent films and the rise of "talkies".

In 1976, in the year of Cyril Johson's passing, on August 4th, a mysterious illness struck an American Legion convention in Philadelphia. Within a week, 25 people had died and 130 people had been hospitalized. It was the first known instance of what came to be called "Legionnaires Disease."