William Henry McGlew (1844 - 1924)

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

In 1844, in the year that William Henry McGlew was born, on June 6th in London, George Williams set up the first YMCA based on the idea of a healthy "body, mind, and spirit" - what he considered Christian values. Now headquartered in Geneva Switzerland, there are over 57 million worldwide beneficiaries and 125 national associations.

In 1866, he was 22 years old when on April 10th, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals - the ASPCA - was created. New Yorker Henry Bergh was the first President of the Society and the leader in its creation. He later formed the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children.

In 1894, by the time he was 50 years old, on March 12th, for the first time, Coca-Cola was sold in individual bottles as a drink for consumer consumption. Previously, it was sold as a syrup for upset stomachs - over the counter.

In 1903, William was 59 years old when the first World Series of American baseball was played between October 1st and 13th. The Boston Americans of the American League played the Pittsburgh Pirates of the National League. Boston came back from a three game to one deficit, winning the final four games to capture the title - such a large comeback wouldn't be repeated by a team until 1925. (A total of eight games were played.)

In 1924, in the year of William Henry McGlew's passing, in May, wealthy college students Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb kidnapped and killed 14 year old Robert Franks "in the interest of science". Leopold and Loeb thought that they were intellectually superior and that they could commit the perfect crime and not be caught. They were brought in for questioning within 8 days and quickly confessed. Clarence Darrow was hired as their defense lawyer, getting them life imprisonment instead of a death sentence. Loeb was eventually killed in prison - Leopold was released after 33 years, dying of a heart attack at age 66.