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Topics Related to This Day in North Carolina History
On May 9, 1942, the U.S. Coast Guard sank German U-boat 352 off the Outer Banks.Thirteen German sailors died and 33 were plucked from the water. They were taken to Fort Bragg and confined as prisoners of war. During the course of the war thousands of POWs—mostly Germans and Italians—were captured and sent to camps in North Carolina.
On May 9, 1777, John Butler was appointed commander of the Hillsborough District militia.
On May 7, 1915, the German submarine U-20 fired a single torpedo at the luxury liner RMS Lusitania, striking the hull at 2:10 p.m. Wilmington resident Owen Hill Kenan was onboard, making his way to Deck A when the torpedo hit its target.
On May 7, 1964, President Lyndon Johnson, accompanied by Governor Terry Sanford, visited the home of tenant farmer William David Marlow near Rocky Mount to promote the President’s “War on Poverty” initiative.The 15-minute visit was essentially a photo opportunity to launch Johnson’s tour of Appalachia. There have been questions over the years as to why Rocky Mount was selected, not being particularly close to the mountains, though many have assumed it has something to do with the town’s name.
On May 6, 1944, the Journal of the American Medical Association cited a study on the effect of what would become known as the “Rice Diet” on treating heart disease. Walter Kempner of Duke University presented the results at an AMA conference later that year.Kempner documented decreases in heart size, improved kidney function and a reversal of high blood pressure when patients ate a diet limited to rice and fruit. The prescribed diet contained only 50 milligrams of sodium and limited its calories from fat and protein to less than 5 percent each.