Memories of milestones

“ On Feb. 24, 1836, Texas Colonel William Travis sends a desperate plea for help for the besieged defenders of the Alamo, ending the message with the famous last words, “Victory or Death.” Only 32 men responded to Travis’ call for reinforcements. On March 6, the Mexican army stormed the Alamo, and Travis, Jim Bowie, Davy Crockett and about 190 of their comrades were killed.

“ On Feb. 19, 1847, the first rescuers reach surviving members of the Donner Party, a group of California-bound immigrants stranded by snow in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Eighty-nine people had set out from Springfield, Ill., the previous July. Only 45 of the original party reached California.

“ On Feb. 21, 1885, the Washington Monument is dedicated in Washington, D.C. The monument remains today, by District of Columbia law, the tallest building in the nation’s capital.

“ On Feb. 22, 1923, the 1 millionth Chevy is produced. Chevrolet began when William Durant hired Louis Chevrolet, a Swiss race-car driver and star of the Buick racing team, to design a new car to challenge the success of the Ford Model T.

“ On Feb. 25, 1938, Miami’s first drive-in movie theater opens. Admission was 25 cents per car and 25 cents per individual, with no car paying more than $1. The drive-in craze would peak in 1963, when 3,502 theaters were in operation across the country.

“ On Feb. 20, 1943, movie-studio executives agree to allow the Office of War Information to censor movies informally. World War II led to a proliferation of war-themed films, and the government feared that vital information might be disclosed through movies.

“ On Feb. 23, 1954, a group of children from Arsenal Elementary School in Pittsburgh, Pa., receive the first injections of the new polio vaccine developed by Dr. Jonas Salk. Globally, there are now roughly 250,000 cases of polio each year, most in developing countries.