Moments in Time: Long roads lead to historical moments

“On March 29, 1806, the first appropriation of $30,000 is made to build the first highway funded by the national treasury. The Great National Pike, also known as the Cumberland Road, stretched from Cumberland, Md., to Vandalia, Ill. Eventually more than $6 million was appropriated for the highway.

“On March 28, 1814, the funeral of Guillotin, the inventor and namesake of the infamous execution device, takes place outside of Paris. The guillotine was not an immediate sensation when it was first used in 1792. The crowds seemed to miss the gallows at first. The guillotine quickly caught on with the public, and many thought it brought dignity back to the executioner. It was used sporadically in France until the 1930s.

“On March 27, 1905, Thomas and Ann Farrow, shopkeepers in South London, are discovered brutally bludgeoned in their home. The Farrow case was the first time that cutting-edge fingerprint technology was used in a high-profile murder case.

“On April 1, 1945, after suffering the loss of 116 planes and damage to three aircraft carriers, 50,000 U.S. combat troops of the 10th Army, under the command of Lt. Gen. Simon B. Buckner Jr., land on the Japanese island of Okinawa.