Brooklyn Today for August 6
Good morning. Today is the 218th day of the year. The Brooklyn Daily Eagle for August 6, 1901, reported that the management of the Brooklyn Public Library was considering establishing a reference library. Remember, the central branch at Grand Army Plaza wouldn’t be established for another 40 years. The library administration planned to obtain many of the books in the collection by purchasing several private libraries, most notably the library of the Long Island Historical Society (now called the Brooklyn Historical Society) in Brooklyn Heights. The plan obviously failed, since the Brooklyn Historical Society continues to maintain its own library collection to this day.
Well-known people who were born today include Hall of Fame basketball player David Robinson, filmmaker M. Night Shyamalan (“Lady in the Water,” “Signs”), actress Michelle Yeoh (“Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon”) and actress Catherine Hicks (“Peggy Sue Got Married”).