This month in New York Life history—June.

At New York Life

Jun 1, 2009

New York Life CEO Ted Mathas became chairman of the board of New York Life, succeeding Sy Sternberg.

Jun 2, 1978

The U.S. National Park Service listed the Home Office Building at 51 Madison Avenue a National Historic Landmark in the National Register of Historic Places.

Jun 3, 2011

New York Life launched a website offering specially tailored solutions for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender community.

Jun 7, 1924

The Eternal Light Flagstaff at Madison Square Park was dedicated to commemorate veterans of World War I. In 2017, New York Life would commit $400,000 to renovate the flagstaff and its plaza.

Jun 11, 2011

New York Life launched the Guaranteed Future Income Annuity, a customizable retirement income product whose payments were guaranteed by the company. The product had  strongest sales introduction of any new annuity product in the company’s history, and would later receive the first ever Award for Innovation in Retirement Income Products from the Retirement Income Industry Association.

Jun 17, 1927

The cornerstone for New York Life’s new Home Office Building on 51 Madison Avenue was laid after an elaborate ceremony featuring a speech by President Darwin Kingsley. A capsule placed inside the cornerstone contained the following: copies of documents key to the company’s operations, such as its 1912 charter and its most recent bylaws; information about people and key events in the company’s history; and items to commemorate the building itself (a copy of that morning’s New York Times and a $20- dollar gold piece minted in 1927).

Jun 26, 2008

The New York Life Foundation made a 3-year, $3 million commitment to Comfort Zone  Camp (CZC), an organization that assisted children in coming to terms with the loss of a loved one. The grant allowed CZC to vastly expand the scope and geographic reach of its programs.

Jun 28, 1979

The New York Life Foundation held its first meeting. It had incorporated in May.

Jun 28, 1982

The building at 346 Broadway that had once served as New York Life’s headquarters was entered into the National Register of Historic Places. Though New York Life had left the location for 51 Madison Avenue in 1928, the Broadway landmark was still widely known as “The Former New York Life Insurance Company Building.”

Around the World:

June 5, 1783

The first sustained flight occurred as a hot-air balloon was launched at Annonay, France, by brothers Joseph and Jacques Montgolfier. Their 33-foot-diameter globe aerostatique ascended about 6,000 feet. In September, they repeated the experiment for King Louis XVI, using a sheep, rooster and duck as the balloon's passengers.

June 5, 1968 

 Robert F. Kennedy was shot and mortally wounded while leaving the Hotel Ambassador in Los Angeles. The shooting occurred after a celebration of Kennedy's victory in the California presidential primary.

June 6, 1872 

Pioneering feminist Susan B. Anthony was fined for voting in a presidential election at Rochester, New York. After voting rights had been granted to African American males by the 15th Amendment, she attempted to extend the same rights to women. She led a group of women that voted illegally, to test their status as citizens. She was arrested, tried and sentenced to pay $100, which she refused to do.

June 6, 1944 

 D-Day, the largest amphibious landing in history, began in the early-morning hours as Allied forces landed in Normandy on the northern coast of France. 

June 9, 1898 

The British signed a 99-year lease for Hong Kong, located on the southeastern coast of China. Hong Kong, consisting of an area measuring 400 square miles, was administered as a British Crown Colony until July 1, 1997, when its sovereignty reverted to the People's Republic of China.

June 10, 1652 

In Massachusetts, silversmith John Hull opened the first mint in America, in defiance of English colonial law. The first coin issued was the Pine Tree Shilling, designed by Hull.

June 11, 1994

After 49 years, the Soviet military occupation of East Germany ended. At one time there had been 337,800 Soviet troops stationed in Germany. Over 300,000 Russians died during World War II in the Battle for Berlin.

June 12, 1963

Civil rights leader Medgar Evers was assassinated in Jackson, Mississippi, by a rifle bullet from an ambush. He had been active in seeking integration of schools and voter registration for African Americans in the South. Widespread public outrage following his death led President John F. Kennedy to propose a comprehensive Civil Rights law. Evers was buried in Arlington National Cemetery.

June 13, 1966 

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled (5-4) in the case of Miranda v. Arizona that an accused person must be apprised of certain rights before police questioning including the right to remain silent, the right to know that anything said can be used against the individual in court, and the right to have a defense attorney present during interrogation. American police officers now routinely read prisoners their 'Miranda' (constitutional) rights before questioning.

June 14, 1777

John Adams introduced a resolution before Congress mandating a United States flag, stating, "...that the flag of the thirteen United States shall be thirteen stripes, alternate red and white; that the union be thirteen stars, white on a blue field, representing a new constellation." This anniversary is celebrated each year in the U.S. as Flag Day.

June 14, 1922 

Warren G. Harding became the first U.S. President to broadcast a message over the radio. The event was the dedication of the Francis Scott Key Memorial in Baltimore.

June 14, 1951 

Univac 1, the world's first commercial electronic computer was unveiled in Philadelphia. It was installed at the Census Bureau and utilized a magnetic tape unit as a buffer memory.

June 15, 1215 

King John set his seal to Magna Carta, the first charter of British liberties, guaranteeing basic rights that have since become the foundation of modern democracies around the world.

June 17, 1972 

Following a seemingly routine burglary, five men were arrested at the National Democratic Headquarters in the Watergate complex in Washington, D.C. However, subsequent investigations revealed the burglars were actually agents hired by the Committee for the Re-election of President Richard Nixon.

June 18, 1983 

Dr. Sally Ride, a 32-year-old physicist and pilot, became the first American woman in space, beginning a six-day mission aboard the space shuttle Challenger, launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida.

June 20, 1782 

The U.S. Congress officially adopted the Great Seal of the United States of America.

June 25, 1950 

The Korean War began as North Korean troops, led by Russian-built tanks, crossed the 38th parallel and launched a full-scale invasion of South Korea. 

June 26, 1945 

The United Nations Charter was signed in San Francisco by 50 nations. The Charter was ratified on October 24, 1945.

June 28, 1914 

Archduke Francis Ferdinand, Crown Prince of Austria and his wife were assassinated at Sarajevo, touching off a conflict between the Austro-Hungarian government and Serbia that escalated into World War I.

June 30, 1971 

The 26th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was enacted, granting the right to vote in all federal, state and local elections to American citizens 18 years or older. The U.S. thus gained an additional 11 million voters. The minimum voting age in most states had been 21.

RELATED CONTENT

Go back to our newsroom to read more stories.