GOOD MORNING – TODAY IS MONDAY, August 25, the 237th day of 2014 with 128 to follow. Sunrise in the Boston area is @ 6:01 and sunset is @ 7:31. The New Moon is exact @ 10:14 AM EDT. The morning stars are stars are Jupiter, Neptune, Uranus & Venus. The evening stars are Mars, Mercury & Saturn.

ON THIS DAY IN:
1718 – Hundreds of French colonists arrived in Louisiana, some settling in what is now New Orleans.

1825 – Uruguay declared independence from Brazil.

1875 – Navy Captain Matthew Webb became the first person to swim across the English Channel(in 21 hours, 45 minutes).

1916 – The National Park Service was established.

1944 – Paris was liberated by Allied forces after four years of Nazi occupation.

1950 – President Harry Truman ordered the Army to seize control of the nation’s railroads to avert a strike.

1980 – The Broadway musical “42nd Street” opened; the show’s director, Gower Champion, died earlier that day.

1991 – Belarus declares independence from the Soviet Union.

2003 – Tennis champion Pete Sampras announced his retirement during a news conference at the U.S. Open in New York, having won 64 titles, 14 Grand Slam titles, and more than $43 million in prize money.