May 1930

• Eighteen people were killed in a series of tornadoes that swept the Midwestern United States. • As the Great Depression continued, U.S. President Herbert Hoover told a gathering of American businessmen in Washington that "I am convinced that we have now passed the worst and with continued unity of effort, we shall rapidly recover." ==Friday, May 2, 1930==

• New York Police Commissioner Grover Whalen publicized a series of letters which he said were evidence of the Communist International financing riots and strikes in the United States. Amtorg Trading Corporation chairman Peter Bogdanov released a statement saying the letters alleged to have been written by an Amtorg official were forgeries. • Canada's Finance Minister introduced the Dunning Tariff as response to the Smoot–Hawley Tariff Act passed by the U.S. Congress and awaiting the President's signature. Canada's most drastic tariff revision since 1907, the tariff raised duties on American goods while giving preferential treatment to British goods. • Died: Isidor Gunsberg, 75, Austro-Hungarian chess player ==Saturday, May 3, 1930==

• The Widnes Vikings defeated St. Helens, 10–3, to win the Northern Rugby Football League's Challenge Cup. • Born: • Juan Gelman, Argentine poet, in Buenos Aires (d. 2014) • Bob Havens, big band and jazz trombonist; in Quincy, Illinois ==Sunday, May 4, 1930==

• The Crown Hill Fire destroyed over 200 homes in Nashua, New Hampshire. Damage was estimated at $3 million. • Born: • Lois de Banzie, Scottish-born U.S. stage actress, in Glasgow (d. 2021) • Roberta Peters, American opera soprano; in the Bronx (d. 2017) • Katherine Jackson, matriarch of the Jackson musical family, in Barbour County, Alabama ==Monday, May 5, 1930==

• A 7.5 magnitude earthquake struck southern Burma (now Myanmar), killing at least 500 people. • The Mahatma Gandhi was arrested at Karadi, near Dandi. • The German airline Lufthansa began round-the-clock airmail service between Berlin and Istanbul. • The New York Times printed an open letter; to President Hoover; from 1,028 economists asking him to veto the Smoot–Hawley tariff bill. • A scandal broke in the art world when it was revealed that many paintings attributed to Jean-François Millet were actually forgeries created under the direction of Millet's own grandson. ==Tuesday, May 6, 1930==

• The 7.1 magnitude Salmas earthquake struck northwestern Iran and southeastern Turkey with a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (Extreme), killing at least 1,360 people. • Outbursts of rioting around India in reaction to the arrest of Mahatma Gandhi killed about 20 people. • The all-metal Boeing Monomail plane had its first flight. • Japan capitulated to Chinese boycotts of Japanese goods by signing a tariff agreement with China. • Died: Charles Sidney Gilpin, 51, African-American stage actor known for starring in the title role of The Emperor Jones ==Wednesday, May 7, 1930==

• The U.S. Senate rejected President Hoover's Supreme Court Justice nominee, John J. Parker, by a vote of only 39 for, and 41 against his confirmation. • Born: Totie Fields (stage name for Sophie Feldman); American comedienne; in Hartford, Connecticut (d. 1978) ==Thursday, May 8, 1930==

• Twenty-seven people were reported dead in the textile manufacturing city of Solapur as rioting continued in India. • Tourists were permitted to enter the forbidden city of Samarkand for the first time in the Soviet era. • Born: • Gary Snyder, American poet and philosopher, in San Francisco • Heather Harper, operatic soprano, in Belfast, Northern Ireland (d. 2019) ==Friday, May 9, 1930==

• A mob in Sherman, Texas, burned down a courthouse during the trial of African-American man George Hughes, who was accused of assaulting his boss' wife, a white woman. The mob attacked the courthouse vault, retrieved the dead body of Hughes, dragged it behind an automobile and hanged it from a tree. National Guard troops were sent to Sherman to restore order as the mob looted stores in the black business district. • Gallant Fox won the Preakness Stakes horse race. • Born: Joan Sims, English stage and television comedian and actress, known for the "Carry On" series of TV movies; in Laindon, England (d. 2001) ==Saturday, May 10, 1930==

• Texas Governor Dan Moody placed the city of Sherman under martial law, 14 rioters were to be placed under arrest by the state national guard. • The National Pan-Hellenic Council was formed on the campus of Howard University in Washington. • Born: Pat Summerall, American NFL kicker and later popular television sportscaster; in Lake City, Florida (d. 2013) ==Sunday, May 11, 1930==

• New York Police Commissioner Whalen issued a report saying that the city's violent crime in 1929 went down 11% from 1928, although the number of murders increased from 339 to 357. • Born: • Edsger W. Dijkstra, Dutch computer scientist; in Rotterdam (d. 2002) • Bud Ekins, American film stuntman; in Hollywood, California (d. 2007) ==Monday, May 12, 1930==

• Abbas Tyabji, the acting leader of the Indian civil disobedience movement since the arrest of Gandhi, was himself arrested in Navsari along with all his immediate followers. • Adler Planetarium, founded by businessman Max Adler, opened to the public in Chicago. ==Tuesday, May 13, 1930==

• The British Ministry of Labour reported that 1.7 million were unemployed. • Born: Mike Gravel, American politician, former Senator of Alaska (1969–1981) and Presidential candidate (2008 and 2020), in Springfield, Massachusetts (d. 2021) • Died: Fridtjof Nansen, 68, Norwegian explorer, scientist, humanitarian and Nobel Peace Prize laureate ==Wednesday, May 14, 1930==

• Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico was established as a National Park. ==Thursday, May 15, 1930==

• Sarojini Naidu led a march of volunteers on the Dharasana salt works. When they were blocked by police they sat down and waited the whole day as the police watched. • Born: Jasper Johns, painter and printmaker, in Augusta, Georgia • Died: William John Locke, 67, English novelist and playwright ==Friday, May 16, 1930==

• Rafael Trujillo was elected President of the Dominican Republic for the first time, beginning a control of the nation that would last until his 1961 assassination, as rival candidates boycotted the general elections in protest after charging that members of the body overseeing the election had been appointed illegally. ==Saturday, May 17, 1930==

• The Young Plan adjusting the terms of Germany's war reparations to France and Belgium, went into effect. • Gallant Fox won the Kentucky Derby horse race. • French Foreign Minister Aristide Briand submitted his plan for a United States of Europe to the 26 European members of the League of Nations. • The British government announced the restriction of Jewish immigration to Palestine. • Died: • Herbert Croly, 61, American editor and political philosopher • Max Valier, 35, Austrian rocketry engineer, was killed by the explosion in his laboratory of a rocket engine that he was testing. ==Sunday, May 18, 1930==

• The Austrian Heimwehr declared their opposition to democracy and support for a dictatorship at their annual meeting. ==Monday, May 19, 1930==

• Servants joined the Indian civil disobedience movement by refusing to provide services to anyone wearing foreign-made fabrics. • White women in South Africa were given the right to vote. • Born: Lorraine Hansberry, playwright and writer, in Chicago (d. 1965) ==Tuesday, May 20, 1930==

• Sir Oswald Mosley quit as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster due to disagreements with Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald over the government's unemployment policy. Mosley would be replaced by Clement Attlee. ==Wednesday, May 21, 1930==