Sale (Town Hall pictured) is a town in Trafford, Greater Manchester, England. Historically in Cheshire, it is on the south bank of the River Mersey, 5.2 miles (8.4 km) southwest of Manchester. In 2001, it had a population of 55,000. Evidence of Stone Age, Roman, and Anglo-Saxon activity has been discovered locally. By the 17th century, Sale had a cottage industry manufacturing garthweb, the woven material from which horses' saddle girths were made. The Bridgewater Canal reached the town in 1765, stimulating Sale's urbanisation. The arrival of the railway in 1849 triggered Sale's growth as a commuter town for Manchester, leading to an influx of middle-class residents; by the end of the 19th century the town's population had more than tripled. Sale's urban growth resulted in a merger with neighbouring Ashton upon Mersey, following the Local Government Act 1929. The increase in population led to the granting of a charter in 1935, giving Sale honorific borough status. Since then, Sale has continued to thrive as a commuter town, supported by its proximity to the M60 motorway and the Manchester Metrolink network. Sale Sharks rugby union and Sale Harriers athletics club were founded in Sale, although both have now relocated elsewhere.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sale,_Greater_Manchester

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1815:

Mount Tambora in Indonesia began one of the most violent volcanic eruptions in recorded history, killing at least 71,000 people, and affecting worldwide temperatures for the next two years. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Tambora

1858:

Big Ben, the bell in the Palace of Westminster's clock tower in London, was cast after the original bell had cracked during testing. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Ben

1941:

World War II: The Independent State of Croatia was established, with Ustaše leader Ante Pavelić as head of the puppet government of the Axis powers. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ante_Paveli%C4%87

1959:

Crown Prince Akihito, the future Emperor of Japan, wedded Michiko, the first commoner to marry into the Japanese Imperial Family. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empress_Michiko

2009:

Fijian President Ratu Josefa Iloilo announced that he had suspended the constitution and assumed all governance in the country after it was ruled that the government of Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama was illegal. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2009_Fijian_constitutional_crisis

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

popliteal: (anatomy) Of the area behind the knee. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/popliteal

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

A young man who had been troubling society with impalpable doctrines of a new civilization which he called "the Kingdom of Heaven" had been put out of the way; and I can imagine that believer in material power murmuring as he went homeward, "it will all blow over now." Yes. The wind from the Kingdom of Heaven has blown over the world, and shall blow for centuries yet.   --Æ https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/George_William_Russell