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Today in Chicago History: Walter Payton held to zero net yards in his NFL debut for the Bears

Chicago Bears general manager Jim Finks, right, and head coach Jack Pardee, second from right, review the first-round draft picks at the La Salle Hotel headquarters on Jan. 28, 1975. Finks and Pardee are pointing at their No. 1 draft choice in 1975, Walter Payton. (Phil Mascione/Chicago Tribune)
Chicago Bears general manager Jim Finks, right, and head coach Jack Pardee, second from right, review the first-round draft picks at the La Salle Hotel headquarters on Jan. 28, 1975. Finks and Pardee are pointing at their No. 1 draft choice in 1975, Walter Payton. (Phil Mascione/Chicago Tribune)
By | krumore@chicagotribune.com | Chicago Tribune
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Here’s a look back at what happened in the Chicago area on Sept. 21, according to the Tribune’s archives.

Is an important event missing from this date? Email us.

Weather records (from the National Weather Service, Chicago)

  • High temperature: 94 degrees (2017)
  • Low temperature: 39 degrees (1991)
  • Precipitation: 1.67 inches (1947)
  • Snowfall: None

Vintage Chicago Tribune: The White Sox’s wild ride into the team’s 125th season

1901: The Chicago White Stockings (later known as the White Sox) captured the American League’s first pennant. The team — which also finished atop the Western League the previous season — finished with an 83-53 record. That was four games ahead of the Boston Americans.

Honeymooners and vacationers from Chicago were aboard a Mexicana flight from O'Hare International Airport when it crashed in a swamp on Sept. 21, 1969, near the airport in Mexico City. (Chicago Tribune)
Honeymooners and vacationers from Chicago were aboard a Mexicana flight from O'Hare International Airport when it crashed in a swamp on Sept. 21, 1969, near the airport in Mexico City. (Chicago Tribune)

1969: Twenty-seven people were killed when Mexicana Airlines Flight MX801, which departed from Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, crashed into a swamp 3,000 feet away from the runway in Mexico City. Ignoring her own injuries, Ruth Shapiro helped get her husband and some of the other survivors off the aircraft.

“She even tore off part of her clothing to cover the wounds of others and to protect them from the chill of the swamp,” friend Florence Mandarino told the Tribune. “I started to cry, but Ruth said, ‘Florence, we’re alive; don’t cry,’ and I stopped.”

In his NFL debut on Sept. 21, 1975, Chicago Bears first-round draft pick Walter Payton gained zero yards in eight carries in the team's 35-7 loss against the Baltimore Colts at Soldier Field. "The Bears looked as remodeled as their Soldier Field home new paint and new names on the outside, same old problems on the inside," Tribune reporter Don Pierson wrote. (Chicago Tribune)
In his NFL debut on Sept. 21, 1975, Chicago Bears first-round draft pick Walter Payton gained zero yards in eight carries in the team's 35-7 loss against the Baltimore Colts at Soldier Field. "The Bears looked as remodeled as their Soldier Field home — new paint and new names on the outside, same old problems on the inside," Tribune reporter Don Pierson wrote. (Chicago Tribune)

1975: After missing most of training camp with an elbow infection, Walter Payton made his Bears debut in a game against the Baltimore Colts.

Walter Payton: The life, career of the Chicago Bears Hall of Famer better known as ‘Sweetness’

The first-round draft pick was limited to eight carries and zero net yards in the Bears’ 35-7 loss. Payton missed one game in his rookie season and then played in 186 consecutive NFL games.

Cardinal Bernardin, center, dedicates the St. Martin de Porres Church at 5112 W. Washington Blvd. on Feb. 9, 1992, after it was completely restored. Bernardin established an independent panel to review complaints of sexual abuse by priests in 1992. (Walter Kale/Chicago Tribune)
Cardinal Bernardin, center, dedicates the St. Martin de Porres Church at 5112 W. Washington Blvd. on Feb. 9, 1992, after it was completely restored. Bernardin established an independent panel to review complaints of sexual abuse by priests in 1992. (Walter Kale/Chicago Tribune)

1992: Cardinal Joseph Bernardin established an independent panel to review complaints of sexual abuse by priests and plans to appoint a victim assistance minister — someone who was not a priest — to handle the complaints.

The life of Cardinal Joseph Bernardin, 25 years after his death

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