Today in History

Today in History

1776 – The Continental Congress appointed a committee to write a Declaration of Independence.

1793 – The Jardin des Plantes zoo opened in Paris. It was the first public zoo.

1801 – The North African State of Tripoli declared war on the U.S. The dispute was over merchant vessels being able to travel safely through the Mediterranean.

1806 – New York's 'Commercial Advertiser' became the first U.S. newspaper to cover the sport of harness racing.

1854 – The U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD, held its first graduation.

1898 – U.S. Marines landed in Cuba during the Spanish-American War.

1902 – The 'outlook' or 'see-through' envelope was patented by Americus F. Callahan.

1903 – Binney & Smith Company began developing a product line of wax crayons. The product was named Crayola.

1909 – The SOS distress signal was used for the first time. The Cunard liner SS Slavonia used the signal when it wrecked off the Azores.

1916 – Mecca, under control of the Turks, fell to the Arabs during the Great Arab Revolt.

1920 – The Republican convention in Chicago endorsed woman suffrage.

1924 – The Republican National Convention was broadcast by NBC radio. It was the first political convention to be on radio.

1925 – The state of Tennessee adopted a new biology text book that denied the theory of evolution.

1933 – Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow were in a car accident on a rural road in north Texas. The third-degree burns suffered by Parker resulted in a pronounced limp for the rest of her life.

1935 – Alcoholic Anonymous was founded by William G. Wilson and Dr. Robert Smith.

1940 – Italy declared war on France and Britain. In addition, Canada declared war on Italy.

1943 – Laszlo Biro patented his ballpoint pen. Biro was a Hungarian journalist.

1943 – The Allies began bombing Germany around the clock.

1944 – The youngest pitcher in major league baseball pitched his first game. Joe Nuxhall was 15 years old (and 10 months and 11 days).

1946 – Italy established a republic replacing its monarchy.

1948 – Chuck Yeager exceeded the speed of sound in the Bell XS-1.

1954 – General Motors announced the gas turbine bus had been produced successfully.

1967 – Israel and Syria agreed to a cease-fire that ended the Six-Day War.

1970 – A fifteen-man group of special forces troops began training for Operation Kingpin. The operation was a POW rescue mission in North Vietnam.

1971 – The U.S. ended a 21-year trade embargo of China.

1983 – Johnny Bench announced his plans to retire. He was a catcher in the major leagues for 16 years.

1984 – The U.S. Army successfully tested an antiballistic missile.

1984 – The United States and the Vatican established full diplomatic relations for the first time in 117 years.

1985 – Frank Sinatra was portrayed as a friend of organized crime in a 'Doonesbury' comic strip. Over

800 newspapers carried the panel.

1985 – The Israeli army pulled out of Lebanon after

1,099 days of occupation.

1990 – The Civic Forum movement won Czechoslovakia's first free elections since 1946. The movement was founded by President Vaclav Havel.

1990 – Bulgaria's former Communist Party won the country's first free elections in more than four decades.

1993 – It was announced by scientists that genetic material was extracted from an insect that lived when dinosaurs roamed the Earth.

1994 – U.S. President Clinton intensified sanctions against Haiti's military leaders. U.S. commercial air travel was suspended along with most financial transactions between Haiti and the U.S.

1996 – The Colorado Avalanche defeated the Florida Panthers in a 1-0 triple overtime game. The win ended a four-game sweep for the Stanley Cup.

1996 – Britain and Ireland opened Northern Ireland peace talks. The IRA's political arm Sinn Fein was excluded.

1998 – The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled that poor children in Milwaukee could attend religious schools at taxpayer expense.

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