EVENTS
- 1506 – Construction of the current St. Peter’s Basilica begins. St. Peter’s in Vatican City is one of the world’s most important Catholic sites.
- 1775 – The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere and William Dawes occurred as the two men rode out of Boston about 10 p.m. to warn patriots at Lexington and Concord of the approaching British.
- 1906 – The San Francisco Earthquake struck at 5:13 a.m., followed by a massive fire from overturned wood stoves and broken gas pipes. The fire raged uncontrollably for three days resulting in the destruction of over 10,000 acres of property and 4,000 lives lost.
- 1942 – The first air raid on mainland Japan during World War II occurred as General James Doolittle led a squadron of B-25 bombers taking off from the carrier Hornet to bomb Tokyo and three other cities. Damage was minimal, but the raid boosted Allied morale following years of unchecked Japanese military advances.
- 1949 – Ireland becomes an independent republic. Six counties in the northern part of the island remained in the Commonwealth, leading to a decades-long ethno-nationalist conflict that culminated in The Troubles.
- 1951 – The European Coal and Steel Community, a precursor of the European Union, is established. The Treaty of Paris was signed by France, West Germany, Italy, Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands.
- 1956 – Rainier III marries Grace Kelly. The wedding celebrations for the Prince of Monaco and the glamorous U.S. actress were broadcast around the world and enthused the population of war-torn Europe.
- 1982 – Queen Elizabeth II of England signed the Canada Constitution Act of 1982 replacing the British North America Act of 1867, providing Canada with a new set of fundamental laws and civil rights.
BIRTHDAYS
- 1857 – American attorney Clarence Darrow (1857-1938) was born in Kinsman, Ohio
- 1882 – Leopold Stokowski (Polish/English conductor)
- 1902 – Menachem Mendel Schneerson (Russian/French rabbi)
- 1947 – James Woods (Actor)
- 1956 – Eric Roberts (Actor)
- 1963 – Conan O’Brien (Talk Show Host)
- 1964 – Niall Ferguson (Scottish historian)
- 1971 – David Tennant (Scottish actor)
- 1973 – Haile Gebrselassie (Ethiopian runner)
DEATHS
- 1943 – Isoroku Yamamoto (Japanese Admiral)
- 1955 – Albert Einstein (German/American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate)
- 1964 – Ben Hecht (American screenwriter, director, producer)
- 2002 – Thor Heyerdahl (Norwegian explorer)
- 2012 – Dick Clark (American television host, producer, founded Productions)