EVENTS
- 1492 – The island of Hispaniola was discovered by Christopher Columbus. Today the island is divided between Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
- 1768 – The first edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica is published.
- 1790 – The U.S. Congress moves from New York City to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- 1865 – The Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution is ratified, banning slavery.
- 1877 – At his laboratory in West Orange, New Jersey, Thomas Edison spoke the children’s verse “Mary had a Little Lamb…” while demonstrating his newly invented phonograph which utilized a revolving cylinder wrapped in tinfoil to record sounds.
- 1884 – The Washington Monument in Washington D.C. is completed.
- 1917 – Two ships collided at Halifax, Nova Scotia, resulting in an explosion that killed more than 1,500 persons and injured 8,000. The Norwegian ship Imo collided with the French munitions ship Mont Blanc which was loaded with supplies for the war in Europe, including 5,000 tons of TNT. A tidal wave caused by the explosion destroyed much of the city.
- 1917 – Finnish Declaration of Independence. The declaration ended 109 years of Finland being a Grand Duchy in the Russian Empire. The Northern European country came under the control of the Russian Empire in 1809. After the October Revolution in Russia, which created the Soviet Union, the Finnish Parliament declared independence on this day.
- 1921 – The Irish Free State became an independent member of the British Commonwealth.
- 1922 – Establishment of the Irish Free State. The Anglo-Irish Treaty signed between the British and Irish representatives in 1921 paved the way for the establishment of the Dominion of the British Empire. The state lasted until December 1937.
- 1967 – World’s first pediatric heart transplant. 3 days after the first heart transplant in the world occurred in South Africa, Adrian Kantrowitz and his team of surgeons performed United States’ first heart transplant and the world’s first pediatric heart transplant at the Maimonides Medical Center in Brooklyn.
- 1971 – The Democratic Republic of Bangladesh, formerly East Pakistan, was recognized by India. Pakistan then broke off diplomatic relations with India.
- 1973 – Gerald Ford was sworn in as vice president under Richard Nixon following the resignation of Spiro Agnew who pleaded no contest to charges of income tax evasion.
- 1977 – South Africa grants independence to Bophuthatswana. The Republic of Bophuthatswana was never internationally recognized. In 1994, after a series of coups, it reintegrated with South Africa.
- 1978 – In Spain, a new constitution was approved by referendum, providing for a constitutional monarchy and a parliamentary form of government.
BIRTHDAYS
- 1421 – Henry VI (King of England)
- 1642 – Johann Bach (Composer)
- 1875 – Evelyn Underhill (English poet)
- 1886 – American poet Alfred Joyce Kilmer (1886-1918) was born in New Brunswick, New Jersey. Best known for his poem Trees, published in 1913. He was killed in action during World War I near Ourcy, France. The U.S. Army’s Camp Kilmer was named in his honor.
- 1896 – American lyricist Ira Gershwin (1896-1983) was born in New York City. He collaborated with his brother George to create many Broadway successes including; Lady Be Good, Funny Face, Strike Up the Band, and songs such as The Man I Love, Someone to Watch Over Me, and I Got Rhythm.
- 1898 – Photojournalist Alfred Eisenstaedt (1898-1995) was born in Dirschau, Prussia. Best known for his ‘Life’ magazine cover photos, including the sailor kissing a nurse in Time’s Square, celebrating the end of World War II.
- 1920 – Dave Brubeck (American pianist, composer)
- 1941 – Richard Speck (American murderer)
- 1962 – Janine Turner (Actress)
- 1967 – Judd Apatow (American director, producer, screenwriter)
- 1982 – Alberto Contador (Spanish cyclist)
- 1982 – Ryan Carnes (Actor)
DEATHS
- 1882 – Alfred Escher (Swiss businessman, politician)
- 1889 – Jefferson Davis (American colonel, politician, President of the Confederate States of America)
- 1956 – B. R. Ambedkar (Indian jurist, politician)
- 1988 – Roy Orbison (American singer-songwriter)
- 1990 – Tunku Abdul Rahman (Malaysian politician, 1st Prime Minister of Malaysia)