EVENTS
- 1621 – Miles Standish becomes commander of Plymouth colony.
- 1863 – A precursor of the Red Cross and Red Crescent is founded. The “Committee for Relief to the Wounded” was created by a group of citizens in Geneva, Switzerland.
- 1865 – During the American Civil War, Fort Sumter in South Carolina was returned to the Union after nearly a year and a half under Confederate control. The fort had been the scene of the first shots of the war.
- 1867 – The first ship passes through the Suez Canal.
- 1904 – “Madama Butterfly” is premiered. Giacomo Puccini’s opera, one of the world’s most performed works of musical theater, was poorly received in its first performance.
- 1909 – Apache Chief Geronimo (1829-1909) died while in captivity at Fort Sill, Oklahoma. He had led a small group of warriors on raids throughout Arizona and New Mexico. Caught once, he escaped. The U.S. Army then sent 5,000 men to recapture him.
- 1913 – The “Armory Show” opens in New York. The art exhibition featured works by Henri Matisse, Pablo Picasso, and Vincent van Gogh and marked the advent of artistic modernism in the United States.
- 1933 – Newsweek is published for the first time.
- 1959 – First weather satellite is launched.
- 1992 – Serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer is jailed for life. Dahmer was convicted of murdering and dismembering at least 17 young men and boys.
- 2008 – Kosovo declares its independence. The region’s secession from Serbia followed an armed conflict referred to as the Kosovo War.
BIRTHDAYS
- 624 – Empress Wu (Emperor of China)
- 1843 – Montgomery Ward (Retailer)
- 1904 – Hans Morgenthau (German philosopher)
- 1936 – Jim Brown (Football Player)
- 1949 – Fred Frith (English guitarist, composer)
- 1954 – Rene Russo (Actress)
- 1963 – Michael Jordan (Basketball Player)
- 1972 – Denise Richards (Actress)
- 1974 – Bryan White (Singer)
- 1981 – Paris Hilton (American model, actress, singer)
- 1991 – Ed Sheeran (Singer, Songwriter)