- 1639: The transit of Venus (its passage across the Sun's disc) was
first observed by astronomer Jeremiah Horrocks.
- 1835: The Texas Rangers, a mounted police force, was authorized by
the Texas Provincial Government.
- 1859: Charles Darwin's "The Origin of Species," a revolutionary work
on evolution, was published.
- 1869: Women from 21 states met in Cleveland to organize the
American Women Suffrage Association.
- 1871: The National Rifle Association was incorporated.
- 1874: Joseph Farwell Glidden patented his invention of barbed wire.
- 1922: Italian parliament gave Mussolini dictatorial powers for one
year.
- 1930: Ruth Nichols became the first woman to pilot a
transcontinental air flight.
- 1947: A group of writers, producers and directors that became known
as the "Hollywood Ten" was cited for contempt of Congress for
refusing to answer questions about alleged Communist influence in
the movie industry.
- 1947: John Steinbeck's novel "The Pearl" was first published.
- 1948: Ireland voted for independence from the U.K.
- 1950: UN troops began an assault with the intent to end the Korean
War by Christmas.
- 1952: Agatha Christie's "The Mousetrap" opened in London. At last
report, it is still running.
- 1954: Air Force One, the first U.S. Presidential airplane, was
christened.
- 1960: Wilt Chamberlain of the Philadelphia Warriors set an NBA
record with 55 rebounds in a 132-129 loss to the Boston Celtics.
- 1963: Lee Harvey Oswald, assassin of President Kennedy, was shot
dead by Jack Ruby at Dallas police headquarters.
- 1964: For the first time since 1800, residents of the District of
Columbia were permitted to vote in a presidential election.
- 1966: The Beatles began recording sessions for "Sgt. Pepper's
Lonely Hearts Club Band."
- 1969: U.S. Army Lt. William L. Calley, charged with the massacre of
over 100 civilians in the Vietnamese village of My Lai in March
1968, was ordered to stand trial by court martial.
- 1971: Hijacker "D.B. Cooper" parachuted from a Northwest Airlines
727 over Washington state with $200,000 in ransom. His fate remains
unknown.
- 1974: Gerald Ford and Leonid Brezhnev signed the SALT-2 treaty to
limit strategic arms.
- 1979: The U.S. admitted that thousands of troops in Vietnam were
exposed to Agent Orange, a toxic defoliant.
- 1981: The first air-launched cruise missile was tested.
- 1991: Freddie Mercury, lead singer of the pop group Queen, died of
complications related to AIDS.
- 1993: The Brady bill was passed by Congress to establish a 5-day
federal waiting period for handgun sales.
- 1995: Ireland voted in a referendum on whether to end a 70-year-old
ban on divorce; the result was 50.28% in favor and 49.72% against.
- 1996: Rookie Karrie Webb won the season-ending LPGA Tour
Championship and became the first player in tour history to earn
more than $1 million in a season.
- 1997: Winnie Madikizela-Mandela began her examination by South
Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), with testimony
by five witnesses who accused her of murder.
*Happy Birthday*
----------------
- Pete Best, 57, one-time drummer for the Beatles
- William F. Buckley, 73, journalist/author
- Billy Connolly, 56, actor/comedian, "Mrs. Brown"
- Denise Crosby, 41, actress, "Star Trek: The Next Generation"
- Dawn Robinson, 30, singer En Vogue
- Joseph "Run" Simmons, 32, rapper, Run D.M.C.
- Paul Tagliabue, 58, NFL commissioner
- Chad Taylor, 28, musician, Live