This Day in History

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY March 27 1912 Japanese cherry trees planted along the Potomac March 27, 1912: In Washington, D.C., Helen Taft, wife of President William Taft, and the Viscountess Chinda, wife of the Japanese ambassador, plant two Yoshino cherry trees on the northern bank of the Potomac River, near the Jefferson Memorial. The event was held in celebration of a gift, b... read more 19th Century 1836 Mexican army executes 417 Texas revolutionaries at Goliad American Revolution 1775 Thomas Jefferson elected to the Continental Congress Art, Literature, and Film History 1973 Marlon Brando declines Best Actor Oscar 1979 Pattie Boyd and Eric Clapton are married Civil War 1865 Lincoln, Sherman and Grant plan final stages of Civil War Crime 1905 Fingerprint evidence is used to solve a British murder case European History 1958 Khrushchev becomes Soviet premier Inventions & Science 1952 Kiichiro Toyoda, founder of the Toyota Motor Corporation, dies 1998 FDA approves Viagra Natural Disasters & Environment 1964 Earthquake rocks Alaska 1977 Jumbo jets collide at Canary Islands airport Sports 1939 "March Madness" crowns its first men's NCAA Champion U.S. Presidents 1829 President Jackson appoints John Eaton as secretary of war and starts scandal

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY March 28 1979 Nuclear disaster at Three Mile Island At 4 a.m. on March 28, 1979, the worst accident in the history of the U.S. nuclear power industry begins when a pressure valve in the Unit-2 reactor at Three Mile Island fails to close. Cooling water, contaminated with radiation, drained from the open valve into adjoining buildings, and the core beg... read more American Revolution 1774 British Parliament adopts the Coercive Acts in response to the Boston Tea Party Art, Literature, and Film History 1958 W.C. Handy—the “Father of the Blues”—dies Civil War 1862 Union forces halt Confederates at Battle of Glorieta Pass Crime 1814 Funeral held for the man behind the guillotine 2006 Duke lacrosse team suspended following sexual assault allegations Hispanic History 1939 Spanish Civil War ends Sports 1984 Baltimore Colts move to Indianapolis U.S. Presidents 1834 Congress censures President Jackson 1969 President Eisenhower dies World War I 1915 First American citizen killed during WWI

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY March 29

1973 U.S. withdraws from Vietnam Two months after the signing of the Vietnam peace agreement, the last U.S. combat troops leave South Vietnam as Hanoi frees the remaining American prisoners of war held in North Vietnam. America's direct eight-year intervention in the Vietnam War was at an end. In Saigon, some 7,000 U.S. Department ... read more

Civil War 1865 Appomattox, the final campaign in the Civil War, begins

Cold War 1951 Rosenbergs convicted of espionage

Crime 1951 The "Mad Bomber" strikes in New York

Inventions & Science 1958 Keeling Curve, showing increase of carbon dioxide in Earth's atmosphere, is discovered

Space Exploration 1974 U.S. space probe, Mariner, visits Mercury

Sports 1982 Freshman Michael Jordan hits winning shot to give North Carolina NCAA title

U.S. Presidents 1929 Herbert Hoover has telephone installed in Oval Office

Vietnam War 1971 Lt. William Calley found guilty of My Lai murders

World War I 1917 Swedish prime minister resigns over WWI policy

World War II 1945 Gen. George Patton takes Frankfurt

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY March 30 1981 President Reagan shot On March 30, 1981, President Ronald Reagan is shot in the chest outside a Washington, D.C. hotel by a deranged drifter named John Hinckley Jr. The president had just finished addressing a labor meeting at the Washington Hilton Hotel and was walking with his entourage to his limousine when Hinckley, ... read more 19th Century 1867 U.S. purchase of Alaska ridiculed as "Seward's Folly" American Revolution 1775 King George endorses New England Restraining Act Art, Literature, and Film History 1955 James Wong Howe becomes first Asian American to win an Academy Award 1974 John Denver has his first #1 hit with "Sunshine On My Shoulders" Cold War 1948 Henry Wallace criticizes Truman's Cold War policies France 1814 Napoleon's forces defeated in Paris Inventions & Science 2009 President Obama announces auto industry shakeup Natural Disasters & Environment 1980 Oil workers drown in North Sea US Politics 1855 Violence disrupts first Kansas election United States Constitution 1870 15th Amendment adopted Vietnam War 1965 Bomb explodes outside U.S. Embassy in Saigon

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY March 31 1889 Eiffel Tower opens On March 31, 1889, the Eiffel Tower is dedicated in Paris in a ceremony presided over by Gustave Eiffel, the tower's designer, and attended by French Prime Minister Pierre Tirard, a handful of other dignitaries, and 200 construction workers. In 1889, to honor of the centenary of the French Revolutio... read more American Revolution 1776 Abigail Adams urges husband to "remember the ladies" Art, Literature, and Film History 1943 "Oklahoma!" premieres on Broadway 1999 "The Matrix" released in theaters Cold War 1991 Warsaw Pact ends Crime 1999 Evidence of murder is uncovered in New Mexico Japan 1854 Treaty of Kanagawa signed with Japan Religion 1492 Spain announces it will expel all Jews 1959 Dalai Lama begins exile World War I 1905 The First Moroccan Crisis

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY April 1 1700 April Fools' tradition popularized On April 1, 1700, English pranksters begin popularizing the annual tradition of April Fools' Day by playing practical jokes on each other. Although the day, also called All Fools' Day, has been celebrated for several centuries by different cultures, its exact origins remain a mystery. Some historian... read more American Revolution 1789 First U.S. House of Representatives elects speaker Art, Literature, and Film History 1816 Jane Austen declines royal writing advice 1963 Soap operas "General Hospital" and "The Doctors" premiere 1984 Marvin Gaye is shot and killed by his own father Colonial America 1621 The Pilgrim-Wampanoag peace treaty Crime 1924 Hitler sentenced for his role in Beer Hall Putsch Great Britain 1918 RAF founded Inventions & Science 1993 The "Polish Prince" killed in plane crash Natural Disasters & Environment 1946 Alaskan earthquake triggers massive tsunami Sports 1972 First MLB players' strike begins 1985 Villanova wins NCAA basketball title in stunning upset U.S. Presidents 1970 President Nixon signs legislation banning cigarette ads on TV and radio World War II 1945 U.S. troops land on Okinawa

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY April 2 2005 Pope John Paul II dies On April 2, 2005, John Paul II, history's most well-traveled pope and the first non-Italian to hold the position since the 16th century, dies at his home in the Vatican. Six days later, two million people packed Vatican City for his funeral, said to be one of the biggest in history. John Paul II was... read more Art, Literature, and Film History 1805 Hans Christian Andersen is born Crime 1992 Mob boss John Gotti convicted of murder Exploration 1513 Ponce de León claims Florida for Spain Latin America 1982 Argentina invades Falklands Natural Disasters & Environment 1979 Anthrax poisoning kills 62 in Russia Women's History 1917 Jeannette Rankin, first woman elected to U.S. Congress, assumes office World War I 1917 President Wilson asks for declaration of war

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY April 03 1860 Pony Express debuts On April 3, 1860, the first Pony Express mail, traveling by horse and rider relay teams, simultaneously leaves St. Joseph, Missouri, and Sacramento, California. Ten days later, on April 13, the westbound rider and mail packet completed the approximately 1,800-mile journey and arrived in Sacramento, ... read more 19th Century 1817 Texas Ranger “Big Foot” Wallace born American Revolution 1776 Congress authorizes privateers to attack British vessels Art, Literature, and Film History 1948 "The Louisiana Hayride" radio program premieres on KWKH-AM Shreveport 1955 ACLU says it will contest obscenity of "Howl" 1978 "Annie Hall" beats out "Star Wars" for Best Picture Civil War 1865 Confederate capital of Richmond is captured Crime 1882 Jesse James is murdered 1936 Bruno Hauptmann, convicted of kidnapping Lindbergh’s son, executed 1996 Unabomber arrested Natural Disasters & Environment 1996 U.S. Secretary of Commerce, Ron Brown, killed in plane crash U.S. Presidents 1948 President Harry Truman signs Marshall Plan Vietnam War 1969 Nixon administration vows to "Vietnamize" the war

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY April 04 1968 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is assassinated Just after 6 p.m. on April 4, 1968, Martin Luther King Jr. is fatally shot while standing on the balcony outside his second-story room at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. The civil rights leader was in Memphis to support a sanitation workers’ strike and was on his way to dinner when a bulle... read more 1970s 1973 World Trade Center, then the world's tallest building, opens in New York City 21st Century 2007 Radio host Don Imus makes offensive remarks about Rutgers' women's basketball team American Revolution 1776 General George Washington begins march to New York Art, Literature, and Film History 1928 Maya Angelou is born 1960 "Ben-Hur" wins 11 Academy Awards 2013 Movie critic Roger Ebert dies Cold War 1949 North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) pact signed Early 20th Century U.S. 1933 Dirigible crash kills 73 in New Jersey Inventions & Science 1975 Microsoft founded Sports 1974 Hank Aaron ties Babe Ruth's home run record U.S. Presidents 1841 President Harrison dies—32 days into office 1865 President Lincoln dreams about his assassination Vietnam War 1967 Martin Luther King Jr. speaks out against the war World War I 1918 Second Battle of the Somme ends 1918 Germans and Allies step up operations near Somme World War II 1884 Isoroku Yamamoto, Japan’s mastermind of the Pearl Harbor attack, is born

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY April 05

1994 Grunge rock icon Kurt Cobain dies by suicide Kurt Cobain of the band Nirvana dies by suicide. His body was discovered inside his home in Seattle, Washington, three days later. He was 27 years old.Modern rock icon Kurt Cobain dies by suicide on April 5, 1994. His body was discovered inside his home in Seattle, Washington, three days later by Ga... read more

1970s 1976 Business magnate and famed aviator Howard Hughes dies

American Revolution 1774 Benjamin Franklin publishes “An Open Letter to Lord North”

Art, Literature, and Film History 1859 Charles Darwin sends first three chapters of “The Origin of Species” to his publisher 1968 James Brown calms Boston following the King assassination

Civil War 1862 Siege of Yorktown begins

Cold War 1951 Rosenbergs sentenced to death for spying

European History 1955 Winston Churchill retires as prime minister

Native American History 1614 Pocahontas marries John Rolfe

Sports 1984 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar breaks NBA all-time scoring record

U.S. Presidents 1792 George Washington exercises first presidential veto 1933 FDR creates Civilian Conservation Corps

Women’s History 1992 Abortion rights advocates march on Washington

World War I 1918 First stage of German spring offensive ends

World War II 1945 Yugoslavian partisan leader Tito signs “friendship treaty” with Soviet Union

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY April 06

1917 The United States officially enters World War I April 6, 1917: Two days after the U.S. Senate voted 82 to 6 to declare war against Germany, the U.S. House of Representatives endorses the declaration by a vote of 373 to 50, and America formally enters World War I. When World War I erupted in 1914, President Woodrow Wilson pledged neutrality for th... read more

Art, Literature, and Film History 1895 Writer Oscar Wilde arrested in England 1968 “2001: A Space Odyssey” released in theaters

Civil War 1862 Battle of Shiloh begins

Crime 1970 Sam Sheppard, the inspiration for “The Fugitive,” dies

Exploration 1909 Robert Peary almost reaches the North Pole

Native American History 1832 Black Hawk War begins

Religion 1830 The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints established

Sports