1817 – 1st American school for the deaf opens (Hartford, Connecticut)
1861 – Federal army (75,000 volunteers) mobilized by US President Abraham Lincoln (US Civil War)
1865 – Abraham Lincoln dies 9 hours after he is shot attending the play “Our American Cousin” at Ford’s Theatre in Washington.
1878 – Harley Procter introduces Ivory Soap.
1892 – General Electric Company formed by merger of Thomas Edison’s General Electric Company with Thomson-Houston Electric Company, arranged by J.P. Morgan and incorporated in NY.
1912 – RMS Titanic sinks at 2:27 AM off Newfoundland as the band plays on, with the loss of between 1,490 and 1,635 people.
1923 – Insulin becomes generally available for diabetics.
1924 – Rand McNally publishes its first road atlas.
1943 – Metropolitan Life Insurance issues a $225 million check to Chase.
1945 – FDR buried in grounds of Hyde Park home.
1952 – Franklin National Bank issues 1st bank credit card.
1955 – Ray Kroc opens first McDonald’s Inc. fast food restaurant in Des Plaines, Illinois.
1957 – Congress gives Post Office $41M, restoring Saturday mail delivery.
1960 – Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), organizes at Shaw University.
1975 – 1st appearance of San Diego Chicken.
1982 – Apollo Computer announces DN400, DN420, & landscape display.
1991 – Maximum NY State unemployment benefits raised to $280 per week.
2011 – “Black Friday” for online poker in the US: indictment United States v. Scheinberg shuts down sites, accusing companies of fraud and money laundering.
2012 – US Secret Service inappropriate conduct scandal begins with at least 11 people implicated.
2012 – China loosens monetary policy and allows the Yuan to fluctuate up to 1% against the US dollar.