1738 – Bottle opener invented.
1817 – 1st American school for the deaf opens (Harford, Conn).
1861 – Federal army (75,000 volunteers) mobilized by US President 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.
1892 – General Electric Company, forms & is incorporated in NY.
1910 – William H. Taft is first US president to throw out a 1st ball at a baseball game.
1923 – Insulin becomes generally available for diabetics.
1941 – 1st helicopter flight of 1 hour duration, Stratford, Ct.
1947 – Jackie Robinson becomes 1st African-American to play in US major league baseball (Dodgers).
1952 – Franklin National Bank issues 1st bank credit card.
1955 – Ray Kroc opens first McDonald’s Inc. fast food restaurant in Des Plaines, Illinois.
1958 – 10th Emmy Awards: Gunsmoke, Robert Young & Jane Wyatt win.
1960 – Guy Garawan sings “We Shall Overcome” to a Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee in Raleigh – popularizing the song as a protest anthem.
1961 – “Music Man” closes at Majestic Theater NYC after 1375 performances.
1962 – US national debt above $300,000,000,000.
1975 – 1st appearance of San Diego Chicken.
1989 – Then largest lottery in North America ($69M) drawn in Illinois.
1997 – America On Line begins service in Japan.
2012 – US Secret Service inappropriate conduct scandal begins with at least 11 people implicated.
2013 – Boston Marathon bombings: 3 people are killed and 183 injured after two explosions near the finish line.