1815 – Treaty of Ghent ratified by the US Senate and signed by President James Madison ending War of 1812, over a month after if was signed in Europe.
1865 – Columbia, South Carolina, burns down during American Civil War.
1913 – 1st minimum wage law in US takes effect (Oregon)
1924 – American swimmer Johnny Weissmuller sets 100m world freestyle record 57.4s at Miami, Florida.
1931 – 1st telecast of a sporting event in Japan (baseball)
1933 – First issue of American news magazine “Newsweek” is published.
1943 – Dow Chemical and Corning Glass Works form a joint venture to explore and produce silicon materials, based off of the work of James Franklin Hyde.
1947 – Voice of America begins broadcasting to USSR.
1955 – Mike Souchak sets PGA 72-hole record of 257 (not broken until 2001)
1959 – 1st weather satellite launched, Vanguard 2, 9.8 kg.
1964 – US Supreme Court rules – 1 man 1 vote (Westberry v Sanders)
1970 – US army officer Jeffrey McDonald murders his pregnant wife and two small daughters at Fort Bragg, NC.
1973 – US National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger meets Chinese leader Mao Zedong, where the latter jokingly offers to send 10 million Chinese women to the U.S.
1981 – Chrysler Corp reports largest corporate losses in US history.
1985 – 1st class postage rises from 20 cents to 22 cents.
1991 – 33rd Daytona 500: Ernie Irvin, driving for Morgan McClure-McClure Motorsports coasts to win after challengers crash on final laps.
1995 – Federal judge allows lawsuit claiming US tobacco makers knew nicotine was addictive & manipulated its levels to keep customers hooked.
2004 – “If I Ain’t Got You” single released by Alicia Keys (Grammy Award Best Female R&B Vocal Performance 2005, Billboard Song of the Year 2004)
2014 – The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon premieres on NBC.
2016 – Chief executive Tim Cook confirms Apple will contest and FBI order to unlock the phone of San Bernardino gunman Syed Rizwan Farook.
2020 – Amazon boss Jeff Bezos pledges $10 billion to help fight climate change.
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