1673 – Postal service between New York & Boston inaugurated.
1850 – Alta California becomes a daily paper, 1st such in California.
1879 – James Shields (D) elected US senator from Missouri after previously serving as US senator from Illinois & Minnesota.
1889 – Columbia Phonograph was formed in Washington, DC.
1910 – Opera “Germania” premieres in NYC.
1939 – Aquatic Park, near Fisherman’s Wharf, San Francisco, is dedicated.
1946 – US President Harry Truman sets up the Central Intelligence Agency.
1957 – Mad Bomber (George P. Metesky) accused of 30 explosions, arrested.
1964 – World’s largest cheese (15,723 kg) manufactured in Wisconsin for New York’s World Fair.
1968 – “Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-in” premieres on NBC.
1973 – George Forman TKOs Joe Frazier in 2 for heavyweight boxing title.
1973 – Roe vs Wade: US Supreme Court legalizes most abortions.
1980 – PGA begins a senior golf tour.
1982 – 75% of North America is covered by snow.
1989 – After winning his third Super Bowl as head coach of the San Francisco 49ers, Bill Walsh retires.
1990 – Robert Tappan Morris, Jr. is convicted of releasing the 1988 Internet worm.
1994 – 51st Golden Globes: Schlinder’s List, Tom Hanks, & Holly Hunter win.
2002 – Kmart Corp becomes the largest retailer in United States history to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
2010 – Conan O’Brien’s last Tonight Show episode after a big controversy over the Tonight Show timeslot.
2016 – Winter storm conditions strand 500 motorists for 24 hours on the New Jersey turnpike in Pennsylvania.