1854 – Anti-slavery activists within the Whig political party opposed to the Kansas-Nebraska Act form a new Republican Party. Notable politicians who switched allegiance include Abraham Lincoln, Rutherford B. Hayes, Chester A. Arthur, and Benjamin Harrison.
1865 – Second day of Battle of Bentonville, North Carolina.
1886 – First air conditioning power plant in the United States begins commercial operation in Massachusetts.
1917 – After the sinking of three more American merchant ships, President Woodrow Wilson meets with the cabinet, who agree that war is inevitable.
1930 – Fast food restaurant chain “KFC” (Kentucky Fried Chicken) is founded as Sanders Court & Cafe by Colonel Harland Sanders in North Corbin, Kentucky.
1934 – American all-round female super athlete Babe Didrickson Zaharias pitches a hitless inning for the Philadelphia Athletics in their exhibition preseason baseball game against the Brooklyn Dodgers.
1942 – General Douglas MacArthur vows “I come through and I shall return” after escaping the Japanese-occupied Philippines.
1945 – US 70th Infantry Division captures Saarbrucken immediately prior to the invasion of Germany by the western allies.
1952 – 24th Academy Awards: “An American in Paris”, Humphrey Bogart and Vivien Leigh win.
1958 – 50 inches of snow falls across the Mason-Dixon line.
1967 – The Supremes release single “The Happening”
1973 – Pittsburgh Pirates right fielder Roberto Clemente elected to Baseball’s Hall of Fame 11 weeks after his death in a plane crash.
1983 – In a clash of tennis legends, Martina Navratilova outclasses Chris Evert Lloyd 6-2, 6-0 to win her first of five straight WTA Tour Championships at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
1984 – US Senate rejects amendment to permit spoken prayer in public schools.
1989 – Baseball announces Cincinnati Reds manager Pete Rose is under investigation.
1995 – Dow Jones hits record 4083.68.
2003 – A US-led coalition launches a ground invasion of Iraq after an ultimatum for Sadaam Hussein and his sons to leave Iraq expires.
2016 – Barack Obama becomes the first US President to visit Cuba since 1928, arriving for a three-day tour.
2018 – Saudi Arabia’s crown prince Mohammed bin Salman meets with President Donald Trump at the White House.
2019 – The Walt Disney Company acquires Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox entertainment business for $71 billion.
2023 – Chinese leader Xi Jinping visits Russian leader Vladimir Putin in Moscow, the first between the two since Russia invaded Ukraine a year ago.
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