1997 : Scottish scientists from the Roslin Institute in Edinburgh announce they have successfully cloned an adult sheep named Dolly, The sheep was born in July of 1996, and Dolly was the world's first cloned mammal.
1967 : The Tet offensive by communist forces of North Vietnam against South Vietnam ends.
1879 : Frank Winfield Woolworth opens the Great 5 Cents Store in Utica, New York. Pledging to sell "nothing" that cost more than a nickel expanding over the next 50 years to 1000 stores, but due to changes in the retail market the last Woolworths shop in the United States was closed down on July 17th, 1997.
1972 : The IRA plant a bomb at the 16th Parachute Brigade headquarters at Aldershot, Hampshire killing 5 women and an army priest.
1974 : The ransom demanded by the kidnappers ( Symbionese Liberation Army ). of newspaper heiress, Patty Hearst of $2 million food handout to the hungry in slum areas throughout Los Angeles and San Francisco begins with many of the homeless refusing the handouts.
1991 : The US President, George Bush, has given Iraq until 1700 GMT tomorrow to pull out of Kuwait or face a full-scale war.
1924 : Calvin Coolidge delivered the first presidential radio broadcast from the White House.
1938 : In a speech to the Reichstag and the world on Sunday Adolf Hitler proclaimed oppressed and persecuted Germans in Austria, Czechoslovakia and the rest of the world are under the protection of Germany and force will be used if necessary for their protection. Germany does not want war but will protect it's people with war if needed. Together with the alliance of Italy and Japan and Germany's large build up of military power France and Great Britain believe a second world war may well be inevitable.
1938 : The United States Secretary of the Interior Ickes was prepared to give an anti-communist and anti-fascist speech, and notes from this scheduled broadcast were revealed on this day. Ickes urged all democracies to fight against ("repulse against") internal fascism and communism. Ickes' speech was scheduled to be heard in places such as Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the UK, India, and South Africa. Ickes had commented, saying that he was speaking as an individual and not as a representative of the president, or the United States.
1966 : The U.S. government was awarded custody of Lee Harvey Oswald's weapons. He was convicted as of this time of being the assassin of John F. Kennedy. The custody of Oswald's weapons was granted by U.S. District Judge Joe Estes. The weapons in question were a 6.5mm foreign rifle (for shot at the president) and a pistol (for shot at Dallas Policeman J.D. Tippit). The government wanted to place the weapons reported to have been used by Oswald in the National Archives in Washington.
1966 : John A. Podoske, a resident of Logan, Ohio, was denied a Postmaster position on this day. He attempted to appeal to have this case re-opened several months ago, based on the fact that he was a disabled Vietnam War Veteran.
1967 : Indonesian President Sukarno surrenders all executive authority to military dictator General Haji Mohammad Suharto.
1971 : A report on this day has indicated that a plane search was planned. This scheduled search was decided necessary as a result of witnesses seeing "three balls of fire" or "three red lights" headed towards earth in the blowing snow. This possible crash was believed to have taken place in or near Elmore City, Oklahoma. Numerous reports came in from Oklahoma City and surrounding areas, confirming that this was most likely a crash. Further reports would be made in future-dated issues of local Oklahoma newspapers.
1972 : The real name of the person who was appointed head of the Aiken County Department of Public Welfare is Richard T. Poore . No pun was intended in this case, as Poore was actually a highly educated person who received a degree from Florida State University in 1966. However, some people most likely could not help but "make fun" of his last name at least a little bit, as he was chairman of the board for this county's welfare agency (news headline read "Poore to Head Welfare Agency"). Poore had already worked at the county level in Anderson County for quite a few years when he assumed this position as head of Aiken County's agency. Despite the play on words, Poore was thought of as a qualified individual.
1974 : An attempt was made to hijack a plane from the Baltimore-Washington International airport by Samuel Byck . If successful, he was planning on crashing the plane into the White House and killing President Richard Nixon.
1980 : The United States hockey team, composed in great part of college players, defeat the defending champions and favorites to win the gold medal Soviet Union squad by 4-3.
1989 : Tina Turner had won a Grammy for Best Female Rock Vocalist at age 49 during this year, on this date. She originally had recorded with her husband Ike Turner, however, she had left Ike in 1976. From that time until 1981 she had remained behind the scenes. After 1981, she became one of the oldest female artists in history to stage such a strong comeback, and she changed her tune from a style to Rock and Roll. Her first solo album Private Dancer had sold five million copies. She was introduced in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1991.
1994 : Former Central Intelligence Agency veteran Aldrich Ames and his wife, Rosario, are charged with selling national security secrets to the Soviet Union. He later received a sentence of life imprisonment, and his wife received a 5-year prison sentence for conspiracy to commit espionage and tax evasion.
Albert Shanker
3,000 union shoemakers on strike in Lynn, Massachusetts met to form committees and appoint guards to prevent violence and keep scabs from coming into the city. Within a week, the strike spread throughout New England to include 20,000 workers in 25 towns. President Abraham Lincoln told a reporter that he was “glad to see that a system of labor prevails in New England under which laborers can strike when they want to”. – 1860
1955 : Israel has bought four Dead Sea scrolls written at various times between the middle of the 2nd century BC and the 1st century AD. from the Syrians for $250,000. The scrolls together with many others discovered in 11 caves in and around the Wadi Qumran are now housed with many others at the Shrine of the Book, a wing of the Israel Museum near Givat Ram in western Jerusalem, Find More What happened in 1955
1920 : Switzerland who had asked for international confirmation of it's neutrality in 1920 before becoming a member of the League of Nations. The countries belonging to the League of Nations (the predecessor to the United Nations) agreed and recognized the perpetual neutrality of Switzerland.
1931 : An attempt was made today to derail train no. 18, a train southbound between Dallas and Houston. This incident took place around midnight near the old Chambers Creek. As soon as the train engineer suspected trouble on this line, that engineer signaled a porter for help. The porter had notices two rails missing from the track, and two more that were loose. The removal of the train rails had taken about 40 minutes. Personnel from the Navarro county sheriff's department railroad detectives arrived on the scene as soon as possible. The tools used for this act of vandalism were believed to be stolen from a nearby Cotton Belt tool house.
1933 : A descendant of a millionaire pioneer Colorado family, Charles Boettcher II, was held on ransom. Kidnappers demanded a $60,000 ransom (payment for return of Boettcher II, the hostage). Two men with masks had taken not held Boettcher hostage, but those men had also taken his wife in captivity as well. They were abducted at the garage of their home as they returned from a party at midnight. The couple was directed forcibly to an upper room of their home, where Mrs. Boettcher was given a ransom note. The kidnappers then took off with Boettcher in a motorcar.
1935 : Bruno Hauptmann was convicted of the Lindbergh baby murder after the jury reached a guilty verdict.
1937 : Two percent sales tax was passed by the Alabama Senate on this day. It had received a 17 to 15 vote by the Senate, and was expected to be reviewed a second time by the House, which had passed the bill last week. Changes were made by the Senate before the bill was passed, which is the main reason why the House is expected to review it again. One of the changes made by the Senate was the levy of one half of one percent of a tax on new automobiles, and another was on mail order purchases outside the state.
1940 : "Boogie Woogie on St. Louis Blues" is recorded by Earl "Fatha" Hines and his orchestra. The song eventually becomes a classic and is still popular among big band fans today.
1945 : A massive air raid with hundreds of British bombers loaded with incendiaries and high-explosive bombs drop 1,478 tons of high-explosive bombs and 1,182 tons of incendiaries completely destroying the city of Dresden, in eastern Germany leaving between 35,000 and 135,000 civilian casualties.
1958 : A four-passenger Thunderbird was made by the Ford Company, and it was introduced on this day in 1958 This new version was called the "Square Bird", and was considered to be a model of car that turned the Thunderbird from a sports car into a luxury car. This version of the Thunderbird is often even today referred to as the T-Bird. It is known as the epitome of 1950s culture, and has appeared in movies such as Grease and in music videos (i.e. Beach Boys "I Get Around").
1960 : France becomes the fourth atomic power after exploding an atomic bomb in the Sahara Desert.
1967 : The Beatles release the double A-sided single in the United Kingdom with Penny Lane ( Paul McCartney ) ** written about Penny Lane where Lennon and McCartney would meet to go into Liverpool *** on one side and "Strawberry Fields Forever" ( John Lennon ) *** named after a Salvation Army house where Lennon would play as a kid *** on the other side.
1974 : The Symbionese Liberation Army demanded $70 of food be given to every needy Californian which could cost as much as $400 million in exchange for the release of 19-year-old Patricia Hearst.
1975 : British mineworkers' leaders have agreed to accept the National Coal Board latest pay offer of up to 35% in pay increases. To put this in context the basic rate for workers at the coal face increased from £45 to £61 per week.
1978 : Major snowstorms hit the North Dakota area creating problems for local farmers and ranchers because they could not supply their livestock with hay and a state of emergency was declared.
1983 : 74 people lost their lives in a movie theater fire. This cinema was located in Turin, Italy. The fire took place on the ground floor and abruptly set several seats on fire. These seats were covered with plastic, which had produced toxic smoke when caught on fire. Some of the people that died during this incident did not lose their lives directly because of the fire. Rather, they had suffocated to death when a crowd of panicking people headed for exits, causing a stampede. The other problem was that the rear emergency exits were locked. In the vicinity of the locked exits, several people had died while trying to escape. A total of 37 people on the first floor had died from one or more of the following: bums, smoke inhalation, or stamped injuries. Fortunately, the firefighters were able to put out the fire before it reached the second floor and balcony. However, 37 people had died up there as well-many of them in the bathroom, as a result of smoke inhalation. Possible causes of the fire included one or more of the following: lighted cigarette, faulty electrical wiring, or a firecracker (a firearm used during the celebration of Shrove Tuesday at the time). Of course, the use of the plastic seat covers and the locking of the emergency doors was also a concern.
1991 : This was the day that the original manuscript of Huckleberry Finn by Mark was recovered. It was a handwritten script of the first half of the original draft of this book, which included Twains own handwritten corrections. This manuscript had been missing for over a hundred years. It was found by a 62-year old librarian from Los Angeles, who finally sorted through old papers sent to her from upstate New York. Mark Twain had sent the second half of the manuscript to this librarian's grandfather, James Gluck. Gluck had solicited this manuscript in Buffalo, New York where Mark Twain had lived at one time. Mark Twain could not find the first half of his manuscript, even while he was alive. However, he did find it and sent it to Gluck. Court proceedings had taken place to decide who owned the rights to the lost Huckleberry Finn manuscript (the first half). The sisters, the library, and the Mark Twain Papers Projects in Berkeley, California all fought for rights of this book. After a fairly lengthy battle, the three different groups mentioned above came to a consensus, and made a deal. The library would be awarded the rights to the physical papers, and all three parties would share in publication rights. Then, in 1995, Random House won the rights to publish the book. They were said to have paid a high price for these rights, however, and the amount they were said to have paid was not disclosed to the public.
1991 : Local reports from Baghdad, Iraq say two laser-guided precision bombs from American bombers hit an air-raid shelter in the middle class district of Amiriya, five miles from the centre of the Iraqi capital. So far 235 bodies have been recovered, 12 hours after the attacks.
1924 First Presidential Radio Address
1924 : Calvin Coolidge became the first U.S. president to deliver an address by radio. This was the first day that radio programming had included commercials. The National Carbon Company had aired an advertisement during the broadcast of The Everyday Hour. This first sponsored program was heard in New York, Washington, Province, and surrounding areas. This show featured celebrity appearances, music, and stories.
1958 : The first Trans Atlantic passenger jetliner service begins by BOAC with flights between London and New York on the new Comet Jet Airliner.
1935 : The 785-foot USS Macon a rigid frame airship built and operated by the United States Navy for scouting was the last US Navy dirigible (ZRS-5) built, it crashed off the coast of California, killing two people. Her sister ship the USS Akron (ZRS-4) had crashed off the New Jersey coast on April 4th, 1933, killing 73 passengers and crew. The USS Macon (ZRS-5) and sister ship USS Akron (ZRS-4), were among the biggest flying objects in the world. Although the Hindenburg was bigger, the two airships still hold the world record for biggest helium filled airships. Due to the crashes The US navy halted temporarily building further helium filled airships.
1899 : It started on the 11th and despite its largely more southerly influence it reached -61 F in Montana and -47 F in Nebraska. Snow started falling on the 12th, 1899 and Washington D.C. had over twenty inches of snow falling, with New Jersey reaching an astonishing thirty-four inches. New Orleans was iced over, as were parts of the Mississippi River.
1912 : Hsian-T'ung, the last emperor of China, is forced to abdicate following Sun Yat-sen's republican revolution, ending 267 years of Manchu rule in China and 2,000 years of imperial rule.
1921 : Following general elections in South Africa General Smuts party has won over the dutch speaking nationalists and the labour party, he has already stated South Africa will continue to be part of the British Empire but under vastly different terms these will include:
South Africa has the right to amend her own constitution
South Africa will have her own flag
South Africa will have power and authority over domestic affairs and International and Foreign Relations
South Africa will be a Independent Sovereign State in friendly association with the British Empire.
1926 : One of the largest bank mergers of to this date in history has taken place. This merger involved at least a billion dollars in resources. The bank merge which would take place on this day includes Chase National, Metal National, and Mechanics Merger. This new bank would bear the name Chase National Bank, and was second only to National City Bank as the largest institution in the United States.
1932 : A new record was set by racer Captain Malcolm Campbell. He had set a record speed of 245.733 miles per hour as he sped across Daytona's 12-mile strip. Part of the above-mentioned accomplishment was due to the fact that Campbell made sure his Bluebird, the automobile he drove, was in top shape. For instance, professionals had worked on the Bluebird, increasing its horsepower and reducing its wind resistance.
1938 : The plan was to enforce a strict taxicab ordinance. This ordinance would require taxicab drivers to carry liability insurances. Furthermore, this new legislation would make it easier for taxicab drivers to have their licenses revoked if they break any city driving laws. Additionally, cab drivers would be rated by a scoring system, which would include points accumulated for actions such as speeding and excessive horn use.
1954 : The Atomic Energy Authority has been created to control the production and development of atomic energy in the UK.
1964 : Following Cyprus gaining independence from the Britain in 1960 the fighting continues to increase in Limassol, Cyprus between ethnic Turks and Greeks which has left at least 16 people dead.
1973 : As part of the Vietnam cease-fire agreement, the first U.S. prisoners of war were released by North Vietnam.
1993 : Two 10-year-old boys lured 2-year-old James Bulger from his mother at a shopping mall in Liverpool, England, then beat him to death.
1994 : Thieves have stolen one of the world's best known paintings ( Scream by by Edvard Munch circa 1893 ) from a gallery in the Norwegian capital, Oslo.
1998 : The Russians had bumped into a U.S. destroyer (Caron) and U.S. cruiser (Yorktown). This incident took place towards the end of the Russian-American Cold War, and it occurred in the Crimean Peninsula of the Black Sea. The Caron and Yorktown were moving about in the 12-mile-limit area designated to them by the Soviet Union. Apparently, even though the Cold War was coming close to an end, there still were some unresolved differences and tensions between the Russians and the Americans.The operators of the American ships were being challenged by the operators of a Soviet frigate and Soviet destroyer. The soviet ship operators order the Americans to move out of the way and then were pushed out of the way while being bumped slightly. The Americans hesitated to move, but eventually did move out of the area. There was no exchange of gunfire during this incident, and no injuries or damage (no serious damage) to ship or personnel. Even though the Americans were allowed within the 12-mile sea radius near Soviet grounds, there was some suspicion as to the nature of the use of the Caron. This particular ship was known as a spy vessel, and it was considered foolish by many Americans and/or leaders that this ship was allowed to sail in Russian waters at this time.
1999 : A group of 20 independent international scientists has reinforced warnings that genetically modified food may be damaging to health after looking at a report about the effects of biologically altered potatoes on laboratory rats produced by Arpad Pusztai who was forced to retire over his revelations.
1999 : The five-week period during which Bill Clinton was being tried had ended on this day. The Senate voted to acquit Clinton on charges of perjury and obstruction of justice. The trial was set in order to determine whether or not President Clinton would be impeached. Before the beginning of the trial, a lawsuit was filed by Paula Jones against the president on the account of sexual harassment charges. During this process, she had subpoenaed Monica Lewinsky, who had an affair with Bill Clinton over the period of a year and a half. Later Clinton had denied having sexual relations with Monica Lewinsky, but had admitted that the relationship was "inappropriate." Over time, it was clear that the affair had taken place, and the president had approved up to three articles of impeachment. However, he was determined to be "not guilty" on other charges, such as lying under oath and obstruction of justice.
Lady Jane Grey, who had claimed the throne of England for nine days, and her husband, Guildford Dudley, were beheaded after being condemned for high treason - 1554
Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States, was born in a log cabin in Hardin (now LaRue) County, Kentucky - 1809
Abolitionist Frederick Douglass born into slavery near Easton, Md - 1818
Labor leader John L. Lewis was born in Cleveland, Iowa to Welsh immigrant parents. Lewis began working as a miner when he was a teenager, worked as a mine workers’ organizer for the American Federation of Labor, and went on to serve the president of the United Mine Workers of America (UMW) for 40 years. A firm believer in industrial unionism, he pulled the UAW from the American Federation of Labor (and punched out Carpenter’s Union President William Hutcheson in the process) when the AFL refused to endorse industrial unionism. Lewis formed the predecessor organization to what would become the Congress of Industrial Organizations. They organized millions of unskilled, mass production workers into unions in the 1930s and 1940s. – 1880
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) was founded in New York City - 1909
On Feb. 12, 1999, the Senate voted to acquit President Bill Clinton in his impeachment trial of charges of perjury and obstruction of justice - 1999
Mexico’s most notorious drug lord, JoaquÃn “El Chapo” Guzmán, was convicted in New York of running an industrial-scale drug smuggling operation, murder and money laundering. (Guzman is currently serving a life sentence at the federal supermax prison facility in Florence, Colorado.) - 2019
1963 The Beatles Please Please Me Recorded
1963 : The Beatles record their first album Please Please Me at the Abbey Road Studios which is released on 22 March which helped to create the phenomenon known as Beatlemania. Each one of The Beatles received seven pounds and ten shillings (£7.50) session fee for each three hour session making a total £30.00 as full payment for the recording session of 9 hours and 45 minutes.
1916 : Emma Goldman who worked as a nurse and midwife among the poor in New York who was also a crusader for women's rights and social justice, is arrested in New York City for lecturing and distributing materials about birth control. She was accused of violating the Comstock Act of 1873, which made it a federal offense to disseminate contraceptive devices and information through the mail or across state lines.
1920 : Medical advancements were being made in regards to dealing with flu epidemics. However, precaution still needed to be taken at this time-as is still true even today. For instance, it was suggested that a person who has the flu (influenza) to stay in bed at least three days after feeling "well." Likewise, people were told to cover their faces when coughing or sneezing. For medical staff taking care of people infected with the flu, it was recommended that they use handkerchiefs to catch catarrhal discharge. These handkerchiefs should then be placed in water and boiled. Either that or small cloths which are burn-able after use for collecting patient discharge. Medical staff should also be careful to wash their hands thoroughly after taking care of a sick patient. Likewise, other people should avoid any direct contact with infected persons until those persons recover.
1929 : The Lateran Treaty is signed, with Italy recognizing the independence and sovereignty of Vatican City. The agreements included a political treaty which created the state of the Vatican City and guaranteed full and independent sovereignty to the Holy See.
1932 : A novelist by the name of Waldo Frank announced that a Congressional Investigation of alleged terrorism would be demanded as of this day. Frank belonged to an association of New York writers who were subjected to comply with a certain terrorist group at Pineville, Kentucky. Waldo Frank had arrived in Kentucky early in the morning with Allen Taub, another novelist. At this time they were beaten by a mob and then were taken to the Tennessee state line. Frank and Taub were in the process of making an effort to supply striking miners with food. They were beaten so bad that Frank had to be bed-ridden. One of the two men (the writers) had suffered a broken nose.
1932 : Japanese troops were reported to have bombed 19 U.S. Marines. Afterwards, the Japanese had apologized for it, as the bombing was meant to target the Chinese and not the Americans. The Japanese were attempting to dismantle Chinese troops that were stationed along the Markham road sector when they decided to bomb a mill where the U.S. Marines were killed. Not only did the Marines get killed, but four Chinese women and one man (non-combatant) were killed and 3,000 others had escaped, screaming on the way out.
1937 : A flood had caused damage in nine states. As a result, 460 lives were killed, and 1,610,000 people were left homeless. Aside from the extensive damage to humans and property, the cost of rebuilding was expected to be in the billions of dollars (at least one billion dollars worth of damage reported).
1937 : A sit down strike against General Motors ended with the company agreeing to recognize the United Automobile Workers Union.
1945 : President Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Soviet leader Josef Stalin sign the Yalta Agreement laying down rules for control of Germany after the war is ended including the occupation by the three Allies, each of a separate zone, also for reparations in kind to be paid by Germany for damages.
1952 : A series of deadly deadly avalanches begin in Europe following a 10-day snowstorm. The worst affected was Austria where an avalanche crashed down on the ski resort in Melkoede. Twenty people, almost all German tourists, were killed at the resort and another 10 were seriously injured.
1956 : Two former members of the British Foreign Office who had disappeared from England in 1951, Burgess and Maclean amid rumors that they were spies for the Soviet Union appear in Moscow confirming suspicians may well have been correct.
1961 : Adolf Eichmann ( a high-ranking Nazi and SS Obersturmbannfuhrer during World War II) was indicted today on 15 criminal charges in Jerusalem, Israel. He was convicted in December of 1961 and hanged in Jerusalem on June 1st, 1962.
1970 : Japan launches Oshumi, its first satellite, and it had made a complete revolution around the earth. This achievement made Japan the worlds "fourth space power," after the Soviet Union (1957), the United States (1958), and France (1965).
1975 : The British Conservative Party has chosen it's first women leader, Margaret Thatcher and will be the first woman to head any British political party.
1976 : Figure skater John Curry wins Britain's first Olympic gold in figure skating and the country's first medal at the winter games for 12 years.
1979 : Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini took control of Iran as the Islamic Revolution reached its climax.
1987 : Cynthia Payne is acquitted of nine charges of controlling prostitutes at her home in south west London, but is still to be prosecuted for keeping a brothel.
1990 : Nelson Mandela is released from prison after 27 years. He was the person who had lead the movement to end South African apartheid back in the mid-1940s. Mandela was a lawyer who had joined the African National Congress (ANC), which was the oldest black political organization in South Africa. For this organization, he had served as the leader of the Johannesburg youth ANC chapter, and then later he became ANC deputy national president. During his time as the president of ANC he advocated non-violence and resisted apartheid (South Africa's system of white supremacy and segregation of races). He had changed his tune in 1960, however, when he lead a revolt against the white minority government-after the massacre of peaceful black demonstrators had taken place.
2002 : Israel attacked Palestinian security headquarters in Gaza City in response to unprecedented Palestinian rocket fire and a shooting attack on Israeli civilians.
2006 : Vice President Dick Cheney accidentally shot and wounded a Harry Whittington who is in intensive care at a Corpus Christi hospital after being hit by several pellets of birdshot, during a weekend quail-hunting trip in Texas.
2006 : What has become known as the Blizzard of 2006 started on the evening of the 11th. Heavy snow fell across the northeastern United States from Virginia to Maine through to the evening of the 12th. Its last falls were in eastern Canada on 13th. Cities from Baltimore to Boston received at least a foot of snow, and 26.9 inches was recorded in New York City. This was the heaviest snow recorded since about 1869 (when records began).
2007 : The U.S. military has accused the Iranian government of supplying increasingly sophisticated roadside bombs to Iraqi insurgents. At an intelligence briefing in Bagdad a display of the weapons captured in Iraq showed that they had Iranian markings on them. The name for this a type of bomb is an E.F.P. or Explosively Formed Penetrator. The Pentagon has estimated that 'more than 170 Americans killed in action and more than 600 wounded' by these weapons.
2007 : Finance ministers and bankers from the Group of Seven (G7) industrial nations have renewed pressure on China to relax its controls over its currency. They've said that Beijing needs to increase its efforts to improve the Yuan's exchange rate flexibility. The G7 ministers were meeting in Germany.
2008 : Europe's space laboratory, Columbus, has docked with the International Space Station, the Columbus was delivered to the Space Station by the US space shuttle Atlantis.
2008 : The Pentagon has announced the charges against six of the Guantánamo Bay prisoners over their involvement in the September 11th, 2001 attacks in the U.S. Prosecutors will be seeking the death penalty for the six, who include the plot mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed. The charges, which are the first to accuse the Guantánamo inmates of direct involvement in 9/11, are expected to be heard in a military tribunal. Brigadier-General Thomas Hartmann, a legal adviser to the head of the Pentagon's Office of Military Commissions, has said that the charges were made against a 'long-term, highly sophisticated plan by al-Qaeda to attack the U.S.'
2008 : The F.B.I have arrested four people for passing defense information to China. A former Boeing engineer is said to have given them details on the space shuttle and other programs, and two men and a woman are accused of handing over Defense Department documents about Taiwan. A Justice Department spokesman has said that the cases are serious breaches of national security. Investigators say these people are partners in an espionage network, and accused of transferring classified military information from a U.S. Defense Department weapons expert to a Chinese government official.
2010 : The European Parliament has blocked an agreement that allows the United States to monitor Europeans bank transactions. This has angered Washington. The U.S. has called the decision a 'setback for E.U.-U.S. counter-terror co-operation.' The vote is seen as a rebuff to the intensive U.S. lobbying for E.U. help in its counter-terrorism investigations.
2010 : The U.S. Missile Defense Agency has said that an American high-powered airborne laser weapon has shot down a ballistic missile in the first successful test of a futuristic directed energy weapon. The agency went on to say that the test took place at 8:44 p.m. PST at Point Mugu's Naval Air Warfare Center in central California. 'The Missile Defense Agency demonstrated the potential use of directed energy to defend against ballistic missiles when the Airborne Laser Testbed (A.L.T.B.) successfully destroyed a boosting ballistic missile.' The high-powered Airborne Laser system has been developed by Boeing Co., (BA.N) the prime contractor, and the U.S. Missile Defense Agency.
2008 : The Pentagon has announced the charges against six of the Guantánamo Bay prisoners over their involvement in the September 11th, 2001 attacks in the U.S. Prosecutors will be seeking the death penalty for the six, who include the plot mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed. The charges, which are the first to accuse the Guantánamo inmates of direct involvement in 9/11, are expected to be heard in a military tribunal. Brigadier-General Thomas Hartmann, a legal adviser to the head of the Pentagon's Office of Military Commissions, has said that the charges were made against a 'long-term, highly sophisticated plan by al-Qaeda to attack the U.S.'
2008 : The F.B.I have arrested four people for passing defense information to China. A former Boeing engineer is said to have given them details on the space shuttle and other programs, and two men and a woman are accused of handing over Defense Department documents about Taiwan. A Justice Department spokesman has said that the cases are serious breaches of national security. Investigators say these people are partners in an espionage network, and accused of transferring classified military information from a U.S. Defense Department weapons expert to a Chinese government official.
2010 : The European Parliament has blocked an agreement that allows the United States to monitor Europeans bank transactions. This has angered Washington. The U.S. has called the decision a 'setback for E.U.-U.S. counter-terror co-operation.' The vote is seen as a rebuff to the intensive U.S. lobbying for E.U. help in its counter-terrorism investigations.
2010 : The U.S. Missile Defense Agency has said that an American high-powered airborne laser weapon has shot down a ballistic missile in the first successful test of a futuristic directed energy weapon. The agency went on to say that the test took place at 8:44 p.m. PST at Point Mugu's Naval Air Warfare Center in central California. 'The Missile Defense Agency demonstrated the potential use of directed energy to defend against ballistic missiles when the Airborne Laser Testbed (A.L.T.B.) successfully destroyed a boosting ballistic missile.' The high-powered Airborne Laser system has been developed by Boeing Co., (BA.N) the prime contractor, and the U.S. Missile Defense Agency.
1971 Sylmar earthquake
1971 : The San Fernando earthquake ( 6.6 ) at 6:00 AM ruptures a segment of the San Fernando fault zone, causing the loss of life of 65, the worst loss of life was at the at the Veterans Administration Hospital in San Fernando, where 49 people died. The damage caused by the quake was estimated at 1/2 billion dollars due to damage to buildings, bridges and major freeways including Interstate 5.
1943 : The Battle of Guadalcanal, which occurred in the Southwest Pacific Ocean, ended on this day. This was a very important victory over the Japanese, which was achieved by the United States.
1961 : President Kennedy asked Congress to approve a health insurance program ( the Medicare Program ) for 14.2 million Americans 65 or older, financed by an increase in Social Security taxes.
1920 : Following a major fire which destroyed the plant Superintendent Smith of the Wellsboro Corning Glass Works plant had dispelled rumors that the plant was going to close. He also had mentioned that there were no grounds for this rumor at all. Necessary repairs were going to be made, but the plant was to remain open.
1937 : A bill was passed which allowed for a total of $940,000,000 to be used for relief projects. $790,000,000 of this money was intended to be used to fund work relief and flood rehab programs. This aid was expected to be administered between the 1st and June 30th. It took several weeks to reach a verdict regarding this bill. This was one of the most controversial pieces of legislation passed during this time in history.
1942 : For the first time since the start of the war, the Joint Chiefs of Staff had come together for an official meeting. The purpose of this staff was to coordinate military strategy, which would help the allied forces (i.e. U.S., France, Italy, Russian Empire, British Empire) win World War II.
1942 : The SS Normandie had burned in New York on this day, while in the process of being converted to an allied transport ship. Normandie was regarded as the number one most elegant ocean liner ever built.
1950 : A majority has been reached among the members of the United States House of Representatives regarding the hike in postal rates. As a result of a voice vote made on this day, a bill was passed which had raised the rate of postal card rates from one to two cents. Regular letter rates would stay at three cents.
1950 : Senator Joseph Mc Carthy from Wisconsin had announced that 205 communists had made their way into the U.S. State Department.
1964 : For the first time ever, the popular music group the Beatles had appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show. Shortly afterwards, they played their first American concert at the Coliseum. The Beatles had come a long way-literally. They originated from England, and were told that they "could not carry a tune across the Atlantic". In the early days they were though of to be no more than a fad. That of course was proven wrong many times over.
1966 : The first of it's kind a Prototype Fast Reactor (PFR) is to be built at the Dounreay power station on the north coast of Scotland. This reactor will be 5 times more efficient at obtaining the extraction of the energy available in nuclear fuel than current reactors in use.
1969 : Boeing 747 airliner takes its first test flight piloted by test pilots Jack Waddell and Brien Wygle at the controls.
1979 : England forward Trevor Francis signs for Brian Clough's Nottingham Forest side in Britain's first £1m transfer deal.
1981 : Bill Haley dies at age 56 he brought the existing genre of rock and roll into the spotlight with his chart-topping single "Rock Around the Clock," in 1955, you can find more information and other music on our 1950s Music Page
1996 : The legendary Russian Chess Grandmaster Kasparov loses his first chess game ever to IBM's chess computer Deep Blue. He did go on to gain three wins and two draws and easily wins the match.
2001 : An American submarine (USS Greenville) accidentally struck a Japanese fishing boat and nine lives were lost. This event took place off the coast of Hawaii in Pearl Harbor.
2002 : Princess Margaret, the younger sister of Queen Elizabeth II, died at age 71 after suffering a massive stroke.
2008 : The political unrest in Pakistan continues following the murder of Benazir Bhutto and the detention of the deposed chief justice. An estimated 100,000 supporters of Benazir Bhutto turned out for her party's first major election rally since her assassination. Meanwhile in the capital of Islamabad riot police used water cannons and tear gas on protesters over the detention of the deposed chief justice. Also at a political gathering Saturday in northwestern Pakistan, a bomb is detonated killing at least 25 people.