Today in history
Monte Cassino in Italy after a fourmonth struggle that claimed some 20,000 lives.
In 1951, the United Nations left its temporary headquarters in Lake Success, New York, for its permanent home in Manhattan.
In 1953, Jacqueline Cochran became the first woman to break the sound barrier as she piloted a North American F86 Canadair over Rogers Dry Lake, Calif.
In 1966, 45-year-old Paul Joseph Chartier was killed when a home-made bomb exploded in a Parliament Hill washroom. He apparently planned to bomb the House of Commons.
In 1974, India detonated an underground nuclear device.
In 1980, the Mount St. Helens volcano in Washington state erupted. The blast left 57 people dead, took 400 metres off the top of the mountain and blew an ash cloud around the world. Nearly 600 kilometres of forest was blown over -- or killed and left standing.
In 1988, Charles Dawson (Daws) Butler, the voice of Yogi Bear, Huckleberry Hound and many other cartoon characters, died of a heart attack at age 71.
In 1991, Helen Sharman became the first Briton in space when she and two cosmonauts blasted off aboard the Soviet Soyuz spacecraft on an eight-day mission.
In 1994, Israel's 27-year occupation of the Gaza Strip ended as Israeli troops completed their withdrawal and Palestinian authorities took over.
In 1998, the U.S. government and 20 states launched an anti-trust lawsuit against Microsoft, accusing the software giant of using its operating system to dominate access to the Internet.
In 2001, newspaper magnate Conrad Black announced he was giving up his Canadian citizenship to accept an appointment to Britain's House of Lords. He later became Lord Black of Crossharbour.
In 2004, Randy Johnson, at age 40, became the oldest pitcher in major league history to throw a perfect game. The lefty retired all 27 batters to lead the Arizona Diamondbacks over the Atlanta Braves 2-0.
In 2006, Australian Prime Minister John Howard addressed a joint session of the Parliament in Ottawa, the first Australian leader to do so since 1944.
In 2007, Captain Shawn Mccaughey was killed when his Snowbird crashed during rehearsal for an air show at an air force base near Great Falls, Mont. The 31year-old was the sixth member of the Snowbirds team to be killed in an air crash since 1972.
In 2009, Wayne Allwine, the actor who voiced Mickey Mouse for more than 30 years, died of complications from diabetes. He was 62. Russi Taylor, his wife of 20 years and the voice of Minnie Mouse, was by his side.
In 2010, Col. Geoff Parker, 42, died when a massive car bomb struck a NATO convoy on the edge of the Afghanistan capital of Kabul. He became the highestranking Canadian Forces member to die since the mission began in 2002. Five American soldiers and 12 Afghan civilians were also killed.
In 2010, it was announced that Sable Island, a 40-kilometre long crescentshaped island in the North Atlantic about 300 km southeast of Nova Scotia, would be designated a national park. (Environment Minister Peter Kent did so on Oct. 17, 2011)
In 2010, Canada's top pulp and paper companies agreed to protect 72 million hectares of threatened northern forest in a historic agreement with environmental groups. The Canadian Boreal Forest Agreement was dubbed ``the world's largest conservation agreement.''
In 2011, while in Ireland on a historic visit, Queen Elizabeth II made a powerful statement expressing ``deep sympathy'' to all who had suffered as a result of the troubled relations between England and Ireland. She did not apologize for any British actions during the bitter conflicts between the two neighbours but said it was clear mistakes were made.
In 2012, one of the most anticipated IPOS in Wall Street history ended on a flat note, with Facebook's stock closing at $38.23, up 23 cents, raising $16 billion and giving the online social networking company a market value of about $105 billion and making it the most valuable U.S. company to ever go public. After a week, the stock prices fell to $31. A lawsuit forced lead investment bank Morgan Stanley to compensate investors who overpaid.