On this date
In 1787, the Congress of the Confederation voted to send the just-completed Constitution of the United States to state legislatures for their approval.
In 1850, flogging was abolished as a form of punishment in the U.S. Navy.
In 1928, Scottish medical researcher Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin, the first effective antibiotic.
In 1967, Walter E. Washington was sworn in as the first mayor-commissioner of the District of Columbia following his appointment by President Lyndon B. Johnson.
In 1976, Muhammad Ali kept his world heavyweight boxing championship with a close 15-round decision over Ken Norton at New York’s Yankee Stadium.
In 1989, deposed Philippine President Ferdinand E. Marcos died in exile in Hawaii at age 72.
In 1995, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and PLO chairman Yasser Arafat signed an accord at the White House ending Israel’s military occupation of West Bank cities and laying the foundation for a Palestinian state.
Ten years ago: Traveler Carol Gotbaum of New York died in a holding cell at Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix; authorities say Gotbaum, 45, accidentally asphyxiated herself after being chained to a bench. Five years ago: Citing national security risks, President Barack Obama blocked a Chinese company from owning four wind farm projects in northern Oregon near a Navy base where the U.S. military flew unmanned drones and electronic-warfare planes on training missions.
One year ago: Agnes Nixon, the creative force behind the popular soap operas “One Life to Live” and “All My Children,” died in Haverford, Pa. She was 93.