On this date
In 1770, Captain James Cook, commander of the British ship Endeavour, “discovered” the Great Barrier Reef off Australia by running onto it.
In 1919, Sir Barton won the Belmont Stakes, becoming horse racing’s first Triple Crown winner.
In 1947, the government announced the end of sugar rationing for households and “institutional users” (e.g., restaurants and hotels) as of midnight.
In 1955, in motor racing’s worst disaster, more than 80 people were killed during the 24 Hours of Le Mans in France when two of the cars collided and crashed into spectators.
In 1962, three prisoners at Alcatraz in San Francisco Bay staged an escape, leaving the island on a makeshift raft; they were never found or heard from again.
In 1985, Karen Ann Quinlan, the comatose patient whose case prompted a historic right-to-die court decision, died in Morris Plains, N.J., at age 31.
In 2001, Timothy McVeigh, 33, was executed by injection at the federal prison in Terre Haute, Indiana, for the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing that killed 168 people.
Ten years ago: Four Boy Scouts were killed when a tornado hit the Little Sioux Scout Ranch near Blencoe, Iowa.
Five years ago: FBI and intelligence officials briefed the entire House on the government’s years-long collection of phone records and internet usage, saying it was necessary for protecting Americans, and did not trample on their privacy rights.
One year ago: Supporters of LGBT rights marched and rallied in the nation’s capital and dozens of other U.S. cities, celebrating gains but angry over threats posed by the administration of President Donald Trump.