Today in history

In 1821, Missouri became the 24th state.

In 1846, President James K. Polk signed a measure establishing the Smithsonian Institution.

In 1861, Confederate forces routed Union troops in the Battle of Wilson’s Creek in Missouri, the first major engagement of the Civil War west of the Mississippi River.

In 1949, the National Military Establishment was renamed the Department of Defense.

In 1977, postal worker David Berkowitz was arrested in Yonkers, N.Y., accused of being “Son of Sam,” the gunman who killed six people and injured seven more in New York City. (He’s serving six consecutive 25-years-to-life sentences.)

In 1988, President Ronald Reagan signed a measure providing $20,000 payments to still-living Japanese-Americans who were interned by the government during World War II.

In 1991, nine Buddhists were found slain at their temple near Phoenix. (Two teens were later arrested; one was sentenced to life in prison; the other received 281 years.)

In 1993, Ruth Bader Ginsburg was sworn in as the second female justice on the U.S. Supreme Court.