TODAY IN HISTORY

In 1792, the French National Convention voted to abolish the monarchy.

In 1893, one of America’s first horseless carriages was taken for a short test drive in Springfield, Mass., by Frank Duryea, who had designed the vehicle with his brother, Charles. In 1937, “The Hobbit,” by J.R.R. Tolkien, was first published, in London.

In 1938, a hurricane struck parts of New York and New England, causing widespread damage and claiming some 700 lives.

In 1970, “NFL Monday Night Football” made its television debut on ABC.

In 1977, after weeks of controversy over past business and banking practices, President Jimmy Carter’s embattled budget director, Bert Lance, resigned.

In 1981, the Senate unanimously confirmed Sandra Day O’Connor of Arizona to become the first female justice on the Supreme Court.

In 1985, in North Korea and South Korea, family members who had been separated for decades were allowed to visit each other as both countries opened their borders in an unprecedented family-reunion program.

In 1989, Hurricane Hugo crashed into Charleston, South Carolina. The storm was blamed for 56 deaths in the Caribbean and 29 in the United States.

In 1996, the board of the all-male Virginia Military Institute voted to admit women.

In 2001, Congress again opened the federal coffers to those harmed by terrorism, providing $15 billion to the airline industry, which was suffering mounting economic losses since the Sept. 11 attacks.

In 2008, baseball said farewell to the original Yankee Stadium as the Bronx Bombers defeated the Baltimore Orioles 7-3.