TODAY IN HISTORY
In 1851, Herman Melville’s novel “Moby Dick” was first published.
In 1881, Charles Guiteau went on trial for assassinating President James Garfield. (Guiteau was convicted and hanged the following year.)
In 1889, inspired by Jules Verne, New York World reporter Nellie Bly (Elizabeth Cochrane) set out to travel around the world in less than 80 days. (She made the trip in 72 days.)
In 1922, the British Broadcasting Corp. began its domestic radio service.
In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt proclaimed the Philippine Islands a free commonwealth.
In 1940, during World War II, German planes destroyed most of the English town of Coventry.
In 1943, an American torpedo was mistakenly fired at the U.S. battleship Iowa, which was carrying President Franklin Roosevelt and his joint chiefs to the Tehran conference; the torpedo exploded harmlessly in the Iowa’s wake.
In 1944, Tommy Dorsey and Orchestra recorded “Opus No. 1” for RCA Victor.
In 1968, Yale University announced it was going co-educational.
In 1969, Apollo 12 blasted off for the moon.
In 1972, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed above the 1,000 level for the first time.
In 1986, the Securities and Exchange Commission imposed a record $100 million penalty against inside-trader Ivan F. Boesky and barred him from working again in the securities industry.
In 1993, Puerto Rico residents voted in a plebiscite to maintain the island’s existing U.S. commonwealth status, derailing the efforts of those favoring statehood.
In 1995, the U.S. government instituted a partial shutdown, closing national parks and museums while government offices operated with skeleton crews.
In 1998, Iraq said it would resume cooperating with U.N. weapons inspectors as it appeared to back down in the face of a threatened U.S. attack.
In 2000, Florida Secretary of State Katherine Harris certified George W. Bush’s fragile 300-vote lead over Al Gore, hours after a judge refused to lift a 5 p.m. deadline; however, the judge gave Harris the authority to accept or reject follow-up manual recount totals.
In 2004, Mahmoud Abbas, the temporary successor to Yasser Arafat, escaped unharmed when militants firing assault rifles burst into a mourning tent for the deceased Palestinian leader in Gaza, killing two security guards.
In 2012, former GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney blamed his election loss to “the gifts” that President Barack Obama had given to blacks, Hispanics and young voters during his first term.
In 2017, a gunman, shooting at random, killed 5 people including his wife and wounded 10 others after he opened fire at an elementary school and six other locations in the California community of Rancho Tehama Reserve, about 130 miles north of Sacramento.