The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
TODAY IN HISTORY
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHT 1989
The United States launched Operation Just Cause, sending troops into Panama to topple the government of Gen. Manuel Noriega.
ALSO ON THIS DATE 1790
The first successful cotton mill in the United States began operating at Pawtucket, Rhode Island.
1803
The Louisiana Purchase was completed as ownership of the territory was formally transferred from France to the United States.
1860
South Carolina became the first state to secede from the Union as all 169delegates to a special convention in Charleston voted in favor of separation.
1864
Confederate forces evacuated Savannah, Georgia, as Union Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman nearly completed his “March to the Sea.”
1924
Adolf Hitler was released from prison after serving nine months for his role in the Beer Hall Putsch.
1963
The Berlin Wall was opened for the first time to West Berliners, who were allowed one-day visits to relatives in the Eastern sector for the holidays.
1978
Former White House chief of staff H.R. Haldeman was released from prison after serving 18 months for his role in the Watergate cover-up.
1987
More than 4,300 people were killed when the Dona Paz, a Philippine passenger ship, collided with the tanker Vector off Mindoro island.
1995
An American Airlines Boeing 757 en route to Cali, Colombia, slammed into a mountain, killing all but four of the 163 people aboard. In BosniaHerzegovina, NATO began its peacekeeping mission, taking over from the United Nations.