Today in history

1861 Robert E. Lee was named commander of Virginia forces.

1864 The U.S. Congress passed legislation that allowed the inscription “In God We Trust” to be included on one-cent and two-cent coins. 1876 The first official National League (NL) baseball game took place. Boston beat Philadelphia 6-5. 1889 The Oklahoma land rush officially starts at noon as thousands of Americans race for new, unclaimed land.

1914 Babe Ruth made his pitching debut with the Baltimore Orioles.

1915 At the Second Battle of Ypres, the Germans use poison gas for the first time.

1915 The New York Yankees wore pinstripes and the hat-in-the-ring logo for the first time. 1931 James G. Ray landed an autogyro on the lawn of the White House.

1952 An atomic test conducted in Nevada was the first nuclear explosion shown on live network television.

1954 The U.S. Senate Army-McCarthy televised hearings began.

1964 The third major World’s Fair to be held in New York City opens.

1970 The first “Earth Day” was observed by millions of Americans.

1976 Barbara Walters became first female nightly network news anchor.

1987 The American Physical Society said that the “Star Wars” missile system was “highly questionable” and would take ten years to research.

2010 The Boeing X-37 began its first orbital mission. It successfully returned to Earth on December 3, 2010.