TODAY IN HISTORY

1861

Union Gen. John C. Fremont instituted martial law in Missouri and declared slaves there to be free.

1967

The Senate confirmed the appointment of Thurgood Marshall as the first Black justice on the U.S. Supreme Court.

1983

Guion S. Bluford Jr. became the first Black American astronaut to travel in space as he blasted off aboard the Challenger.

1987

A redesigned space shuttle booster, created in the wake of the Challenger disaster, roared into life in its first full-scale test-firing near Brigham City, Utah.

1992

The television series “Northern Exposure” won six Emmy Awards, including best drama series, while “Murphy Brown” received three Emmys, including best comedy series.

1997

Americans received word of the car crash in Paris that claimed the lives of Princess Diana, her boyfriend, Dodi Fayed, and their driver, Henri Paul.