TODAY IN HISTORY

On Oct. 24, 1648, the Peace of Westphalia ended the Thirty Years’ War and effectively destroyed the Holy Roman Empire.

In 1940, the 40-hour work week went into effect under the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938.

In 1945, the United Nations officially came into existence as its charter took effect.

In 1972, Hall of Famer Jackie Robinson, who had broken Major League Baseball’s modern-era color barrier in 1947, died in Stamford, Connecticut, at age 53.

In 1989, former television evangelist Jim Bakker was sentenced to 45 years in prison for fraud and conspiracy.

In 2005, civil rights icon Rosa Parks died in Detroit at age 92.

In 2007, rapidly rising internet star Facebook Inc. sold a 1.6 percent stake to Microsoft Corp. for $240 million.