On this date

the U.S. Senate ratified the Louisiana Purchase.

In 1803, In 1947,

the House Un-American Activities Committee opened hearings into alleged Communist influence and infiltration in the U.S. motion picture industry.

In 1967,

a jury in Meridian, Miss., convicted seven men of violating the civil rights of slain civil rights workers James Chaney, Andrew Goodman and Michael Schwerner; the seven received prison terms ranging from 3 to 10 years.

In 1968,

former first lady Jacqueline Kennedy married Greek shipping magnate Aristotle Onassis.

In 1977,

three members of the rock group Lynyrd Skynyrd, including lead singer Ronnie Van Zant, were killed along with three others in the crash of a chartered plane near McComb, Miss.

In 1990,

three members of the rap group 2 Live Crew were acquitted by a jury in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., of violating obscenity laws with an adults-only concert in nearby Hollywood the previous June.

In 2011,

Moammar Gadhafi, 69, Libya’s dictator for 42 years, was killed as revolutionary fighters overwhelmed his hometown of Sirte and captured the last major bastion of resistance two months after his regime fell.

Ten years ago:

The Dow Jones industrial average rose more than 400 points on more signs of a reviving credit market and hints from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke that the government would take more steps to help the economy.

Five years ago:

A suicide bomber slammed his explosives-laden car into a busy cafe in Baghdad, killing some three dozen people.

One year ago:

The U.S. government said 24 of its workers had been confirmed to be victims of invisible attacks in Cuba.

Associated Press