TODAY IN HISTORY

Today is Friday, April 19, the 110th day of 2024. There are 256 days left in the year. On this date in:

1775:

“The shot heard around the world.” The American Revolution began as British troops and colonial militiamen collided in Lexington and Concord, Massachusetts.

1882:

Charles Darwin, the architect of the theory of biological evolution by natural selection, died from heart failure at age 73 in Downe, England. Darwin’s theories on evolution and postulation that various species descended from common ancestors have helped formed the basis of modern biology.

1897:

John McDermott was crowned winner of the first Boston Marathon after running the 24.5mile course in 2:55:10.

1943:

In German-occupied Poland, Jews in the Warsaw Ghetto rose against German troops moving to liquidate the area. The uprising lasted a month and tragically cost the lives of 13,000 Jews.

1971:

Charles Manson was convicted of murder and sentenced to death for the Tate-LaBianca murders. His sentence was later commuted to life in prison. While Manson was not physically involved in the killings, the court found him guilty of first-degree murder and conspiracy along with three others from his cult.

1985:

FBI and ATF agents, around 300 in total, carried out a 3-day siege on the compound of the white supremacist survivalist group The Covenant, the Sword and the Arm of the Lord in Arkansas.

1989:

A woman was brutally beaten and sexually assaulted while jogging at night in New York City’s Central Park. Her assault led to the wrongful conviction of five youths known as the Central Park Five: Antron McCray, Kevin Richardson, Yusef Salaam, Raymond Santana, and Korey Wise.

1993:

The 51-day Texas standoff between David Koresh’s Waco Branch Davidian and the FBI ended in tragedy as a fire broke out during an FBI tank and gas assault. A total of 76 Davidians, including 18 children under age 10, died in the fire.

1995:

At 9:02 a.m. CST, a truck containing a homemade bomb exploded at the entrance of Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, killing 168 people including 19 children under the age of 6. The bombing was the deadliest act of terrorism on U.S. soil until the tragic events of Sept. 11, 2001. Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols were arrested as the primary perpetrators, both of whom held extreme anti-government views.

AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES The north side of the Albert P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, April 19, 1995, shows the devastation caused by a fuel-and-fertilizer truck bomb that was detonated in front of the building. The blast killed 168 people and injured more than 500.