TODAY IN HISTORY

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHT

April 14, 1865

President Abraham Lincoln was shot and mortally wounded by John Wilkes Booth during a performance of “Our American Cousin” at Ford’s Theater in Washington.

ALSO ON THIS DATE

1775

The first American society for the abolition of slavery was formed in Philadelphia.

1828

The first edition of Noah Webster’s “American Dictionary of the English Language” was published.

1912

The British liner RMS Titanic collided with an iceberg in the North Atlantic at 11:40 p.m. ship’s time and began sinking.

1935

The “Black Sunday” dust storm descended upon the central Plains, turning a sunny afternoon into total darkness.

1939

The John Steinbeck novel “The Grapes of Wrath” was first published by Viking Press.

1949

The “Wilhelmstrasse Trial” in Nuremberg ended with 19 former Nazi Foreign Office officials sentenced by an American tribunal to prison terms ranging from four to 25 years.

1956

Ampex Corp. demonstrated the first practical videotape recorder at the National Association of Radio and Television Broadcasters Convention in Chicago.

1970

President Richard Nixon nominated Harry Blackmun to the U.S. Supreme Court.