TODAY IN HISTORY

2014

A gunman shot and killed a soldier standing guard at a war memorial in Ottawa, then stormed the Canadian Parliament before he was shot and killed by the usually ceremonial sergeant-atarms.

1811

Composer and piano virtuoso Franz Liszt was born in the Hungarian town of Raiding in present-day Austria.

1836

Sam Houston was inaugurated as the first constitutionally elected president of the Republic of Texas.

1906

French post-impressionist painter Paul Cezanne died in Aix-en-provence at age 67.

1926

Ernest Hemingway’s first novel, “The Sun Also Rises,” was published by Scribner’s of New York.

1934

Bank robber Charles “Pretty Boy” Floyd was shot to death by federal agents and local police at a farm near East Liverpool, Ohio.

1962

In a nationally broadcast address, President John F. Kennedy revealed the presence of Soviet-built missile bases under construction in Cuba and announced a quarantine of all offensive military equipment being shipped to the Communist island nation.

1968

Apollo 7 returned safely from Earth orbit, splashing down in the Atlantic Ocean.

1979

The U.S. government allowed the deposed Shah of Iran to travel to New York for medical treatment — a decision that precipitated the Iran hostage crisis.

1986

President Reagan signed into law sweeping tax-overhaul legislation.

1995

The largest gathering of world leaders in history marked the 50th anniversary of the United Nations.

2001

A second Washington, D.C., postal worker, Joseph P. Curseen, died of inhalation anthrax.