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1957 |
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The U.S. Postal Service issued the 4¢ Flag stamp. |
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1987 |
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Klaus Barbie, the former Gestapo chief known as the "Butcher of Lyon," was convicted by a French court of crimes against humanity and sentenced to life in prison. |
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1802 |
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The U.S. Military Academy officially opened at West Point, NY. |
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1997 |
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The Mars Pathfinder, an unmanned spacecraft, landed on Mars. A rover named Sojourner was deployed to gather data about the surface of the planet. |
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2005 |
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NASA's Deep Impact spacecraft took pictures as a space probe smashed into the Tempel 1 comet. The mission was aimed at learning more about comets that formed from the leftover buidling blocks of the solar system. The Deep Impact mission launched on January 12, 2005. |
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1881 |
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Tuskegee Institute opened in Alabama. |
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1901 |
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William H. Taft became the American governor of the Philippines. |
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1934 |
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At Mount Rushmore, George Washington's face was dedicated. |
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1712 |
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Twelve slaves were executed for starting a slave uprising in New York that killed nine whites. |
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1845 |
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American writer Henry David Thoreau began his two-year experiment in simple living at Walden Pond, near Concord, MA. |
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1910 |
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Race riots broke out all over the United States after African-American Jack Johnson knocked out Jim Jeffries in a heavyweight boxing match. |
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1976 |
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The U.S. celebrated its Bicentennial. |
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2004 |
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In New York, the cornerstone of the Freedom Tower was laid on the former World Trade Center site. |
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2009 |
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The Statue of Liberty's crown reopened to visitors. It had been closed to the public since 2001.
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1803 |
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The Louisiana Purchase was announced in newspapers. The property was purchased, by the U.S. from France, was for $15 million (or 3 cents an acre). The "Corps of Discovery," led by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, began the exploration of the territory on May 14, 1804. |
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1848 |
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In Washington, DC, the cornerstone for the Washington Monument was laid. |
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1894 |
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After seizing power, Judge Stanford B. Dole declared Hawaii a republic. |
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1946 |
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The Philippines achieved full independence for the first time in over four hundred years. |
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1959 |
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The 49-star U.S. flag was debuted. |
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1960 |
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The 50-star U.S. flag made its debut in Philadelphia, PA. |
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2009 |
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North Korea launched seven ballistic missiles into waters off its east coast that defied U.N. resolutions. |
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1855 |
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The first edition of "Leaves of Grass," by Walt Whitman, was published in Brooklyn, NY. |
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1884 |
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Bullfighting was introduced in the U.S. in Dodge City, KS. |
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1886 |
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The first rodeo in America was held at Prescott, AZ. |
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1934 |
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Boxer Joe Louis won his first professional fight. |
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1939 |
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Lou Gehrig retired from major league baseball. |
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1776 |
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The amended Declaration of Independence, prepared by Thomas Jefferson, was approved and signed by John Hancock, the President of the Continental Congress in America. |
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1966: U.S. President Johnson signed the Freedom of Information Act, which went into effect the following year. |
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1817: Construction began on the Erie Canal, to connect Lake Erie and the Hudson River. |
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1892 |
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The first double-decked street car service was inaugurated in San Diego, CA. |
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1997 |
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Ferry service between Manhattan and Staten Island was made free of charge. Previously, the charge had ranged from 5 cents to 50 cents. |
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1863 |
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The Confederate town of Vicksburg, MS, surrendered to General Ulysses S. Grant. |
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