1776 – American Revolutionary War: The first amphibious landing of the United States Marine Corps begins the Battle of Nassau.
1779 – American Revolutionary War: The Continental Army is routed at the Battle of Brier Creek near Savannah, Georgia.
1803 – 1st impeachment trial of a US federal judge, John Pickering, begins
1812 – US passes 1st foreign aid bill (aids Venezuela earthquake victims)
1815 – US declares war on Algiers for taking US prisoners & demanding tribute
1820 – The U.S. Congress passes the Missouri Compromise.
1845 – Florida is admitted as the 27th U.S. state.
1849 – Gold Coinage Act authorizes $20 Double Eagle gold coin
1849 – Territory of Minnesota organizes
1849 – US Home Department (later renamed the Department of the Interior) established by Congress
1857 – Second Opium War: France and the United Kingdom declare war on China.
1861 – Alexander II of Russia signs the Emancipation Manifesto, freeing serfs [OS=Feb 19].
1863 – 1st US wartime military conscription bill enacted
1863 – Gold certificates (currency) authorized by US Congress
1865 – Opening of the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation, the founding member of the HSBC Group.
1871 – US Congress changes Indian tribes status from independent to dependent
1873 – Censorship in the United States: The U.S. Congress enacts the Comstock Law, making it illegal to send any “obscene, lewd, or lascivious” books through the mail.
1875 – The first ever organized indoor game of ice hockey is played in Montreal, Canada as recorded in The Montreal Gazette.
1879 – 1st female lawyer heard by US Supreme Court (Belva Ann Bennett Lockwood)
1885 – The American Telephone & Telegraph Company is incorporated in New York.
1885 – US Congress passes Indian Appropriations Act (Indians wards of federal government)
1899 – William P. Sprague, American banker and politician (b. 1827) died.
1891 – US Congress creates Office of Superintendent of Immigration (Treasury Dept)
1905 – Tsar Nicholas II of Russia agrees to summon a ‘consultative assembly’ and concedes other points including an edict of religious toleration, relief for Jews, and the cancellation of certain debts
1910 – Rockefeller Foundation: J.D. Rockefeller Jr. announces his retirement from managing his businesses so that he can devote all his time to “philanthropy”. (Silent takeover of US institutions)
1913 – Thousands of women march in a suffrage parade in Washington, D.C.
1915 – NACA, the predecessor of NASA, is founded.
1918 – Germany, Austria and Russia sign the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk ending Russia’s involvement in World War I, and leading to the independence of Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland.
1923 – Doc Watson, American bluegrass musician, (d. 2012) Born
1923 – TIME magazine is published for the first time.
1927 – John McLaughlin, commentator (McLaughlin Report) Born
1931 – “Star Spangled Banner” officially becomes US national anthem by congressional resolution
1931 – Cab Calloway records “Minnie Moocher” (Jazz’s 1st million seller)
1934 – John Dillinger breaks out of jail using a wooden pistol
1938 – Oil is discovered in Saudi Arabia.
1939 – In Mumbai, Mohandas Gandhi begins to fast in protest at the autocratic rule in India.
1943 – World War II: In London, England, 173 people are killed in a crush while trying to enter an air-raid shelter at Bethnal Green tube station.
1945 – World War II: The RAF accidentally bombs the Bezuidenhout neighbourhood in The Hague, Netherlands, killing 511 people.
1948 – Snowy White, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (Thin Lizzy, Pink Floyd, and The Bleeding Heart Band) was born.
1951 – Jackie Brenston, with Ike Turner and his band, records “Rocket 88″, often cited as “the first rock and roll record”, at Sam Phillips’ recording studios in Memphis, Tennessee.
1952 – Robyn Hitchcock, rocker (Moss Elixir) Born
1954 – Chris Hughes, English record producer and rock drummer (Adam & The Ants), born in London, England
1955 – Elvis Presley makes his 1st TV appearance on a broadcast of radio show “Louisiana Hayride”
1959 – Lou Costello, American actor, singer, and producer (b. 1906) died.
1966 – William Frawley, American actor (Fred Mertz-I Love Lucy), dies of a heart attack at 89
1966 – Buffalo Springfield form (Steven Stills, Neil Young, et al)
1969 – Apollo 9 launched for 151 Earth orbits (10 days)
1972 – Sculpted figures of Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee, & Stonewall Jackson are completed at Stone Mountain Georgia
1975 – Linda McCartney is charged in US with possession of marijuana
1977 – Libyan Socialist Arabs People’s Republic forms
1982 – Jessica Biel, Ely Minnesota, American actress (Mary Camden in 7th Heaven) Born
1985 – Arthur Scargill declares that the National Union of Mineworkers national executive voted to end the longest-running industrial dispute in Great Britain without any peace deal over pit closures.
1987 – Danny Kaye, comedian (Danny Kaye Show), dies at 74
1989 – Machinists strike Eastern Airlines; pilots honor picket lines
1991 – An amateur video captures the beating of Rodney King by Los Angeles police officers.
1991 – Iraqi generals & Gen “Stormin’ Norman” Schwarzkopf meet to discuss cease fire
1998 – Bill Gates testifies at Senate Judiciary Committee (monopoly)
2005 – Mayerthorpe tragedy: James Roszko murders four Royal Canadian Mounted Police constables during a drug bust at his property in Rochfort Bridge, Alberta, then commits suicide. It is the deadliest peace-time incident for the RCMP since 1885 and the North-West Rebellion.
2012 – Ronnie Montrose, American guitarist, dies from prostate cancer at 64