this day in history

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1170 – Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury, is assassinated inside Canterbury Cathedral by knights acting on the orders of King Henry II (More info) 1851 – The first YMCA in the US opens in Boston, Massachusetts (More info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1065 – Westminster Abbey is consecrated (More info) 1832 – John C. Calhoun becomes the first Vice President of the United States to resign (More info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1831 – Charles Darwin embarks on his journey aboard the HMS Beagle, during which he will begin to formulate the theory of evolution (More info) 1900 – Prohibitionist Carry Nation smashes up her first saloon, causing several thousand dollars in damage and landing in jail (More info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1946 – Mobster Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel opens The Pink Flamingo Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas (More info) 1966 – The first Kwanzaa is celebrated by Maulana Karenga, the chair of Black Studies at California State University, Long Beach (More info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1066 – William the Conqueror is crowned King of England (More info) 1776 – George Washington and the Continental Army cross the Delaware River, hoping to surprise a Hessian force celebrating Christmas at their winter quarters in Trenton, New Jersey (More info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1818 – ‘Silent Night’ is composed by Franz Gruber (More info) 1914 – An extraordinary Christmas truce begins during World War I (More info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1901 – Italian physicist and radio pioneer Guglielmo Marconi succeeds in sending the first radio transmission across the Atlantic Ocean (More info) 1913 – Two years after it was stolen from the Louvre Museum in Paris, Leonardo da Vinci’s masterpiece ‘The Mona Lisa’ is recovered inside Italian waiter Vincenzo Peruggia’

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1941 – Following the Americans’ declaration of war on Japan after the attack on Pearl Harbor, Germany and Italy declare war on the United States (More info) 1946 – The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund — UNICEF — is established (More info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1898 – The Treaty of Paris is signed, officially ending the Spanish-American War (More info) 1901 – The first Nobel Prizes are awarded in Stockholm, Sweden, in the fields of physics, chemistry, medicine, literature, and peace (More info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1851 – The first YMCA in North America is established in Montreal, Quebec (More info) 1935 – Walter Liggett, American newspaper editor and muckraker, is killed in gangland murder (More info) 1958 – The John Birch Society is founded in the United States (More info) 1965 – ‘A Charlie Brown Christmas’ debuts on CBS, airi

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1863 – President Abraham Lincoln offers his conciliatory plan for reunification of the United States with his Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction (More info) 1980 – Music icon John Lennon is murdered by a mentally unstable fan in front of The Dakota apartment building in New York City (More info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1787 – Delaware becomes the first state to ratify the United States Constitution (More info) 1941 – In an early-morning sneak attack, Japanese warplanes bomb the US naval base at Oahu Island’s Pearl Harbor, causing the United States to enter World War II (More info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1865 – The Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution is ratified, resulting in a ban of slavery (More info) 1884 – The Washington Monument in Washington, DC is completed (More info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1848 – In a message before Congress, President James K. Polk sparks the Gold Rush when he confirms that large amounts of the precious metal had been discovered in California (More info) 1933 – The 21st Amendment to the US Constitution is ratified, bringing an end to the prohibition of alcohol in America (More info) 19

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1520 – Ferdinand Magellan reaches the Pacific Ocean with three ships, becoming the first European to sail from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific (More info) 1895 – Frank Duryea wins the first motor-car race in the United States (More info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1095 – Pope Urban II declares the First Crusade at the Council of Clermont (More info) 1895 – At the Swedish-Norwegian Club in Paris, Alfred Nobel signs his last will and testament, setting aside his estate to establish the Nobel Prize after he dies (More info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1898 – A powerful early winter storm batters the New England coast, killing at least 450 people in New York, Connecticut and Massachusetts (More info) 1922 – Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon become the first people to enter the tomb of King Tut in over 3,000 years (More info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1947 – The “Hollywood Ten” are blacklisted by Hollywood movie studios (More info) 1952 – Agatha Christie’s murder-mystery play ‘The Mousetrap’ opens at the Ambassadors Theatre in London, eventually becoming the longest continuously-running play in history (More info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1859 – Charles Darwin publishes ‘On the Origin of Species,’ which immediately sells out its initial print run (More info) 1932 – The FBI Crime Lab officially opens in Washington, DC (More info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1889 – The first jukebox goes into operation at the Palais Royale Saloon in San Francisco (More info) 1936 – The first issue of the pictorial magazine Life is published, featuring a cover photo of the Fort Peck Dam by Margaret Bourke-White (More info)