Today in History in 1503 Columbus discovered the Cayman Islands; in 1752 Benjamin Franklin tested the lightning conductor with his kite-flying experiment; in 1797 the first U.S. Navy ship, the “United States” was launched; and in 1908 the first Mother's Day observance was in Philadelphia.
Our on this day in history archives contain over 200,000 events, birthdays and deaths from 6,000 years of history. Here is a roundup of a few of them:
Historical Events
1497 - Italian navigator Amerigo Vespucci leaves for 1st voyage to the New World
1503 - Columbus discovers Cayman Islands
1652 - John Johnson, a free African American, is granted 550 acres in Northampton, Va
1752 - Benjamin Franklin tests the lightning conductor with his kite-flying experiment
1775 - 2nd Continental Congress names George Washington, supreme commander
1775 - Green Mountain Boys capture Fort Ticonderoga NY-American Revolution
1797 - 1st US Navy ship, the "United States," is launched
1801 - First Barbary War: The Barbary pirates of Tripoli declare war on the United States of America (1st US foreign war)
1824 - The National Gallery in London opens to the public in its temporary home in a townhouse on Pall Mall
1865 - Jefferson Davis captured at Irwinsville. Georgia
1872 - Victoria Woodhull becomes 1st woman nominated for US presidency by Equal Rights Party at Apollo Hall, NYC
1893 - 19th Kentucky Derby: Eddie Kunze aboard Lookout wins in 2:39.25
1905 - 31st Kentucky Derby: Jack Martin aboard Agile wins in 2:100.75
1908 - 1st Mother's Day observed (Philadelphia)
1910 - 36th Kentucky Derby: Fred Herbert aboard Donau wins in 2:06.4
1910 - Halley's Comet closest approach to Earth in 1910 pass
1960 - John F Kennedy wins primary in West Virginia
1960 - US atomic sub USS Triton completes 1st submerged circumnavigation of the globe
1967 - Hank Aaron only inside the park HR (vs Jim Bunning)
1969 - Apollo 10 transmit 1st color pictures of Earth from space
1970 - Bobby Orr scores one of the most famous goals in hockey history, an overtime goal that gives the Boston Bruins its first Stanley Cup since 1941
1983 - "Laverne & Shirley" last airs on ABC-TV
1994 - Barbra Striesand begins 1st concert tour in 30 years
1994 - Nelson Mandela sworn in as South Africa's 1st black president
2005 - A hand grenade which was thrown by Vladimir Arutyunian lands about 65 feet (20 meters) from U.S. President George W. Bush while he was giving a speech to a crowd in Tbilisi, Georgia, but it malfunctions and does not detonate.
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