1321 Dante Alighieri author of the Divine Comedy, dies
1598 Philip II King of Spain (1556-98), dies at 71
1663 The first serious slave conspiracy in colonial America (Virginia)
1759 James Wolfe British general dies during the Battle of the Palins of Abraham outside Quebec city
1759 Wolfe defeats Montcalm on Plains of Abraham; Canada becomes English
1788 New York City becomes the US national capital, as authorized by the Congress of the Confederation.
1789 The first loan to US Govt (from NYC banks)
1803 John Barry first American commodore, dies
1849 The first US prize fight fatality (Tom McCoy)
1867 Gen E R S Canby orders SC courts to impanel blacks jurors
1882 Britain invades Egypt
1899 The first known auto-related fatality occurs when pedestrian Henry Bliss is struck by a car in New York City.
1906 The first airplane flight in Europe
1922 136.4øF (58ø C), El Aziziyah, Libya in shade (world record)
1922 The record high temperature for the planet is set in Azizia, Libya, where it reached 136 degrees Fahrenheit.
1942 German forces attack Stalingrad
1943 Chiang Kai-shek became president of China
1944 Soviet troops arrive at the Slovakian border.
1944 U.S. heavy bombers rain destruction on factory areas a few miles from Auschwitz, but Allies refuse to bomb railroad tracks or gas chambers at Auschwitz.
1948 Margaret Chase Smith (R-Me) elected senator, first woman to serve in both houses of Congress
1949 The Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) is established in New York City.
1950 Sara Allgood actress (Jane Eyre, Spiral Staircase), dies at 56
1959 USSR's Luna 2 becomes first probe to contact another celestial body
1960 Payola where radio stations would play selected songs in exchange for gifts and/or cash is banned by the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
1961 "Car 54 Where are You?" premiers on TV
