Today in History

Historical Events

1250 - Kublai is acclaimed the Great Khan by a Mongol Great Council
1502 - Nicolás de Ovando y Cáceres, new Governor of the Indies, lands in Hispaniola, replacing Christopher Columbus
1900 - An early 50 mile race is won by an electric car in over 2 hrs
1960 - Guy Carawan sings "We Shall Overcome" to the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee in Raleigh, popularizing the song as a protest anthem
1989 - Hillsborough disaster: 96 people are crushed to death and 766 are injured at Hillsborough Football Stadium in Sheffield, England, during an FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest

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Famous Birthdays

1469 - Guru Nanak, Founder of the religion of Sikhism and the 1st Sikh Guru, born in Rai-Bhoi-Di-Talwandi, Punjab, Pakistan (d. 1539)
1766 - Friedrich Bouterwek, German philosopher and critic, born in Oker, Hanover, Germany (d. 1828)
1922 - Harold Washington, 1st African American Mayor of Chicago (Democrat: 1983-87), born in Chicago, Illinois (d. 1987)
1959 - Emma Thompson, British actress (Henry V, Howards End, Oscar 1992), born in London, England
1982 - Seth Rogen, Canadian actor and writer (The 40-Year-Old Virgin, The Interview), born in Vancouver, British Columbia

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Famous Deaths

1962 - Esther Minciotti, Italian actress, dies at 73