Today in History

Historical Events

1671 - Welsh pirate Henry Morgan lands at the gates of Panama City
1864 - Civil War skirmish at Kelly's Ford, Virginia
1917 - Coen de Koning wins 2nd official 11 cities race (9:53) (record)
1961 - Australian Championships Men's Tennis: Roy Emerson beats fellow Australian Rod Laver 1-6, 6-3, 7-5, 6-4 for his first Grand Slam title
1996 - Australian Open Women's Tennis: Monica Seles beats Anke Huber of Germany 6-4, 6-1 for her first and only Grand Slam victory after her stabbing

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Famous Birthdays

1918 - William Seawell, American Army Brigadier General and CEO of Pan Am, born in Pine Bluff, Arkansas (d. 2005)
1936 - Barry C. Barish, American Physicist (Nobel Prize 2017, gravitational waves), born in Omaha, Nebraska
1955 - Eugene Jarvis, American video game designer (Cruis’n USA, Cruis’n World), born in Palo Alto, California
1962 - Roberto Paci Dalò, Italian writer, theater director, visual artist, and composer, born in Rimini, Italy
1965 - Alan Cumming, Scottish stage and screen actor (X2, The Good Wife), born in Aberfeldy, Scotland

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Famous Deaths

847 - Sergius II, Pope (844-47), dies
1773 - Philippe Buache, French geographer and cartographer (pioneered use of contour lines), dies at 72