1512 The ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, painted by Michelangelo, is exhibited to the public for the first time.
1520 The Strait of Magellan, the passage immediately south of mainland South America connecting the Pacific and the Atlantic Oceans, is first discovered and navigated by European explorer Ferdinand Magellan during the first recorded circumnavigation voyage.
1585 Jan Brożek (born), Polish mathematician, physician, and astronomer (died 1652)
1604 William Shakespeare’s tragedy Othello is presented for the first time, at Whitehall Palace in London.
1611 William Shakespeare’s romantic comedy The Tempest is presented for the first time, at Whitehall Palace in London.
1765 The British Parliament enacts the Stamp Act on the 13 colonies in order to help pay for British military operations in North America.
1790 Edmund Burke publishes Reflections on the Revolution in France, in which he predicts that the French Revolution will end in a disaster.
1800 US President John Adams becomes the first President of the United States to live in the Executive Mansion (later renamed the White House).
1848 In Boston, Massachusetts, the first medical school for women, The Boston Female Medical School (which later merged with the Boston University School of Medicine), opens.
1859 The current Cape Lookout, North Carolina, lighthouse is lit for the first time. Its first-order Fresnel lens can be seen for about 19 miles (30 kilometers), in good conditions.
1870 In the United States, the Weather Bureau (later renamed the National Weather Service) makes its first official meteorological forecast.
1894 Thomas Edison films American sharpshooter Annie Oakley, which is instrumental in her hiring by Buffalo Bill for his Wild West Show.
1896 A picture showing naked breasts of a woman appears in National Geographic magazine for the first time.
1897 The first Library of Congress building opened its doors to the public. The Library had been housed in the Congressional Reading Room in the U.S. Capitol.
1915 Parris Island is officially designated a US Marine Corps Recruit Depot.
1938 Seabiscuit defeats War Admiral in an upset victory during a match race deemed “the match of the century” in horse racing.
1939 The first rabbit born after artificial insemination is exhibited to the world.
1941 American photographer Ansel Adams takes a picture of a moonrise over the town of Hernandez, New Mexico that would become one of the most famous images in the history of photography.
1947 Man o’ War (died), American racehorse (born 1917)
1950 Pope Pius XII claims papal infallibility when he formally defines the dogma of the Assumption of Mary.
1951 Operation Buster-Jangle: 6,500 American soldiers are exposed to ‘Desert Rock’ atomic explosions for training purposes in Nevada. Participation is not voluntary.
1952 Operation Ivy The United States successfully detonates the first large hydrogen bomb, codenamed “Mike” [“M” for megaton], in the Eniwetok atoll, located in theMarshall Islands in the central Pacific Ocean. The explosion had a yield of 10 megatons.
1957 The Mackinac Bridge, the world’s longest suspension bridge at the time, opens to traffic connecting Michigan’s upper and lower peninsulas.
1959 Montreal Canadiens goaltender Jacques Plante wears a protective mask for the first time in an NHL game.
1960 While campaigning for President of the United States, John F. Kennedy announces his idea of the Peace Corps.
1961 50,000 women in 60 cities participate in the inaugural Women Strike for Peace (WSP) against nuclear proliferation.
1962 Ricardo Rodríguez (died), Mexican race car driver (born 1942)
1963 The Arecibo Observatory in Arecibo, Puerto Rico, with the largest radio telescope ever constructed, officially opens.
1968 The Motion Picture Association of America’s film rating system is officially introduced, originating with the ratings G, M, R, and X.
1972 Ezra Pound (died), American poet (born 1885)
1973 –Leon Jaworski is appointed as the new Watergate Special Prosecutor.
1979 Mamie Eisenhower, (died) American wife of Dwight D. Eisenhower, 36th First Lady of the United States (born 1896)
1982 Honda becomes the first Asian automobile company to produce cars in the United States with the opening of their factory in Marysville, Ohio. The Honda Accord is the first car produced there.
1985 Phil Silvers (died), American actor and comedian (born 1911)
1993 The Maastricht Treaty takes effect, formally establishing the European Union.
EO Smith
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