Events, Births and Deaths Happening on this Date

1785

The first state-chartered school, the University of Georgia, was incorporated.

1825

Congress approved Indian Territory (present-day Oklahoma), clearing the way for forced relocation of the Eastern Indians on the "Trail of Tears."

1862

President Abraham Lincoln issued General War Order No. 1, setting in motion the Union armies.

1880

Thomas Edison received a patent for his electric incandescent lamp.

1888

The National Geographic Society is established for the purpose of increasing geographical knowledge.

1924

Vladimir Lenin's body was laid in a marble tomb on Red Square near the Kremlin.

1926

John Logie Baird, a Scottish inventor, gave the first public demonstration of a true television system, in London.

1943

Some 50 bombers struck Wilhelmshaven in the first all-American air raid against Germany during World War II.

1944

The Soviet Union announced the end of the deadly German siege of Leningrad, which had lasted for more than two years.

1945

Soviet troops liberated the Nazi concentration camps Auschwitz and Birkenau in Poland.

1951

An era of atomic testing in the Nevada desert began as an Air Force plane dropped a one-kiloton bomb on Frenchman Flats.

1967

More than 60 nations signed a treaty banning the orbiting of nuclear weapons.

1967

Astronauts Virgil "Gus" Grissom, Edward White, and Roger Chaffee are killed in the cockpit of the Apollo I spacecraft. The cause was a flash fire that broke out during a flight simulation test.

1969

Students protesting against the closure of the London School of Economics seize control of another university building.

1973

The United States, North and South Vietnam, and the Vietcong sign a cease-fire agreement in France.

1975

The Senate began an investigation of activities by the FBI and the CIA. (On November 20, the committee released its report, charging both U.S. government agencies with illegal activities.)

1977

The Vatican reaffirmed the Roman Catholic Church's ban on female priests.

1980

Rhodesia opposition leader Robert Mugabe makes a triumphant return to his home country after five years in exile.

1981

President Reagan greeted the 52 former American hostages released by Iran at the White House.

1984

Pop Singer Michael Jackson's head catches on fire while filming a TV commercial for Pepsi.

1998

First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, appearing on NBC's "Today" show, charged the allegations against her husband were the work of a "vast right-wing conspiracy."

1999

The Republican-controlled Senate blocked dismissal of the impeachment case against President Clinton and voted for new testimony from Monica Lewinsky and two other witnesses.

1756

Composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born in Salzburg, Austria.

1832

Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, who wrote "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" under the pen name Lewis Carroll, was born in Cheshire, England.

1850

Samuel Gompers, American labor union leader, first president of the American Federation of Labor.

1859

Kaiser Wilhelm II, German emperor during World War I, forced to abdicate in 1918.

1885

Jerome (David) Kern, American musical comedy composer.

1900

Hyman Rickover, U.S. Navy admiral and nuclear engineer ("Father of the Nuclear Navy").

1908

William Randolph Hearst Jr., American media mogul.

1918

Skitch (Lyle) Henderson, American bandleader, TV musical director.

1921

Donna Reed, actor.

1938

Troy Donahue (Merle Johnson), American actor.

1948

Mikhail Baryshnikov, Russian-born American ballet dancer, ballet director, actor in Riga, Latvia.

1959

Keith Olbermann, American news anchor, commentator and radio sportscaster.

1901

Opera composer Giuseppe Verdi died in Milan, Italy, at age 87.

1967

Astronauts Virgil I. "Gus" Grissom, Edward H. White and Roger B. Chaffee died in a flash fire during a test aboard their Apollo spacecraft at Cape Kennedy, Fla.

1972

Mahalia Jackson, an American gospel singer.

1993

André the Giant (born André René Roussimoff), professional wrestler and actor.

2004

Jack Paar, American talk show host.