Today In History. What Happened This Day In History A chronological timetable of historical events that occurred on this day in history. Historical facts of the day in the areas of military, politics, science, music, sports, arts, entertainment and more. Discover what happened today in history. Today in History October 2 1263 : At Largs, King Alexander III of Scotland repels an amphibious invasion by King Haakon IV of Norway. 1535 : Having landed in Quebec a month ago, Jacques Cartier reaches a town, which he names Montreal. 1862 : An Army under Union General Joseph Hooker arrives in Bridgeport, Alabama to support the Union forces at Chattanooga. Chattanoogas Lookout Mountain provides a dramatic setting for the Civil Wars battle above the clouds. 1870 : The papal states vote in favor of union with Italy. The capital is moved from Florence to Rome. 1871 : Morman leader Brigham Young, 70, is arrested for polygamy. He was later convicted, but the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the conviction. 1879 : A dual alliance is formed between Austria and Germany, in which the two countries agree to come to the others aid in the event of aggression. 1909 : Orville Wright sets an altitude record, flying at 1,600 feet. This exceeded Hubert Lathams previous record of 508 feet. 1931 : Aerial circus star Clyde Pangborn and playboy Hugh Herndon, Jr. set off to complete the first nonstop flight across the Pacific Ocean from Misawa City, Japan. 1941 : The German army launches Operation Typhoon, the drive towards Moscow. 1950 : The comic strip Peanuts, by Charles M. Schultz, makes its first appearance in newspapers. 1959 : The groundbreaking TV series The Twilight Zone, hosted by Rod Serling, premiers on CBS. 1964 : Scientists announce findings that smoking can cause cancer. 1967 : Thurgood Marshall, the first African-American Supreme Court justice, is sworn in. Marshall had previously been the solicitor general, the head of the legal staff of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), and a leading American civil rights lawyer. 1970 : A plane carrying the Wichita State University football team, staff, and supporters crashes in Colorado; 31 of the 40 people aboard die. 1980 : Congressional Representative Mike Myers is expelled from the US House for taking a bribe in the Abscam scandal, the first member to be expelled since 1861. 1990 : Flight 8301 of Chinas Xiamen Airlines is hijacked and crashed into Baiyun International Airport, hitting two other aircraft and killing 128 people. 2001 : NATO backs US military strikes in the wake of the September 11 terrorist attacks. Born on October 2 1847 : Paul von Hindenburg, German Field Marshall during World War I and second president of the Weimar Republic. 1869 : Mahatma Mohandas Gandhi, political leader of India and pioneer of nonviolent activism. 1871 : Cordell Hull, Secretary of State for President Franklin Roosevelt. 1879 : Wallace Stevens, poet. 1890 : Julius Henry Groucho Marx, comedian, one of the five Marx brothers (the others being Chico, Harpo, Zeppo and Gummo). 1900 : William A. Bud Abbot, comedian, the straight man to Lou Costello. 1901 : Roy Campbell, poet (The Flaming Terrapin). 1904 : Graham Greene, novelist (The Power and The Glory, The Heart of the Matter). 1907 : Alexander R. Todd, Baron Todd, Scottish biochemist who won Nobel Prize for Chemistry (1957) for his work on nucleotides, nucleosides, and nucleotide coenzymes. 1933 : John Bertrand Gurdon, English developmental biologist who shared Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine (2012) for the discovery that mature cells can be converted to stem cells. 1937 : Johnnie Cochran, high-profile African American lawyer whose many famous clients included O.J. Simpson and Michael Jackson. 1938 : Rex Reed, actor and film critic; co-hosted the At the Movies TV show. 1945 : Don McLean, singer, songwriter guitarist, best known for American Pie, his tribute to Buddy Holly and early rock n roll. 1945 : Martin Hellman, cryptologist, co-inventor of public key cryptography. 1949 : Annie Leibovitz, photographer whose subjects include John Lennon and the Rolling Stones. 1951 : Sting (Gordon M.T. Sumner), singer, songwriter, musician, actor; lead singer and bass player for the band The Police before launching a successful solo career. 1970 : Kelly Ripa, actress, producer, co-host of Live! with Kelly and Michael TV talk show.
Posted on: Thu, 02 Oct 2014 12:16:17 +0000
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