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Week In History: November 1 - 7
Sunday, Nov. 1
November 1 is All Saints Day.
Today's Highlight in History:
On Nov. 1, 1765, the Stamp Act went into effect, prompting stiff resistance from American colonists.
On this date:
In 1512, Michelangelo finished painting the ceiling of the Vatican's Sistine Chapel.
In 1870, the U.S. Weather Bureau made its first meteorological observations.
In 1936, in a speech in Milan, Italy, Benito Mussolini described the alliance between his country and Nazi Germany as an "axis" running between Rome and Berlin.
In 1949, an Eastern Airlines DC-4 collided with a Lockheed P-38 fighter plane near Washington National Airport, killing all 55 people aboard the DC-4 and seriously injuring the pilot of the P-38.
In 1950, two Puerto Rican nationalists tried to force their way into Blair House in Washington, D.C., to assassinate President Harry S. Truman. The attempt failed, and one of the pair was killed, along with a White House police officer.
In 1952, the United States exploded the first hydrogen bomb, code named "Ivy Mike," at Enewetak Atoll in the Marshall Islands.
In 1954, Algerian nationalists began their successful rebellion against French rule.
In 1968, the Motion Picture Association of America unveiled its new voluntary film rating system: G for general, M for mature (later changed to GP, then PG), R for restricted and X (later changed to NC-17) for adults only.
In 1979, former first lady Mamie Eisenhower died in Washington, D.C., at age 82.
In 1989, East Germany reopened its border with Czechoslovakia, prompting tens of thousands of refugees to flee to the West.
Ten years ago: Coast Guard crews searching for clues in the crash of EgyptAir Flight 990, which claimed 217 lives, found the first large piece of wreckage off the New England coast. Former Chicago Bears running back Walter Payton died at age 45.
Five years ago: American contract worker Roy Hallums was one of several people kidnapped during an armed assault on the Baghdad compound where he lived. (Hallums was rescued by coalition forces on Sept. 7, 2005.) A 16-year-old Palestinian laden with explosives blew himself up in an outdoor market in Tel Aviv, killing three Israelis. U.N. nuclear agency chief Mohamed ElBaradei urged Iran to suspend uranium enrichment and called on North Korea to dismantle its weapons program.
One year ago: Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain plunged through the final weekend of their marathon race for the White House; McCain poked fun at his campaign's financial shortcomings and his reputation as a political maverick in an appearance on NBC's "Saturday Night Live." Machinists union members ratified a new contract with The Boeing Co., ending an eight-week strike.
Monday, Nov. 2
Today's Highlight in History:
On Nov. 2, 1959, former game show contestant Charles Van Doren admitted before a House subcommittee that he'd been given questions and answers in advance when he appeared on the NBC program "Twenty One," amassing $129,000 during a 14-week run.
On this date:
In 1783, Gen. George Washington issued his Farewell Orders to the Armies of the United States near Princeton, N.J.
In 1795, the 11th president of the United States, James Knox Polk, was born in Mecklenburg County, N.C.
In 1859, John Brown was convicted of treason against Virginia, murder and conspiracy for his raid on Harpers Ferry. (He was hanged one month later.)
In 1865, the 29th president of the United States, Warren Gamaliel Harding, was born near Marion, Ohio.
In 1889, North Dakota and South Dakota became the 39th and 40th states.
In 1917, British Foreign Secretary Arthur Balfour issued a declaration expressing support for a "national home" for the Jews in Palestine.
In 1947, Howard Hughes piloted his huge wooden flying boat, the Hughes H-4 Hercules (derisively dubbed the "Spruce Goose" by detractors), on its only flight, which lasted about a minute over Long Beach Harbor in California.
In 1948, President Harry S. Truman surprised the experts by winning a narrow upset over Republican challenger Thomas E. Dewey.
In 1979, black militant JoAnne Chesimard escaped from a New Jersey prison, where she'd been serving a life sentence for the 1973 slaying of a New Jersey state trooper, Werner Foerster. (Chesimard, who took the name Assata Shakur, now lives in Cuba.)
In 1984, Velma Barfield, convicted of fatally poisoning boyfriend Stuart Taylor, was put to death by injection in Raleigh, N.C., becoming the first woman executed in the United States since 1962.
Ten years ago: Xerox repairman Byran Uyesugi opened fire on his co-workers in Honolulu, killing seven of them. (Uyesugi was later sentenced to life in prison without parole.) Republicans pushed the year's last and biggest spending bill through Congress toward a sure veto by President Bill Clinton.
Five years ago: Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh was slain in Amsterdam after receiving death threats over his movie "Submission," which criticized the treatment of women under Islam. (Mohammed Bouyeri is serving a life sentence for killing van Gogh.)
One year ago: Barack Obama and John McCain uncorked massive get-out-the-vote operations in more than a dozen battleground states the Sunday before Election Day. Obama's grandmother, Madelyn Payne Dunham, died in Honolulu at age 86. Paula Radcliffe defended her title at the New York City Marathon to become the second woman to win the race three times; Marilson Gomes dos Santos of Brazil won the men's race for the second time in three years.
Tuesday, Nov. 3
Today's Highlight in History:
On Nov. 3, 1900, the first major U.S. automobile show opened at New York's Madison Square Garden under the auspices of the Automobile Club of America.
On this date:
In 1839, the first Opium War between China and Britain broke out.
In 1852, Japan's Emperor Meiji was born in Kyoto.
In 1909, American journalist James Reston was born in Clydebank, Scotland.
In 1936, President Franklin D. Roosevelt won a landslide election victory over Republican challenger Alfred M. "Alf" Landon.
In 1957, the Soviet Union launched Sputnik 2, the second manmade satellite, into orbit; on board was a dog named "Laika" who was sacrificed in the experiment.
In 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson soundly defeated Republican Barry Goldwater to win a White House term in his own right.
In 1970, Salvador Allende was inaugurated as president of Chile.
In 1979, five Communist Workers Party members were killed in a clash with heavily armed Ku Klux Klansmen and neo-Nazis during an anti-Klan protest in Greensboro, N.C.
In 1986, the Iran-Contra affair began to come to light as Ash-Shiraa, a pro-Syrian Lebanese magazine, first broke the story of U.S. arms sales to Iran.
In 1994, Susan Smith of Union, S.C., was arrested for drowning her two young sons, Michael and Alex, nine days after claiming the children had been abducted by a black carjacker.
Ten years ago: Aaron McKinney was convicted of murder in the fatal beating of gay college student Matthew Shepard in Wyoming. (McKinney and Russell Henderson, who pleaded guilty to kidnapping and murder, are serving life prison sentences.)
Five years ago: President George W. Bush claimed a re-election mandate a day after a record 59 million Americans chose him over Democrat John Kerry; Kerry conceded defeat in make-or-break Ohio rather than launch a legal fight reminiscent of the contentious Florida recount of four years earlier. Hamid Karzai was declared the winner of Afghanistan's first-ever presidential election after a three-week probe into vote fraud found no grounds to invalidate his triumph. Sgt. Charles Jenkins, who'd spent nearly 40 years in North Korea, pleaded guilty to deserting the U.S. Army in 1965. (He served 25 days in jail and was discharged.)
One year ago: On the eve of Election Day 2008, Democrat Barack Obama radiated confidence and Republican John McCain displayed the grit of an underdog as the rivals reached for the finish line of a two-year marathon. Ali Hamza al-Bahlul, a video maker for Osama bin Laden, was sentenced at Guantanamo to life in prison for encouraging terrorist attacks. Authorities announced they had positively identified some of Steve Fossett's remains found a half-mile from where the adventurer's plane had crashed in California's Sierra Nevada. Former White House photographer Cecil Stoughton, who took the iconic image of Lyndon Johnson taking the oath of office after President John F. Kennedy was assassinated, died on Merritt Island, Fla., at age 88.
Wednesday, Nov. 4
Today's Highlight in History:
One year ago, on Nov. 4, 2008, Democrat Barack Obama was elected the first black president of the United States, defeating Republican John McCain; Democrats gained seats in the Senate and House.
On this date:
In 1884, Democrat Grover Cleveland was elected to his first term as president, defeating Republican James G. Blaine.
In 1922, the entrance to King Tutankhamen's tomb was discovered in Egypt.
In 1924, Nellie T. Ross of Wyoming was elected the nation's first female governor to serve out the remaining term of her late husband, William B. Ross.
In 1939, the United States modified its neutrality stance in World War II, allowing "cash and carry" purchases of arms by belligerents, a policy favoring Britain and France.
In 1942, during World War II, Axis forces retreated from El Alamein in North Africa in a major victory for British forces commanded by Lt. Gen. Bernard Montgomery.
In 1952, Dwight D. Eisenhower was elected president, defeating Democrat Adlai Stevenson.
In 1979, the Iran hostage crisis began as militants stormed the United States Embassy in Tehran, seizing its occupants; for some, it was the start of 444 days of captivity.
In 1980, Ronald Reagan won the White House as he defeated President Jimmy Carter by a strong margin.
In 1991, Ronald Reagan opened his presidential library in Simi Valley, Calif., with a dedication attended by President George H.W. Bush and former Presidents Jimmy Carter, Gerald R. Ford and Richard Nixon — the first-ever gathering of five past and present U.S. chief executives.
In 1995, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated by a right-wing Israeli minutes after attending a festive peace rally.
Ten years ago:. Some 10,000 Iranian students rallied outside the former U.S. Embassy in Tehran to mark the 20th anniversary of its seizure by Islamic militants.
Five years ago: Following his re-election victory, President George W. Bush pledged to aggressively pursue major changes in Social Security, the tax code and medical malpractice awards. It was announced that Elizabeth Edwards, wife of former Democratic vice-presidential candidate John Edwards, had been diagnosed with breast cancer the same day her husband and Sen. John Kerry conceded the presidential race.
One year ago: California voters approved Proposition 8, a constitutional amendment outlawing same-sex marriage, overturning a state Supreme Court decision that gave gay couples the right to wed just months earlier.
Thursday, Nov. 5
Today's Highlight in History:
On Nov. 5, 1605, the "Gunpowder Plot" failed as Guy Fawkes was seized before he could blow up the English Parliament.
On this date:
In 1872, suffragist Susan B. Anthony defied the law by attempting to vote for President Ulysses S. Grant. (Anthony was convicted by a judge and fined $100, but never paid the fine.)
In 1895, George B. Selden of Rochester, N.Y., received the first U.S. patent for an "improved Road Engine."
In 1912, Woodrow Wilson was elected president, defeating Progressive Party candidate Theodore Roosevelt and incumbent Republican William Howard Taft.
In 1940, President Franklin D. Roosevelt won an unprecedented third term in office as he defeated Republican challenger Wendell L. Willkie.
In 1946, Republicans captured control of both the Senate and the House in midterm elections.
In 1968, Richard M. Nixon won the presidency, defeating Vice President Hubert H. Humphrey and American Independent candidate George C. Wallace.
In 1974, Ella T. Grasso was elected governor of Connecticut, becoming the first woman to win a gubernatorial office without succeeding her husband.
In 1985, Spencer W. Kimball, president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, died at age 90; he was succeeded by Ezra Taft Benson.
In 1989, death claimed pianist Vladimir Horowitz in New York at age 86 and singer-songwriter Barry Sadler in Murfreesboro, Tenn., at age 49.
In 1990, Rabbi Meir Kahane, the Brooklyn-born Israeli extremist, was shot to death at a New York hotel. (Egyptian native El Sayyed Nosair was convicted of the slaying in federal court.)
Ten years ago: U.S. District Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson declared Microsoft Corp. a monopoly, saying the software giant's aggressive actions were "stifling innovation" and hurting consumers. (Jackson later ordered Microsoft broken up into two companies, but the Justice Department subsequently said it was no longer seeking a breakup.) Pope John Paul II began his first visit to India in 13 years.
Five years ago: The Kremlin announced that Russia had given final approval to the Kyoto Protocol on global warming. In a surprise reversal, the Chilean army for the first time assumed institutional responsibility for widespread human rights violations during the dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet.
One year ago: President-elect Barack Obama pivoted quickly to begin filling out his new administration, selecting hard-charging Illinois Rep. Rahm Emanuel to be White House chief of staff. A case of postelection nerves on Wall Street sent the Dow industrials plunging nearly 500 points. Two men were shot to death in St. Johns, Ariz.; the 8-year-old son of one of the victims was arrested. (The boy later pleaded guilty to negligent homicide in the death of his father's roommate; prosecutors dropped charges in the father's death as part of a plea deal.) Literary critic John Leonard died in New York at age 69. Bollywood movie director B.R. Chopra died in Mumbai at age 94.
Friday, Nov. 6
Today's Highlight in History:
On Nov. 6, 1934, Nebraska voters approved a constitutional amendment which dissolved their two-chamber legislature in favor of a nonpartisan, single legislative body (or "unicameral"), which was implemented in 1937.
On this date:
In 1860, former Illinois Congressman Abraham Lincoln defeated three other candidates for the presidency: John Breckinridge, John Bell and Stephen Douglas.
In 1861, Confederate President Jefferson Davis was elected to a six-year term of office.
In 1888, Benjamin Harrison won the presidential election, defeating incumbent Grover Cleveland with enough electoral votes, even though Cleveland led in the popular vote.
In 1893, composer Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky died in St. Petersburg, Russia, at age 53.
In 1900, President William McKinley was re-elected, beating Democrat William Jennings Bryan.
In 1906, Republican Charles Evans Hughes was elected governor of New York, defeating newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst.
In 1928, in a first, the results of Herbert Hoover's election victory over Democrat Alfred E. Smith were flashed onto an electric wraparound sign on the New York Times building.
In 1944, British official Lord Moyne was assassinated in Cairo, Egypt, by members of the Zionist Stern gang.
In 1956, President Dwight D. Eisenhower won re-election, defeating Democrat Adlai E. Stevenson.
In 1977, 39 people were killed when the Kelly Barnes Dam burst, sending a wall of water through Toccoa Falls College in Georgia.
Ten years ago: During his visit to India, Pope John Paul II praised Christian missionaries and exhorted his bishops to spread the Christian message across Asia. Australians rejected a referendum to drop Britain's monarch as their head of state.
Five years ago: An Ivory Coast airstrike killed nine French peacekeepers and an American aid worker, prompting France to wipe out the country's modest air force. The designers of SpaceShipOne, the first privately manned rocket to burst into space, were handed a $10 million check and the Ansari X Prize trophy.
One year ago: President-elect Barack Obama spoke by phone with nine world leaders and met privately at the FBI office in Chicago with U.S. intelligence officials, preparing to become commander in chief.
Saturday, Nov. 7
Today's Highlight in History:
On Nov. 7, 1917, Russia's Bolshevik Revolution took place as forces led by Vladimir Ilyich Lenin overthrew the provisional government of Alexander Kerensky.
On this date:
In 1874, the Republican Party was symbolized as an elephant in a cartoon drawn by Thomas Nast in Harper's Weekly.
In 1893, the state of Colorado granted its women the right to vote.
In 1916, Republican Jeannette Rankin of Montana became the first woman elected to Congress.
In 1940, in Washington state, the Tacoma Narrows Bridge, nicknamed "Galloping Gertie," collapsed during a windstorm.
In 1944, President Franklin D. Roosevelt won an unprecedented fourth term in office, defeating Thomas E. Dewey.
In 1962, Richard Nixon, having lost California's gubernatorial race, held what he called his "last press conference," telling reporters, "You won't have Nixon to kick around anymore."
In 1967, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed a bill establishing the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
In 1972, President Richard Nixon was re-elected in a landslide over Democrat George McGovern.
In 1973, Congress overrode President Richard Nixon's veto of the War Powers Act, which limits a chief executive's power to wage war without congressional approval.
In 1989, L. Douglas Wilder won the governor's race in Virginia, becoming the first elected black governor in U.S. history; David N. Dinkins was elected New York City's first black mayor.
Ten years ago: Relatives of the victims of EgyptAir Flight 990 gathered in Newport, R.I., to bid them a wrenching farewell, a week after the plane crashed into the Atlantic Ocean. Tiger Woods became the first golfer since Ben Hogan in 1953 to win four straight tournaments. Kenya's Joseph Chebet won the New York City Marathon; Adriana Fernandez won the women's division.
Five years ago: France rolled out overwhelming military force to put down an explosion of anti-French violence in Ivory Coast, its former West African colony. In the New York City Marathon, Britain's Paula Radcliffe won the women's race, edging Kenya's Susan Chepkemei by only four seconds; South Africa's Hendrik Ramaala won the men's race. Actor and musical star Howard Keel died at age 85.
One year ago: In his first news conference since being elected president, Barack Obama called on Congress to extend unemployment benefits and pass a stimulus bill.
The government reported the unemployment rate had soared to 6.5 percent in Oct. 2008, up from 6.1 percent just a month earlier.
General Motors Corp. reported a $2.5 billion loss in the third quarter while Ford Motor Co. said it had lost $129 million.
A school in Haiti collapsed, killing some 90 people.
Mieczyslaw Rakowski, Poland's last communist-era party chairman and prime minister, died in Warsaw at age 81
November 1 is All Saints Day.
Today's Highlight in History:
On Nov. 1, 1765, the Stamp Act went into effect, prompting stiff resistance from American colonists.
On this date:
In 1512, Michelangelo finished painting the ceiling of the Vatican's Sistine Chapel.
In 1870, the U.S. Weather Bureau made its first meteorological observations.
In 1936, in a speech in Milan, Italy, Benito Mussolini described the alliance between his country and Nazi Germany as an "axis" running between Rome and Berlin.
In 1949, an Eastern Airlines DC-4 collided with a Lockheed P-38 fighter plane near Washington National Airport, killing all 55 people aboard the DC-4 and seriously injuring the pilot of the P-38.
In 1950, two Puerto Rican nationalists tried to force their way into Blair House in Washington, D.C., to assassinate President Harry S. Truman. The attempt failed, and one of the pair was killed, along with a White House police officer.
In 1952, the United States exploded the first hydrogen bomb, code named "Ivy Mike," at Enewetak Atoll in the Marshall Islands.
In 1954, Algerian nationalists began their successful rebellion against French rule.
In 1968, the Motion Picture Association of America unveiled its new voluntary film rating system: G for general, M for mature (later changed to GP, then PG), R for restricted and X (later changed to NC-17) for adults only.
In 1979, former first lady Mamie Eisenhower died in Washington, D.C., at age 82.
In 1989, East Germany reopened its border with Czechoslovakia, prompting tens of thousands of refugees to flee to the West.
Ten years ago: Coast Guard crews searching for clues in the crash of EgyptAir Flight 990, which claimed 217 lives, found the first large piece of wreckage off the New England coast. Former Chicago Bears running back Walter Payton died at age 45.
Five years ago: American contract worker Roy Hallums was one of several people kidnapped during an armed assault on the Baghdad compound where he lived. (Hallums was rescued by coalition forces on Sept. 7, 2005.) A 16-year-old Palestinian laden with explosives blew himself up in an outdoor market in Tel Aviv, killing three Israelis. U.N. nuclear agency chief Mohamed ElBaradei urged Iran to suspend uranium enrichment and called on North Korea to dismantle its weapons program.
One year ago: Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain plunged through the final weekend of their marathon race for the White House; McCain poked fun at his campaign's financial shortcomings and his reputation as a political maverick in an appearance on NBC's "Saturday Night Live." Machinists union members ratified a new contract with The Boeing Co., ending an eight-week strike.
Monday, Nov. 2
Today's Highlight in History:
On Nov. 2, 1959, former game show contestant Charles Van Doren admitted before a House subcommittee that he'd been given questions and answers in advance when he appeared on the NBC program "Twenty One," amassing $129,000 during a 14-week run.
On this date:
In 1783, Gen. George Washington issued his Farewell Orders to the Armies of the United States near Princeton, N.J.
In 1795, the 11th president of the United States, James Knox Polk, was born in Mecklenburg County, N.C.
In 1859, John Brown was convicted of treason against Virginia, murder and conspiracy for his raid on Harpers Ferry. (He was hanged one month later.)
In 1865, the 29th president of the United States, Warren Gamaliel Harding, was born near Marion, Ohio.
In 1889, North Dakota and South Dakota became the 39th and 40th states.
In 1917, British Foreign Secretary Arthur Balfour issued a declaration expressing support for a "national home" for the Jews in Palestine.
In 1947, Howard Hughes piloted his huge wooden flying boat, the Hughes H-4 Hercules (derisively dubbed the "Spruce Goose" by detractors), on its only flight, which lasted about a minute over Long Beach Harbor in California.
In 1948, President Harry S. Truman surprised the experts by winning a narrow upset over Republican challenger Thomas E. Dewey.
In 1979, black militant JoAnne Chesimard escaped from a New Jersey prison, where she'd been serving a life sentence for the 1973 slaying of a New Jersey state trooper, Werner Foerster. (Chesimard, who took the name Assata Shakur, now lives in Cuba.)
In 1984, Velma Barfield, convicted of fatally poisoning boyfriend Stuart Taylor, was put to death by injection in Raleigh, N.C., becoming the first woman executed in the United States since 1962.
Ten years ago: Xerox repairman Byran Uyesugi opened fire on his co-workers in Honolulu, killing seven of them. (Uyesugi was later sentenced to life in prison without parole.) Republicans pushed the year's last and biggest spending bill through Congress toward a sure veto by President Bill Clinton.
Five years ago: Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh was slain in Amsterdam after receiving death threats over his movie "Submission," which criticized the treatment of women under Islam. (Mohammed Bouyeri is serving a life sentence for killing van Gogh.)
One year ago: Barack Obama and John McCain uncorked massive get-out-the-vote operations in more than a dozen battleground states the Sunday before Election Day. Obama's grandmother, Madelyn Payne Dunham, died in Honolulu at age 86. Paula Radcliffe defended her title at the New York City Marathon to become the second woman to win the race three times; Marilson Gomes dos Santos of Brazil won the men's race for the second time in three years.
Tuesday, Nov. 3
Today's Highlight in History:
On Nov. 3, 1900, the first major U.S. automobile show opened at New York's Madison Square Garden under the auspices of the Automobile Club of America.
On this date:
In 1839, the first Opium War between China and Britain broke out.
In 1852, Japan's Emperor Meiji was born in Kyoto.
In 1909, American journalist James Reston was born in Clydebank, Scotland.
In 1936, President Franklin D. Roosevelt won a landslide election victory over Republican challenger Alfred M. "Alf" Landon.
In 1957, the Soviet Union launched Sputnik 2, the second manmade satellite, into orbit; on board was a dog named "Laika" who was sacrificed in the experiment.
In 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson soundly defeated Republican Barry Goldwater to win a White House term in his own right.
In 1970, Salvador Allende was inaugurated as president of Chile.
In 1979, five Communist Workers Party members were killed in a clash with heavily armed Ku Klux Klansmen and neo-Nazis during an anti-Klan protest in Greensboro, N.C.
In 1986, the Iran-Contra affair began to come to light as Ash-Shiraa, a pro-Syrian Lebanese magazine, first broke the story of U.S. arms sales to Iran.
In 1994, Susan Smith of Union, S.C., was arrested for drowning her two young sons, Michael and Alex, nine days after claiming the children had been abducted by a black carjacker.
Ten years ago: Aaron McKinney was convicted of murder in the fatal beating of gay college student Matthew Shepard in Wyoming. (McKinney and Russell Henderson, who pleaded guilty to kidnapping and murder, are serving life prison sentences.)
Five years ago: President George W. Bush claimed a re-election mandate a day after a record 59 million Americans chose him over Democrat John Kerry; Kerry conceded defeat in make-or-break Ohio rather than launch a legal fight reminiscent of the contentious Florida recount of four years earlier. Hamid Karzai was declared the winner of Afghanistan's first-ever presidential election after a three-week probe into vote fraud found no grounds to invalidate his triumph. Sgt. Charles Jenkins, who'd spent nearly 40 years in North Korea, pleaded guilty to deserting the U.S. Army in 1965. (He served 25 days in jail and was discharged.)
One year ago: On the eve of Election Day 2008, Democrat Barack Obama radiated confidence and Republican John McCain displayed the grit of an underdog as the rivals reached for the finish line of a two-year marathon. Ali Hamza al-Bahlul, a video maker for Osama bin Laden, was sentenced at Guantanamo to life in prison for encouraging terrorist attacks. Authorities announced they had positively identified some of Steve Fossett's remains found a half-mile from where the adventurer's plane had crashed in California's Sierra Nevada. Former White House photographer Cecil Stoughton, who took the iconic image of Lyndon Johnson taking the oath of office after President John F. Kennedy was assassinated, died on Merritt Island, Fla., at age 88.
Wednesday, Nov. 4
Today's Highlight in History:
One year ago, on Nov. 4, 2008, Democrat Barack Obama was elected the first black president of the United States, defeating Republican John McCain; Democrats gained seats in the Senate and House.
On this date:
In 1884, Democrat Grover Cleveland was elected to his first term as president, defeating Republican James G. Blaine.
In 1922, the entrance to King Tutankhamen's tomb was discovered in Egypt.
In 1924, Nellie T. Ross of Wyoming was elected the nation's first female governor to serve out the remaining term of her late husband, William B. Ross.
In 1939, the United States modified its neutrality stance in World War II, allowing "cash and carry" purchases of arms by belligerents, a policy favoring Britain and France.
In 1942, during World War II, Axis forces retreated from El Alamein in North Africa in a major victory for British forces commanded by Lt. Gen. Bernard Montgomery.
In 1952, Dwight D. Eisenhower was elected president, defeating Democrat Adlai Stevenson.
In 1979, the Iran hostage crisis began as militants stormed the United States Embassy in Tehran, seizing its occupants; for some, it was the start of 444 days of captivity.
In 1980, Ronald Reagan won the White House as he defeated President Jimmy Carter by a strong margin.
In 1991, Ronald Reagan opened his presidential library in Simi Valley, Calif., with a dedication attended by President George H.W. Bush and former Presidents Jimmy Carter, Gerald R. Ford and Richard Nixon — the first-ever gathering of five past and present U.S. chief executives.
In 1995, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated by a right-wing Israeli minutes after attending a festive peace rally.
Ten years ago:. Some 10,000 Iranian students rallied outside the former U.S. Embassy in Tehran to mark the 20th anniversary of its seizure by Islamic militants.
Five years ago: Following his re-election victory, President George W. Bush pledged to aggressively pursue major changes in Social Security, the tax code and medical malpractice awards. It was announced that Elizabeth Edwards, wife of former Democratic vice-presidential candidate John Edwards, had been diagnosed with breast cancer the same day her husband and Sen. John Kerry conceded the presidential race.
One year ago: California voters approved Proposition 8, a constitutional amendment outlawing same-sex marriage, overturning a state Supreme Court decision that gave gay couples the right to wed just months earlier.
Thursday, Nov. 5
Today's Highlight in History:
On Nov. 5, 1605, the "Gunpowder Plot" failed as Guy Fawkes was seized before he could blow up the English Parliament.
On this date:
In 1872, suffragist Susan B. Anthony defied the law by attempting to vote for President Ulysses S. Grant. (Anthony was convicted by a judge and fined $100, but never paid the fine.)
In 1895, George B. Selden of Rochester, N.Y., received the first U.S. patent for an "improved Road Engine."
In 1912, Woodrow Wilson was elected president, defeating Progressive Party candidate Theodore Roosevelt and incumbent Republican William Howard Taft.
In 1940, President Franklin D. Roosevelt won an unprecedented third term in office as he defeated Republican challenger Wendell L. Willkie.
In 1946, Republicans captured control of both the Senate and the House in midterm elections.
In 1968, Richard M. Nixon won the presidency, defeating Vice President Hubert H. Humphrey and American Independent candidate George C. Wallace.
In 1974, Ella T. Grasso was elected governor of Connecticut, becoming the first woman to win a gubernatorial office without succeeding her husband.
In 1985, Spencer W. Kimball, president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, died at age 90; he was succeeded by Ezra Taft Benson.
In 1989, death claimed pianist Vladimir Horowitz in New York at age 86 and singer-songwriter Barry Sadler in Murfreesboro, Tenn., at age 49.
In 1990, Rabbi Meir Kahane, the Brooklyn-born Israeli extremist, was shot to death at a New York hotel. (Egyptian native El Sayyed Nosair was convicted of the slaying in federal court.)
Ten years ago: U.S. District Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson declared Microsoft Corp. a monopoly, saying the software giant's aggressive actions were "stifling innovation" and hurting consumers. (Jackson later ordered Microsoft broken up into two companies, but the Justice Department subsequently said it was no longer seeking a breakup.) Pope John Paul II began his first visit to India in 13 years.
Five years ago: The Kremlin announced that Russia had given final approval to the Kyoto Protocol on global warming. In a surprise reversal, the Chilean army for the first time assumed institutional responsibility for widespread human rights violations during the dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet.
One year ago: President-elect Barack Obama pivoted quickly to begin filling out his new administration, selecting hard-charging Illinois Rep. Rahm Emanuel to be White House chief of staff. A case of postelection nerves on Wall Street sent the Dow industrials plunging nearly 500 points. Two men were shot to death in St. Johns, Ariz.; the 8-year-old son of one of the victims was arrested. (The boy later pleaded guilty to negligent homicide in the death of his father's roommate; prosecutors dropped charges in the father's death as part of a plea deal.) Literary critic John Leonard died in New York at age 69. Bollywood movie director B.R. Chopra died in Mumbai at age 94.
Friday, Nov. 6
Today's Highlight in History:
On Nov. 6, 1934, Nebraska voters approved a constitutional amendment which dissolved their two-chamber legislature in favor of a nonpartisan, single legislative body (or "unicameral"), which was implemented in 1937.
On this date:
In 1860, former Illinois Congressman Abraham Lincoln defeated three other candidates for the presidency: John Breckinridge, John Bell and Stephen Douglas.
In 1861, Confederate President Jefferson Davis was elected to a six-year term of office.
In 1888, Benjamin Harrison won the presidential election, defeating incumbent Grover Cleveland with enough electoral votes, even though Cleveland led in the popular vote.
In 1893, composer Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky died in St. Petersburg, Russia, at age 53.
In 1900, President William McKinley was re-elected, beating Democrat William Jennings Bryan.
In 1906, Republican Charles Evans Hughes was elected governor of New York, defeating newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst.
In 1928, in a first, the results of Herbert Hoover's election victory over Democrat Alfred E. Smith were flashed onto an electric wraparound sign on the New York Times building.
In 1944, British official Lord Moyne was assassinated in Cairo, Egypt, by members of the Zionist Stern gang.
In 1956, President Dwight D. Eisenhower won re-election, defeating Democrat Adlai E. Stevenson.
In 1977, 39 people were killed when the Kelly Barnes Dam burst, sending a wall of water through Toccoa Falls College in Georgia.
Ten years ago: During his visit to India, Pope John Paul II praised Christian missionaries and exhorted his bishops to spread the Christian message across Asia. Australians rejected a referendum to drop Britain's monarch as their head of state.
Five years ago: An Ivory Coast airstrike killed nine French peacekeepers and an American aid worker, prompting France to wipe out the country's modest air force. The designers of SpaceShipOne, the first privately manned rocket to burst into space, were handed a $10 million check and the Ansari X Prize trophy.
One year ago: President-elect Barack Obama spoke by phone with nine world leaders and met privately at the FBI office in Chicago with U.S. intelligence officials, preparing to become commander in chief.
Saturday, Nov. 7
Today's Highlight in History:
On Nov. 7, 1917, Russia's Bolshevik Revolution took place as forces led by Vladimir Ilyich Lenin overthrew the provisional government of Alexander Kerensky.
On this date:
In 1874, the Republican Party was symbolized as an elephant in a cartoon drawn by Thomas Nast in Harper's Weekly.
In 1893, the state of Colorado granted its women the right to vote.
In 1916, Republican Jeannette Rankin of Montana became the first woman elected to Congress.
In 1940, in Washington state, the Tacoma Narrows Bridge, nicknamed "Galloping Gertie," collapsed during a windstorm.
In 1944, President Franklin D. Roosevelt won an unprecedented fourth term in office, defeating Thomas E. Dewey.
In 1962, Richard Nixon, having lost California's gubernatorial race, held what he called his "last press conference," telling reporters, "You won't have Nixon to kick around anymore."
In 1967, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed a bill establishing the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
In 1972, President Richard Nixon was re-elected in a landslide over Democrat George McGovern.
In 1973, Congress overrode President Richard Nixon's veto of the War Powers Act, which limits a chief executive's power to wage war without congressional approval.
In 1989, L. Douglas Wilder won the governor's race in Virginia, becoming the first elected black governor in U.S. history; David N. Dinkins was elected New York City's first black mayor.
Ten years ago: Relatives of the victims of EgyptAir Flight 990 gathered in Newport, R.I., to bid them a wrenching farewell, a week after the plane crashed into the Atlantic Ocean. Tiger Woods became the first golfer since Ben Hogan in 1953 to win four straight tournaments. Kenya's Joseph Chebet won the New York City Marathon; Adriana Fernandez won the women's division.
Five years ago: France rolled out overwhelming military force to put down an explosion of anti-French violence in Ivory Coast, its former West African colony. In the New York City Marathon, Britain's Paula Radcliffe won the women's race, edging Kenya's Susan Chepkemei by only four seconds; South Africa's Hendrik Ramaala won the men's race. Actor and musical star Howard Keel died at age 85.
One year ago: In his first news conference since being elected president, Barack Obama called on Congress to extend unemployment benefits and pass a stimulus bill.
The government reported the unemployment rate had soared to 6.5 percent in Oct. 2008, up from 6.1 percent just a month earlier.
General Motors Corp. reported a $2.5 billion loss in the third quarter while Ford Motor Co. said it had lost $129 million.
A school in Haiti collapsed, killing some 90 people.
Mieczyslaw Rakowski, Poland's last communist-era party chairman and prime minister, died in Warsaw at age 81
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