Today in History

On Nov. 25, 1963, the body of President John F. Kennedy was laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery after a funeral procession through Washington; an estimated 1 million people lined the procession route.

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In 1783, following the conclusion of the Revolutionary War, the last remaining British troops in the United States were evacuated from New York City.

In 1961, the USS Enterprise was commissioned; it was the first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier and remains the longest naval vessel ever built, at 1,123 feet (342 meters).

In 1986, the Iran-Contra affair erupted as President Ronald Reagan and Attorney General Edwin Meese revealed that profits from secret arms sales to Iran had been diverted to Nicaraguan rebels.

In 1999, Elian Gonzalez, a 5-year-old Cuban boy, was rescued by a pair of sport fishermen off the coast of Florida, setting off an international custody battle.

In 2001, as the war in Afghanistan entered its eighth week, CIA officer Johnny “Mike” Spann was killed during a prison uprising in Mazar-e-Sharif, becoming America’s first combat casualty of the conflict.

In 2016, Fidel Castro, who led his rebels to a victorious revolution in 1959, embraced Soviet-style communism and defied the power of 10 U.S. presidents during his half-century of rule in Cuba, died at age 90.

Today’s Birthdays: Football Hall of Fame coach Joe Gibbs is 84. Actor John Larroquette is 77. Dance judge Bruno Tonioli (TV: “Dancing with the Stars”) is 69. Musician Amy Grant is 64. Football Hall of Famer Cris Carter is 59. Rapper-producer Erick Sermon is 56. Actor Jill Hennessy is 56. Actor Christina Applegate is 53. Former NFL quarterback Donovan McNabb is 48. Former first daughter Barbara Pierce Bush is 43. Former first daughter Jenna Bush Hager is 43. Soccer manager and former player Xabi Alonso is 43. Actor Stephanie Hsu is 34.