In A.D. 79, long-dormant Mount Vesuvius erupted, burying the Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum in volcanic ash. An estimated 20,000 people died.
In A.D. 410, Rome was overrun by the Visigoths, an event that symbolized the fall of the Western Roman Empire.
In 1572, the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre of French Protestants at the hands of Catholics began in Paris.
In 1814, British forces invaded Washington, setting fire to the Capitol and the White House, among other buildings.
In 1857, the New York branch of the Ohio Life Insurance and Trust Co. failed, sparking the Panic of 1857.
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In 1932, Amelia Earhart embarked on a 19-hour flight from Los Angeles to Newark, N.J., making her the first woman to fly solo non-stop from coast to coast.
In 1949, the North Atlantic Treaty came into force.
In 1954, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the Communist Control Act, outlawing the Communist Party in the United States.
In 1968, France became the world's fifth thermonuclear power as it exploded a hydrogen bomb in the South Pacific.
In 1970, a bomb planted by anti-war extremists exploded at the University of Wisconsin's Sterling Hall in Madison, killing 33-year-old researcher Robert Fassnacht.
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Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.