Today in History: November 10, white supremacists stage coup in Wilmington, North Carolina

On Nov. 10, 1898, a mob of up to 2,000 white supremacists killed dozens of African Americans in Wilmington, North Carolina, burned Black-owned businesses and forced the mayor, police chief and aldermen to resign at gunpoint before installing their own mayor and city council in what became known as the “Wilmington Coup.”

Also on this date:

In 1775, the U.S. Marines were organized under authority of the Continental Congress.

In 1954, the U.S. Marine Corps Memorial, depicting the raising of the American flag on Iwo Jima in 1945, was dedicated by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in Arlington, Virginia.

In 1969, the children’s educational program “Sesame Street” made its debut on National Educational Television (now PBS).

In 1975, the Great Lakes freighter SS Edmund Fitzgerald sank in a severe storm on Lake Superior, claiming the lives of all 29 crew members.

In 2019, Bolivia's first indigenous president, Evo Morales, resigned after weeks of public protests in response to alleged fraud in a general election that year.

In 2021, Kyle Rittenhouse took the stand in his murder trial, testifying that he was under attack and acting in self-defense when he shot and killed two men and wounded a third during a turbulent night of street protests in Kenosha, Wisconsin. (He would be acquitted of all charges.)

In 2024, a shooting during homecoming weekend at Tuskegee University in Alabama left one person dead and 16 others wounded, a dozen of them by gunfire.

Today’s Birthdays: Lyricist Tim Rice is 81. Country singer Donna Fargo is 80. Film director Roland Emmerich is 70. Actor-comedian Sinbad is 69. Actor Mackenzie Phillips is 66. Author Neil Gaiman (GAY’-mihn) is 65. Actor Hugh Bonneville is 62. Actor-comedian Tommy Davidson is 62. Long jump world record holder Mike Powell is 62. Country singer Chris Cagle is 57. Actor-comedian Tracy Morgan is 57. Actor Ellen Pompeo is 56. Rapper-producer Warren G is 55. Actor Walton Goggins is 54. Football Hall of Famer Isaac Bruce is 53. Rapper-actor Eve is 47. Country singer Miranda Lambert is 42. Actor Josh Peck is 39. Actor Taron Egerton is 36. Golfer Jon Rahm is 31. Actor Kiernan Shipka is 26. Olympic gold medal pole vaulter Armand Duplantis is 26. Actor Mackenzie Foy is 25.