1821 ~ U.S. troops took possession of Florida. The territory was sold by Spain.

1832 ~ U.S. President Andrew Jackson vetoed legislation to re-charter the Second Bank of the United States

1866 ~ Edison P. Clark patented his indelible pencil.

1890~ Wyoming became the 44th state to join the United States. 

1900 ~ ‘His Master’s Voice�? was registered with the U.S. Patent Office. The logo of the Victor Recording Company, and later, RCA Victor, shows the dog, Nipper, looking into the horn of a gramophone machine.

1913 ~ The highest temperature ever recorded in the U.S. was 134 degrees in Death Valley, CA.   

1919 ~ The Treaty of Versailles was hand delivered to the U.S. Senate by President Wilson. 

1925 ~ The official news agency of the Soviet Union, TASS, was established. 

1928 ~ George Eastman first demonstrated color motion pictures. 

1929 ~ The U.S. government began issuing paper money in the small size.

1938 ~ Howard Hughes completed a 91 hour flight around the world.

1940 ~ The 114-day Battle of Britain began during World War II.

1949 ~ The first practical rectangular television was presented. The picture tube measured 12 by 16 and sold for $12.

1951 ~ Armistice talks aimed at ending the Korean conflict began at Kaesong.

1953 ~ American forces withdraw from Pork Chop Hill in Korea after heavy fighting.

1962 ~ The Telstar Communications satellite was launched. The satellite relayed TV and telephone signals between Europe and the U.S. 

1962 ~ Fred Baldasare swam the English Channel underwater. It was a 42 miles and took 18 hours.

1969 ~ The National League was divided up into two baseball divisions. 

1973 ~ Britain granted the Bahamas their independence after three centuries of British colonial rule. 

1984 ~ Dwight ‘Doc�?Gooden, of the New York Mets, became the youngest player to appear in an All-Star Game as a pitcher. He was 19 years, 7 months, and 24 days old.  

1985 ~ Coca-Cola resumed selling the old formula of Coke, it was renamed "Coca-Cola Classic." It was also announced that they would continue to sell "New" Coke.

1989 ~ Mel Blanc, the "man of a thousand voices," died at age 81. He was known for such cartoon characters as Daffy Duck, Bugs Bunny and Porky Pig.

1991 ~  U.S. President Bush lifted economic sanctions against South Africa, citing its "profound transformation" toward racial equality.

1992 ~ In Miami, a federal judge sentenced former Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega to 40 years in prison. He was convicted of drug and racketeering charges. 

1992 ~ In New York, a jury found Pan Am responsible for allowing a terrorist to destroy Flight 103 in 1988, killing 270 people.

1993 ~ Kenyan runner Yobes Ondieki became the first man to run 10,000 meters in less than 27 minutes.

1997 ~ Scientists in London said DNA from a Neanderthal skeleton supported a theory that all humanity descended from an "African Eve" 100,000 to 200,000 years ago.

1998 ~ The World Bank approved a $700 million loan to Thailand.

1998 ~ The U.S. military delivered the remains of Air Force 1st Lt. Michael Blassie to his family in St. Louis. He had been placed in Arlington Cemetery's Tomb of the Unknown in 1984. His identity had been confirmed with DNA tests.

1998 ~ The Diocese of Dallas agreed to pay $23.4 million to nine former altar boys who said they had been molested by a priest.

1999 ~The heads of six African nations that had troops in the Democratic Republic of the Congo signed a cease-fire agreement that would end the civil war in that nation.

2000 ~ A pipeline explosion in southern Nigeria killed about 250 villagers.

2000 ~ Justin Pierce commited suicide the day before the premiere of his last movie "Pigeonholed."

2002 ~ Peter Paul Rubens' painting "The Massacre of the Innocents" sold for $76.2 million at Sotheby's.