1789 – The first U.S. House of Representative, meeting in New York City, elected Pennsylvania Representative Frederick Augustus Conrad Muhlenberger as its first speaker.
1826 – Samuel Morey of Oxford, New Hampshire patented the internal combustion engine.
1918 – The British Royal Air Force was formed as an amalgamation of the Royal Flying Corps and the Royal Naval Air Services.
1931 – Pitcher Jackie Mitchell became the first woman in organized baseball, when she was signed by the Chattanooga Baseball Club at the age of 19.
1946 – A massive tsunami, triggered by a seaquake off the Aleutian Islands, slammed into Hawaii, killing 159 people.
1960 – The first U.S. weather satellite, TIROS I, was launched and instantly produced images of a mid-latitude cyclone over the northeastern United States.
1970 – President Richard Nixon signed legislation officially banning cigarette ads on television and radio.
1985 – The long-awaited album, We Are the World, was finally released. Eight music stars donated previously unreleased material for the LP. Three-million copies of the award-winning single of the same name had already been sold.
1987 – Steve Newman became the first man to walk solo around the world, completing the 15,000-mile trek in four years.
Chief Writing Wolf 