Events
1755 - The colony of Massachusetts offers a bounty of 20 British pounds for the scalps of native american boys and girls under the age of 12.
1793 - French playwright, journalist and feminist Olympe de Gouges was guillotined.
1838 - The Times of India, the world's largest circulated English language daily broadsheet newspaper was founded. It was then known as The Bombay Times and Journal of Commerce.
1848 - A greatly revised constitution, drafted by Johan Rudolf Thorbecke, severely limiting the powers of the Dutch monarchy, and strengthening the powers of the parliament and the ministers, was proclaimed (and still in effect today).
1868 - U.S. presidential election: Republican Ulysses S. Grant is elected to the first of his two terms in a victory over Democrat Horatio Seymour.
1883 - American Old West: Self-described "Black Bart the Po-8" gets away with his last stagecoach robbery, but leaves an incriminating clue that eventually leads to his capture.
1896 - U.S. presidential election: Republican William McKinley is elected over Democrat William Jennings Bryan.
1903 - With the encouragement of the United States, Panama proclaims itself independent from Colombia. US President Theodore Roosevelt wanted the United States to build the Panama Canal but were blocked by Colombia.
1908 - U.S. presidential election: Republican William Howard Taft is elected over William Jennings Bryan, who was the Democratic candidate for the third and final time.
1911 - Chevrolet officially entered the automobile market to compete with the Ford Model T.
1913 - The USA introduce an income tax.
1918 - World War I: Austria-Hungary enters an armistice with the Allies.
1918 - Poland declares its independence from Russia.
1923 - Lady Louise Mountbatten marries Gustav, Crown Prince of Sweden
1935 - George II of Greece regains his throne.
1936 - U.S. presidential election, 1936: Franklin D. Roosevelt is reelected to a second term in a landslide victory over Alf Landon.
1942 - World War II: Second Battle of El Alamein ends - German forces under Erwin Rommel are forced to retreat during the night.
1954 - The first in the Godzilla series of films is released in Japan.
1955 - The musical Guys and Dolls, starring Marlon Brando and Frank Sinatra, debuts.
1956 - The Wizard of Oz is shown on television for the first time (the viewing audience was estimated at 45 million people).
1957 - Sputnik program: The Soviet Union launches Sputnik 2. On board is the first animal to enter space - a dog named Laika.
1964 - U.S. presidential election, 1964: Incumbent US President Lyndon B. Johnson defeats Republican challenger Barry Goldwater, Sr with over 60 percent of the popular vote.
1967 - Vietnam War: Battle of Dak To begins - Around Dak To (located about 280 miles north of Saigon near the Cambodian border) heavy casualties are suffered on both sides (the Americans narrowly won the battle on November 22).
1969 - Vietnam War: US President Richard M. Nixon addresses his nation on television and radio asking the "silent majority" to join him in solidarity on the Vietnam War effort and to support his policies.
1970 - Salvador Allende inaugurated as president of Chile.
1971 - The UNIX Programmer's Manual is published.
1973 - Mariner program: NASA launches the Mariner 10 toward Mercury (on March 29, 1974 it became the first space probe to reach that planet).
1975 - An independent audit of Mattel, one of the United States largest toy manufacturers, reveals that company officials fabricated press releases and financial information to "maintain the appearance of continued corporate growth."
1975 - Good Morning America premieres with co-anchors David Hartman and Nancy Dussaulton.
1978 - Dominica gains its independence from the United Kingdom.
1979 - In Greensboro, North Carolina, five members of the Communist Workers Party are shot to death and seven are wounded by a group of Klansmen and neo-Nazis during a "Death to the Klan" rally.
1979 - Diff'rent Strokes premieres on NBC.
1983 - A Gasoline tanker explodes in the Salang Tunnel in Afghanistan, killing 2,000+ people.
1986 - Iran-Contra Affair: The Lebanese magazine Ash-Shiraa reports that the United States has been selling weapons to Iran in secret in order to secure the release of seven American hostages held by pro-Iranian groups in Lebanon.
1988 - Sri Lankan Tamil mercenaries tried to overthrow the Maldivian government. At President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom's request, the Indian military suppressed the coup attempt within 24 hours.
1992 - U.S. presidential election: Democratic challenger Bill Clinton defeats incumbent Republican George H.W. Bush and independent candidate Ross Perot.
1994 - Red Hat Linux 1.0 is released.
1995 - At Arlington National Cemetery, US President Bill Clinton dedicates a memorial to the victims of the Pan Am Flight 103 bombing.
1998 - Former professional wrestler, Jesse Ventura is elected Governor of Minnesota.
2003 - Centennial of Panama.
2004 - John Kerry calls George W. Bush to concede defeat in the 2004 U.S. presidential election
[edit]
Births
39 - Lucan, Roman poet
1618 - Aurangzeb, Mughal emperor
1718 - John Montague, Earl of Sandwich (d. 1792)
1793 - Stephen F. Austin, American pioneer (d. 1836)
1794 - William Cullen Bryant, poet, journalist (d. 1878)
1801 - Vincenzo Bellini, Italian opera composer (d. 1835)
1816 - Jubal Early, Confederate General (d. 1894); Calvin Fairbank, abolitionist minister (d. 1898)
1874 - Lucy Maud Montgomery, Canadian novelist (d. 1942)
1895 - Grand Duchess Olga Nicolaievna Romanova (d. 1918)
1901 - Andre Malraux, French novelist (d. 1976)
1901 - Leopold III of Belgium (d. 1983)
1903 - Walker Evans, photographer
1908 - Bronko Nagurski, American football star (d. 1990)
1909 - James Reston, journalist
1918 - Bob Feller, baseball star
1921 - Charles Bronson, actor (d. 2003)
1933 - Michael Dukakis, American politician
1933 - Jeremy Brett, actor (d. 1995)
1933 - Ken Berry, actor
1934 - John Barry, composer
1938 - Martin Dunwoody, British mathematician
1946 - Tom Savini, actor, film maker, makeup artist
1948 - Lulu (singer), actress, singer
1949 - Larry Holmes, American boxing champion
1952 - Roseanne, American actress, comedienne
1953 - Kate Capshaw, actress
1953 - Dennis Miller, comedian
1954 - Adam Ant, singer
1955 - Phil Simms, former New York Giants quarterback
1956 - Kevin Murphy, actor, author and puppeteer
1960 - Karch Kiraly, volleyball star
1977 - Aria Giovanni, model
1982 - Evgeni Plushenko, figure skater
1986 - Jasmine Trias, singer
[edit]
Deaths
361 - Constantius II, Roman Emperor
1580 - Jeronimo Zurita y Castro, Spanish historian
1787 - Robert Lowth, British bishop, grammarian
1890 - Ulrich Ochsenbein, member of the Swiss Federal Council (b. 1811)
1891 - Louis Lucien Bonaparte, French politician
1918 - Aleksandr Mikhailovich Lyapunov, Russian scientist
1929 - Olav Aukrust, Norwegian poet
1954 - Henri Matisse, French artist
1957 - Wilhelm Reich, psychotherapist
1990 - Mary Martin, American actress
1993 - Leon Theremin, Russian inventor
1995 - Gordon S. Fahrni, physician and president of the Canadian Medical Association, dies at age 108
1996 - Jean-Bédel Bokassa, president of the Central African Republic
1999 - Ian Bannen, actor
2002 - Lonnie Donegan, musician
2003 - Rasul Gamzatov, Russian poet
[edit]
Holidays
Independence Day in Panama (1903), Dominica (1978) and Federated States of Micronesia (1986)
Japan - Culture Day (post 1946), Emperors Birthday (pre 1946)
― Girolamo Savonarola, Thursday, 4 November 2004 02:23 (twenty-one years ago)