1857: Supreme Court Rules Against Dred Scott

On March 6, 1857, the Supreme Court ruled against Dred Scott, a slave who sued for freedom after spending time in free territory. The...

1972: Nixon Leaves for China

On February 17, 1972, President Richard Nixon embarked on a diplomatic mission to normalize relations with the People’s Republic of China. Meeting Sets Stage for...

1773: American Patriots Carry Out Boston Tea Party

On Dec. 16, 1773, members of the Sons of Liberty boarded British ships in Boston Harbor and destroyed their cargo of tea, taking another...

1997: Rap Icon Notorious B.I.G. Murdered

On March 9, 1997, Biggie Smalls was killed in a Los Angeles drive-by shooting that may have been linked to rap industry rivalries. His...

1960: South African Police Open Fire on Crowd in Sharpeville Massacre

On March 21, 1960, South African police fired into a crowd of black protesters who had surrounded a police station in Sharpeville, killing 69...

1923: King Tut’s Tomb Unsealed

On February 16, 1923, King Tutankhamen’s tomb was unsealed and entered by an excavation team led by British archaeologist Howard Carter and financial backer...

1820: The “Mayflower of Liberia” Sets Sail

On February 6, 1820, a ship of freed black slaves set sail from New York for the coast of West Africa, where they would...

2002: The Trial of Slobodan Milosevic Begins

On February 12, 2002, the war crimes trial of Serb leader Slobodan Milosevic began at The Hague. The defendant died before a sentence was...

On This Day: United States Drops Atomic Bomb on Hiroshima

On Aug. 6, 1945, U.S. war plane Enola Gay dropped “Little Boy,” a 8,900-pound atomic bomb, on Hiroshima, Japan. Within eight days, Japan surrendered,...