On this date...

Townshend Duties

In 1768, British troops landed in Boston to enforce the Townshend duties (taxes on paint, paper, tea, etc., passed in June 1767) and clamp down on local radicals.

In 1837, the Republic of Texas' General Land Office began its operations. Its first task was to organize and preserve the land titles issued by the Spanish and Mexican governments. When Texas entered the Union a decade later, it retained all its public lands, which the GLO oversees.

In 1854, The watch company, founded in 1850 in Roxbury by Aaron Lufkin Dennison, relocates to Waltham, Massachusetts, to become the Waltham Watch Company, a pioneer in the American System of Watch Manufacturing.

In 1864, Confederate spy Rose O’Neal Greenhow drowns off the North Carolina coast when a Yankee craft runs her ship aground. She was returning from a trip to England.

In 1886, US Mint at Carson City, Nevada, closes.

In 1889, Washington voters adopt the state constitution in a referendum.

In 1890, Yosemite National Park is established by an act of the U.S. Congress. It eventually becoming one of the most heavily visited national parks in the country.

In 1891, Stanford University, California, opens its doors after being founded by Leland Stanford and his wife, Jane, with a $40 million donation in memory of their son. Among its first graduating class is future US President Herbert Hoover.

In 1903, the Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Boston Americans, 7-3, in the first professional baseball World Series game held in Boston.

In 1907, A downturn in the stock market leads to a run on the dollar; US President Theodore Roosevelt calls on financier J. P. Morgan to help manage the financial crisis.

In 1908, the first production Model T Ford is completed at the company’s Piquette Avenue plant in Detroit.

In 1910, a massive explosion destroys the Los Angeles Times building in the city’s downtown area, killing 21 and injuring many more.

In 1920, Scientific American magazine reports that the rapidly developing medium of radio would soon be used to broadcast music.

In 1932, During game three of the World Series, New York Yankee Babe Ruth made his famous “called shot” when he pointed to the center-field bleachers in Wrigley Field and then hit a home run to that spot; the Yankees defeated the Chicago Cubs and went on to win the championship.

In 1940, Pennsylvania Turnpike, pioneering toll thruway, opens.

In 1948, California Supreme Court voids state statute banning interracial marriages in Perez v Sharp case.

In 1957, the motto “In God We Trust” began appearing on U.S. paper currency.

In 1961, American baseball player Roger Maris hit his 61st home run of the season, breaking Babe Ruth's record.

In 1962, Johnny Carson began hosting The Tonight Show, and he became king of late-night television, credited with creating the standard format for TV talk shows.

In 1964, the Free Speech Movement began at the University of California, Berkeley, as students surrounded a police car containing an arrested campus activist for more than 30 hours.

In 1971, Walt Disney World opens.

In 1974, Computer scientist Gary Kildall presents the prototype of his CP/M operating system in his backyard toolshed, the first commercially successful personal computer operating system

In 1975, In what is regarded by many as the greatest prizefight of all time (the “Thrilla in Manila”), Muhammad Ali defeated Joe Frazier after the latter's corner called a halt to the bout after 14 brutal rounds.

In 1982, Congress established the U.S. Claims Court (now the U.S. Court of Federal Claims) to handle cases in which the United States is a defendant.

In 1982, Billy Joel's 1978 album "52nd Street" is re-released in Japan, on compact disc—the first album put out on the then-space age tech. CDs gave the boot to cassettes and LP records, until vinyl began to get its groove back around 2007.

In 1993, Polly Klaas is abducted at knifepoint by an intruder in her Petaluma, California, home during a slumber party with two friends. She would be found dead 2 months later and her kidnapper had previously been convicted of kidnapping. Her death led to the "Three Strikes Law" in California.

In 2001, The Supreme Court suspended former President Bill Clinton from practicing before the high court.