On this date...

Hernando de Soto reaches Mississippi

In 1541, Spanish Conquistator Hernando De Soto reaches the Mississippi. He is the first European to do so. He landed south of present-day Memphis.

In 1792, Congress passed the second part of the Militia Act which established conscription.

In 1846, the first battle of what became known as the Mexican American War was fought in Texas, north of Brownsville. The war ended in early 1848, with the United States successfully expanding its territory. U.S. troops under Zachary Taylor defeated a Mexican force under General Mariano Arista in the Battle of Palo Alto, the first clash of the Mexican American War (1846–48).

In 1877, the Westminster Kennel Show began.

In 1886, American pharmacist John S. Pemberton developed Coca-Cola, a drink he originally billed as a cure-all tonic. He serves it at Jacobs Pharmacy in Atlanta, GA.

In 1942, during the Battle of the Coral Sea, the USS Lexington became the first U.S. aircraft carrier to be sunk during World War II.

In 1944, the first eye bank was established in New York City.

In 1945, World War II officially ended in Europe

In 1973, Militant Indians who had held the hamlet of South Dakota at Wounded Knee hostage surrendered.