On this date...

Roger Williams

In 1631, Roger Williams, the founder of Rhode Island, arrived in Boston.

In 1644, Connecticut passed the first US livestock branding law.

In 1673, New York Governor Francis Lovelace set up a monthly horseback post between New York and Boston. This was the beginning of a regular mail service and communication between the colonies, which would become critical information lines throughout the Revolution 100 years later.

In 1736, British Methodist religious leaders John Wesley and Charles Wesley arrived in Savannah, Georgia.

In 1776, King George III and Friedrich II signed an agreement providing the British with German infantry, who are known as Hessians in American history. This was the first of many German contracts that the British entered into to fight the American Revolution.

In 1776, from Connecticut, the Reverend Matthew Graves writes to Washington in anguish. Though threatened with forcible removal from his parish, Graves insists he has preached no politics, written nothing about American affairs, and obeyed every proclamation of Congress and governor alike. 

In 1777, Georgia formally adopted a new state constitution and became the first U.S. state to abolish the inheritance practices of primogeniture and entail.

In 1778, the Articles of Confederation were ratified by 2nd state, South Carolina

In 1826, Millard Fillmore, who later became the 13th president of the United States, married Abigail Powers, a New York native and a preacher’s daughter.

In 1846, the Oregon Spectator was the first newspaper to be published on the West Coast.

In 1861, the Louisiana delegation, except Mr Bouligny withdraws from Congress (US Civil War).

In 1864, Federal troops occupied Jackson, Mississippi.

In 1881, Phoenix, Ariz., was incorporated.

In 1883, the Southern Pacific Railroad completes its transcontinental “Sunset Route” from New Orleans to California, consolidating its dominance over rail traffic to the Pacific.

In 1900, the first of two Hay-Pauncefote treaties (named for U.S. Secretary of State John Hay and British Ambassador Lord Pauncefote) was signed between the United States and Great Britain over control of the proposed Panama Canal.

In 1917, American forces were recalled from Mexico after nearly 11 months of fruitless searching for Mexican revolutionary Pancho Villa, who was accused of leading a bloody raid against Columbus, New Mexico.

In 1917, with more than a two-thirds majority, Congress overrides President Woodrow Wilson’s veto of the previous week and passes the Immigration Act of 1917.

In 1918, more than 200 people were killed during World War I when the Cunard liner SS Tuscania, which was transporting over 2,000 American troops to Europe, was torpedoed by a German U-boat in the Irish Sea.

In 1919, Hollywood heavyweights Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks, and D.W. Griffith joined forces to create their own film studio, which they called the United Artists Corporation.

In 1931, Malcolm Campbell sets world land speed record of 246.08 mph, driving his famous Blue Bird car at Daytona Beach, Florida.

In 1937, President Franklin Roosevelt announced a plan to expand the Supreme Court to as many as 15 judges, allegedly to make it more efficient.

In 1943, Jake LaMotta defeated future multi-weight world boxing champion Sugar Ray Robinson by unanimous points decision in Detroit in the 2nd of their 6 meetings; his only win of their rivalry; Robinson’s first loss in his first 40 pro bouts.

In 1945, WWII: US troops under General Douglas MacArthur entered Manila in the Philippines after a month-long battle, ending three years of Japanese military occupation.

In 1948, 18-year-old Dick Button becomes first American men's figure skating Olympic gold medallist at the St. Moritz Winter Games; first to complete a double axel in competition; retains title in 1952

In 1969, in a colossal TV flop, Tim Conway's edgy sketch comedy show "Turn-On" bombs so badly that one Ohio station pulled it after 10 minutes, preferring a blank screen to its rapid-fire, risqué humor. A second episode never aired.

In 1971, Apollo 14 astronauts Alan Shepard and Edgar Mitchell stepped onto the surface of the moon in the first of two lunar excursions.

In 1972, Bob Douglas was the first African American elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame.

In 1973, services were held at Arlington National Cemetery for U.S. Army Col. William B. Nolde, the last official American combat casualty before the Vietnam ceasefire took effect.

In 1974, John Murtha of Pennsylvania became the first Vietnam War veteran elected to the United States Congress.

In 1988, the Arizona House of Representatives impeached Gov. Evan Mecham, who was later convicted in the state Senate and removed from office.

In 1988, Panamanian military leader Gen. Manuel Noriega was indicted on bribery and drug trafficking charges in Florida.

In 1991, the Michigan court barred Dr. Jack Kevorkian from assisting in suicides.

In 1992, Jury selection began in the trial of Los Angeles police officers charged with beating Rodney King.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton signed the Family and Medical Leave Act, granting workers up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for family emergencies.

In 1994, Medgar Evers’ murderer, Bryan De La Beckwith, was convicted after 30 years. Beckwith received a life sentence.

In 1997, Investment bank Morgan Stanley announced a $10 billion merger with Dean Witter.

In 2001, four disciples of Osama bin Laden went on trial in New York in the 1998 bombings of two U.S. embassies in Africa.

In 2002, A federal grand jury indicted John Walker Lindh, the so-called "American Taliban," alleging that he was trained by Osama bin Laden's network and that he conspired with the Taliban to kill Americans.

In 2003, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell appeared before the United Nations Security Council to present evidence (later proven to be inaccurate) that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction and posed an immediate danger. The U.S. invaded Iraq just a month later, and Powell later came to regret his statement.

In 2012, 36-year-old Josh Powell, who had been in the public eye since police labeled him a person of interest in the 2009 disappearance of his 28-year-old wife, Susan, locked out a social worker and then killed himself and his two sons, ages 5 and 7, by setting fire to his Graham, Washington, home.

In 2017, in the first overtime game in Super Bowl history, Tom Brady and the New England Patriots overcame a 25-point deficit to defeat the Atlanta Falcons.

In 2020, President Donald Trump was acquitted in his first impeachment trial. He was impeached by the House of Representatives because of his actions in the Ukraine scandal, Pres. Donald Trump was acquitted in the Senate. He was the third U.S. president to be impeached.