2005—Four die as the Cold River floods Alstead, N.H.
2001—Two Democratic Senators receive letters carrying anthrax spores.
1998—In “a mockery of the regulatory process” that “brazenly violates existing law,” Citicorp and Travelers Group merge into Citigroup, enriching Sandy Weill and Jamie Dimon but costing taxpayers billions.
1992—A meteorite strike in Peekskill, N.Y. turns Michelle Knapp’s $300 Chevy Malibu into a tourist attraction she sells for $25,000.
1974—Rep. Wilbur Mills [D-Ark.] is stopped at 2 a.m. for speeding with his headlights off. His passenger, Fanne [sic] Foxe, aka “The Argentine Firecracker,” hops into the Tidal Basin.
1967—Ernesto “Che” Guevara taunts his executioner: “Just shoot, you coward. You are only killing a man.”
1966—In a prop-driven Douglas A1 Skyraider, Lt. JG William T. Patton downs a MiG-17 jet over Vietnam.
1965—“We should declare war on North Vietnam,” says Ronald Reagan. “We could pave the whole country and put parking strips on it, and still be home by Christmas.”
1940—Race-neutral provisions of the Selective Service Act notwithstanding, FDR announces that the “Greatest Generation™” will fight the fascists in segregated units.
1776—The Second Continental Congress renames the “United Colonies.” They’re now the United States.