2018
The Kilauea volcano on Big Island in Hawaii began to erupt.
New fissures had formed, and lava started erupting after a 5.0 earthquake. Residences were evacuated, assisted by the National Guard.
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2007
Three-year-old English girl Madeleine McCann went missing while on vacation with her parents, family, and friends in Praia da Luz, Portugal.
Her disappearance received worldwide media coverage, with searches still ongoing today. Her parents, Gerry, and Kate McCann, continue to appeal for information on her whereabouts.
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2002
The Spider-Man film starring Tobey Maguire premiered.
Spider-Man redefined the modern superhero genre, and its success led to Spider-Man 1 and 2 being released.
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1999
An F5 tornado hit Oklahoma City, where the highest global wind speeds were recorded.
An F5 tornado is the highest-ranking on the intensity scale, meaning it has the potential to cause the most damage.
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1998
NASA’s Columbia Space Shuttle landed at the Kennedy Space Center, concluding mission STS-90.
STS-90 was the last Columbia mission that landed during the day and the last mission to carry the European Space Agency’s Spacelab module into orbit. The sixteen-day mission’s primary objective was to use the Neurolab Spacelab module to study the effects of microgravity on the nervous system. Tests were performed on several animals, including fish, crickets, mice, and even the astronauts themselves.
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1978
The first-ever “spam” email was sent out to every ARPANET address on the US west coast.
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1944
Going My Way, starring Bing Crosby, premiered in New York.
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1936
New York Yankee, Joe DiMaggio, made his major-league debut.
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1921
West Virginia became the first state to impose a sales tax.
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1913
India’s first-ever full-length film, Raja Harishchandra, was released in theaters.
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1863
The Battle of Salem Church took place.
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1851
The sixth major fire in San Francisco occurred.
This fire broke out in a paint and upholstery store. It was spread by high winds and was visible for miles out to sea. It blazed for 10 hours and extended to about 18 blocks. The total damage was estimated at $10-12 million dollars, destroying 1500-2000 buildings.
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1830
The first train passenger service began.
Until this day, trains had only been used to transport goods.
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1802
Washington, D.C. was incorporated by Congress.
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