In 1737, the most renowned violin-maker in history, Antonio Stradivari, died in Cremona, Italy.
In 1787, New Jersey became the third state to ratify the U.S. Constitution.
In 1813, the British took Fort Niagara in the War of 1812.
In 1865, the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, abolishing slavery, was declared in effect.
In 1915, President Woodrow Wilson, widowed the year before, married Edith Bolling Galt at her home in Washington.
In 1956, Japan was admitted to the United Nations.
In 1957, the Shippingport Atomic Power Station in Pennsylvania, the first nuclear facility to generate electricity in the United States, went on line. (It was taken out of service in 1982.)
In 1972, the United States began its heaviest bombing of North Vietnam to date during the Vietnam War. (The bombardment ended 12 days later.)
In 1980, former Soviet Premier Alexei N. Kosygin suffered a fatal heart attack at age 76. (His death was not officially announced for two days.)
In 1985, the United Nations Security Council unanimously approved a resolution condemning "all acts of hostage-taking and abduction."
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Actor Ossie Davis (1917)
Former Attorney General Ramsey Clark (1927)
Rock star Keith Richards (1943)
Movie producer-director Steven Spielberg (1947)
Movie reviewer Leonard Maltin (1950)
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"Parents spend the first part of a child's life getting him to walk and talk, and the rest of his childhood getting him to sit down and shut up."