In 1736, James Watt, the inventor of the steam engine, was born in Scotland.
In 1807, Robert E. Lee, the commander-in-chief of the Confederate armies, was born in Stratford, Va.
In 1809, author Edgar Allan Poe was born in Boston.
In 1825, Ezra Daggett and his nephew, Thomas Kensett, obtained a patent for their process of storing food in tin cans.
In 1937, millionaire Howard Hughes set a transcontinental air record by flying his monoplane from Los Angles to Newark, N.J., in 7 hours, 28 minutes and 25 seconds.
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Actress Jean Stapleton (1922)
Actor Fritz Weaver (1925)
PBS newsman Robert MacNeil (1930)
Movie director Richard Lester (1931)
Singer Phil Everly (1938)
Actress Shelley Fabares (1943)
Singer Dolly Parton (1945)
ABC newswoman Ann Compton (1946)
Actor Desi Arnaz Jr. (1952)
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"We think in generalities, but we live in detail."
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Alfred North Whitehead, British philosopher (1861-1947)