In 1547, England's King Henry VIII died; he was succeeded by his 9-year-old son, Edward VI.
In 1596, English navigator Sir Francis Drake died during a voyage and was buried at sea.
In 1871, France surrendered in the Franco-Prussian War.
In 1878, the first commercial telephone switchboard went into operation in New Haven, Conn.
In 1986, the space shuttle Challenger exploded 73 seconds after liftoff from Cape Canaveral, killing all seven crew members: flight commander Francis R. "Dick" Scobee; pilot Michael J. Smith; Ronald E. McNair; Ellison S. Onizuka; Judith A. Resnik; Gregory B. Jarvis; and New Hampshire school-teacher Christa McAuliffe.
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Author Susan Sontag (1933)
Actor Alan Alda (1936)
Actress Susan Howard (1943)
Actress-singer Barbi Benton (1950)
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"I touch the future - I teach."
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T-shirt slogan worn by teacher-astronaut Christa McAuliffe (1948-1986)