Today in 1805, Lewis and Clark reached the Pacific Ocean.
Today in 1837, Mount Holyoke Seminary in Massachusetts – the first American college for women – opened.
Today in 1864, Abraham Lincoln was elected to his second term as American President.
Today in 1889, Montana became the 41st state of the Union.
Today in 1895, German physicist Wilhelm Röntgen produced and detected electromagnetic radiation in a wavelength range. Today, this is known as X-rays or Röntgen rays.
Today in 1960, John F. Kennedy defeated Richard Nixon in the race for President of the United States.
Today in 1962, Lucille Ball bought out ex-husband Desi Arnaz's stake in Desilu Studios for more than two-million dollars. The deal made her the highest-ranking woman television executive in Hollywood.
Today in 1970, New Orleans Saints kicker Tom Dempsey booted an NFL record 63-yard field goal to beat the Detroit Lions 19-17.
Today in 1988, Vice President George Bush defeated Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis to win the presidential election. Since leaving office, Dukakis has served on the board of directors for Amtrak and has taught political science at Northeastern University and UCLA.
Today in 1994, California voters approved Proposition 187, designed to deny education and social services and non-emergency health care to illegal aliens.
Today in 1999, President Clinton participated in a "virtual town hall meeting" on the Internet, answering questions from pre-screened online users. Organizers expected about 15-thousand people to log – more than double actually clicked in.
Today in 2014, President Obama authorized the deployment of 1500 additional troops to help train and advise Iraqi and Kurdish forces fighting Islamic State militants.
Today in 2016, Republican Donald Trump was elected President of the United States of America, defeating Democrat Hillary Clinton.
Today in 2018, the deadliest fire in Californian history – the Camp Fire – which started at Plumas National Forest, tripled as it spread in Butte County destroying town of Paradise, and more than 13-thousand buildings. At least 88 were killed.