Today in 1861, the Civil War began when Confederate troops fired on the Union's Fort Sumter in South Carolina.
Today in 1918, Daylight-Saving Time was signed into law.
Today in 1945, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt died of a cerebral hemorrhage in Warm Springs, Georgia, at the age of 63. He was succeeded by Vice President Harry S. Truman.
Today in 1955, the Salk vaccine against polio was declared safe and effective.
Today in 1961, the Soviets successfully launched the first human into space and also the first human to orbit the earth in a spacecraft.
Today in 1985, Senator Jake Garn of Utah became the first senator to fly in space as the shuttle Discovery lifted off.
Today in 1985, federal inspectors declared that four animals of the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus were not unicorns, as the circus said, but goats with horns that had been surgically implanted.
Today in 1988, Harvard University won a patent for a genetically altered mouse. It was the first patent for a life form.
Today in 2009, the U.S. Navy rescued captain Richard Phillips, killing three pirates and injuring a fourth. The story became the basis of the Tom Hanks film, "Captain Phillips."
Today in 2014, the new drug ABT-450 was announced as a functional cure for Hepatitis C.
Today in 2015, 79th Masters Golf Tournament: Jordan Spieth won, shooting a 270.
Today in 2015, Hillary Clinton announced plans to run for the Democratic presidential nomination for the second time.
Today in 2016, Breakthrough Starshot: scientists and internet entrepreneurs, including Yuri Milner, Stephen Hawking and Mark Zuckerburg, announced an interstellar project to send robot spacecraft to Alpha Centauri.
Today in 2020, a huge storm system produced more than 140 tornadoes in ten states, from Texas to South Carolina killing 32 and causing 250 people to be injured across six states.