On April 18th...

1025 Boleslaw Chrobry was crowned in Gniezno, becoming the first King of Poland.

1480 Infamous poisoner Lucrezia Borgia was born.

1506 The cornerstone of the current St. Peter's Basilica was laid.

1738 The Royal Academy of History was founded in Madrid, Spain.

1775 Paul Revere began his famous ride.

1797 France and Astria signed a ceasefire.

1802 Poet/naturalist Erasmus Darwin died.

1835 William Lamb, Lord Melbourne, formed a British government.

1848 U.S. forces led by General Winfield Scott defeated the Mexican army of General Antonio L. de Santa Anna at Cerro Gordo.

1853 American politician William R. King died.

1857 Defense attorney Clarence Darrow was born.

1858 Dondo Keshav Karve, Indian social reformer and educator, was born.

1861 The Battle of Harpers Ferry (Virginia) was fought.

1864 Journalist and author Richard Harding Davis was born.

1880 A tornado killed 99 persons and injured 100 in Marshfield, Missouri.

1881 Billy the Kid escaped from the Lincoln County Jail in Mesilla, New Mexico.

1888 American politician Roscoe Conkling died.

1902 Denmark became the first country to adopt fingerprinting as a method for identifying criminals.

1906 San Francisco was struck by a massive earthquake.

1908 Tommy Burns knocked out Jewy Smith in five rounds for the heavyweight boxing title.

1912 The Cunard liner RMS Carpathia brought 705 survivors from the RMS Titanic to New York City, New York.
1912 Turkey closed the Dardanelles Straits after an Italian naval bombardment of the coastline.

1915 French pilot Roland Garros was shot down and glided to a landing on the German side of the lines.

1917 Richard Olney, U.S. Attorney General and Secretary of State, died.

1918 Cleveland center fielder Tris Speaker turned an unassisted double play.

1921 Junior Achievement was incorporated in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
1921 Actress Barbara Hale was born.

1923 Poland annexed Central Lithuania.

1924 The first crossword puzzle book was published by Simon & Schuster.

1927 Chiang Kai-shek formed an anti-government in China.

1934 The first "Washateria" (laundromat) opened, in Fort Worth, Texas.
1934 Actor James Drury was born.

1936 A Pan Am Clipper began regular passenger flights from San Francisco, California, to Honolulu, Hawaii.

1942 U.S. General James Doolittle led carrier-based planes in a raid on Tokyo.
1942 The U.S. armed forces newspaper Stars & Stripes began publication.
1942 The Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Detroit Red Wings for the Stanley Cup.

1943 Isaroku Yamamato, commander of the Japanese Navy, died.

1945 Newspaper columnist Ernie Pyle was killed by Japanese machine gun fire.

1946 Jackie Robinson debuted as a second baseman for the Montreal Royals.
1946 The League of Nations dissolved.
1946 The United States recognized Marshal Tito's Yugoslavian government.
1946 Actress Hayley Mills was born.

1947 Actress Dorothy Lyman was born.
1947 Actor James Wood was born.

1948 The International Court of Justice opened at The Hague, Netherlands.

1949 The Republic of Ireland withdrew from the British Commonwealth.
1949 Auto racer Geoff Bodine was born.

1951 The European Steel and Coal Community was formed.

1953 Actor Rick Moranis was born.

1955 Physicist Albert Einstein died.

1956 Egypt and Israel agreed to a cease fire.
1956 Actress Meloday Thomas Scott was born.

1958 Grantley H. Adams took office as the first Prime Minister of the West Indies Federation.

1959 The Montreal Canadiens defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs for the Stanley Cup.

1961 Actress Jane Leeves was born.

1962 The Boston Celtics defeated the Los Angeles Lakers for the NBA Championship.
1962 Ventroloquist Jeff Dunham was born.

1963 Dr. James Campbell performed the first human nerve transplant.
1963 The Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Detroit Red Wings for the Stanley Cup.
1963 Actor Eric McCormack was born.
1963 Talk show host Conan O'Brien was born.

1964 Sandy Koufax became the first to strike out the side on 9 pitches.

1966 Bill Russell became the first black coach in NBA history, of the Boston Celtics.

1968 The London Bridge was sold to a U.S. oil company.

1974 The Red Brigade kidnapped Italian Attorney General Mario Sossi.

1976 Actress Melissa Joan Hart was born.

1980 Zimbabwe declared its independence from the United Kingdom.

1982 The Canada Constitution Act replaced the British North America Act.

1983 A suicide bomber killed 63 persons at the U.S. Embassy in Beirut, Lebanon.
1983 Baseball player Miguel Cabrera was born.

1984 Joan Benoit set a new world record for women in the marathon, 2:22:43.

1990 A bankruptcy court forced Frank Lorenzo to give up ownership of Eastern Airlines.
1990 The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that states could make it a crime to possess or look at child pornography, even in one's home.

1995 Joe Montana announced his retirement from football.
1995 The Houston Post ceased publication.
1995 Arturo Frondizi, former President of Argentina, died.

1996 At least 106 civilians were killed when Israeli Defense Forces accidentally shelled the United Nations compound at Quana, Lebanon.

1997 Folk singer-songwriter Laura Nyro died.

1998 American politician Terry Sanford died.

1999 Wayne Gretzky played his last game in the National Hockey League.

2002 Explorer Thor Heyerdahl died.

2009 American politician Bill Orton died.

2012 Television personality Dick Clark died.

2013 Two earth-like planets were discovered orbiting Kepler-62.
2013 27 people were killed and 65 injured in a cafe bombing in Baghdad, Iraq.

2014 An avalance killed 12 Nepalese climbers on Mount Everest.

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This page was last updated on January 16, 2018.