Historical Events and Current Affairs on February 21

1173: Pope Alexander III canonizes Thomas Becket Absp of Canterbury
1431: England begins trial against Joan of Arc
1564: Philip II routes cardinal Granvelle to Franche-Comt‚
1574: Spanish garrison of Middelburg Neth surrenders
1583: Groningen Neth begins using Gregorian calendar
1598: Boris Godunov crowned tsar
1613: Michael Romanov, son of Patriarch of Moscow, elected Russian tsar
1673: Michiel A de Ruyter appointed lt-admiral-general of Dutch fleet
1675: Prince Willem III appointed viceroy of Gelderland
1764: John Wilkes thrown out of Engl House of Commons for "Essay on Women"
1777: de Graaff for saluting US flag
1777: English ambassador Joseph Yorke demands dismissal of Governor John
1782: US congress resolves establishment of a US mint
1792: Congress passes Pres Succession Act
1795: Freedom of worship established in France under constitution
1797: Trinidad, West Indies surrenders to British
1804: 1st locomotive, Richard Trevithick's, runs for 1st time, in Wales
1828: 1st American Indian newspaper in US, "Cherokee Phoenix," published
1842: 1st known sewing machine patented in US, John Greenough, Wash DC
1846: 1st US woman telegrapher, Sarah G Bagley, Lowell, Mass
1853: US authorizes minting of $3 gold pieces
1857: Congress outlaws foreign currency as legal tender in US
1857: US issues flying eagle cents
1858: Edwin T Holmes installs 1st electric burglar alarm (Boston, Mass)
1861: Navaho indians elect Herrero Grande as chief
1862: Confederate Constitution & presidency are declared permanent
1862: Texas Rangers win Confederate victory at Battle of Val Verde, NM
1864: -22] Battle at Okolona, Mississippi
1864: 1st US Catholic parish church for blacks dedicated, Baltimore
1866: Lucy B Hobbs (Taylor) becomes 1st US woman to earn a DDS degree
1874: Benjamin Disraeli replaces William Gladstone as English premier
1874: Oakland Daily Tribune begins publication
1878: 1st telephone book issued, 50 subscribers (New Harbor, Connecticut)
1882: NYC's 24 hour race begins, winner with most mileage in 24 hours
1883: 2nd French government of Ferry begins
1885: Washington Monument dedicated (Wash DC)
1887: 1st US bacteriology laboratory opens (Brooklyn)
1887: Oregon becomes 1st US state to make Labor Day a holiday
1895: NC Legislature, adjourns for day to mark death of Frederick Douglass
1902: Dr Harvey Cushing, 1st US brain surgeon, does his 1st brain operation
1903: Cornerstone laid for US army war college, Washington, DC
1904: National Ski Association forms in Ishpeming Mich
1907: SS Berlin sinks off Hoek van Holland Neth (142 dead)
1909: John Galsworthy's "Strife," premieres in London
1910: John Galsworthy's "Justice," premieres in London
1911: Gustav Mahler conducts his last concerto (Berceuse ‚l‚gique)
1914: White Wolf troops attack Zhanjiang China
1915: 20th Russian Army corps surrenders
1915: World's Fair in SF opens
1916: Battle of Verdun in WW I begins (1 million casualties)
1917: British Mendi sinks off Isle of Wight, 627 die
1917: Train near Chirurcha Romania catches fire & explodes; 100s die
1918: Australians chase Turkish troop out of Jericho, Dutch Palestine
1919: German National Meeting accepts Anschluss: incorporation of Austria
1919: Revolutionary strike in Barcelona
1920: Darius Milhaud & Jean Cocteau's ballet, premieres in Paris
1922: Airship Rome explodes at Hampton Roads Virginia; 34 die
1922: Great Britain grants Egypt independence
1922: WHK-AM in Cleveland OH begins radio transmissions
1923: Andr‚ Charlot's musical "Rats," premieres in London
1925: 1st issue of "New Yorker" magazine published
1925: Mass meeting of SPD's Reichsbanner Black-Red-Gold in Magdeburg
1927: Franz Lehr's opera "Zarewitsch," premieres
1930: Marc Connelly's "Green Pastures," premieres in NYC
1931: Alka Seltzer introduced
1931: Chicago White Sox & NY Giants play 1st exhibition night game
1932: Andr‚ Tardieu becomes premier of France
1932: Camera exposure meter patented, WN Goodwin
1934: Nicaraguan patriot Augusto Cesar Sandino assassinated by Natl Guard
1939: Belgian govt of Pierlot forms
1941: US Senate accepts Omar Bradley's demotion to brig-general
1942: US female Figure Skating championship won by Jane Vaughn
1942: US male Figure Skating championship won by Bobby Specht
1943: Dutch RC bishops protest against persecution of Jews
1943: German offensive at Western Dorsalgebergte Tunisia
1944: "War As It Happens" news show premieres on NBC TV (NYC only)
1945: Archbishop De Jong calls for help with war casualties
1945: British Army captures Goch
1945: US 10th Armour division overthrows Orscholz line
1946: Anti-British demonstrations in Egypt
1947: 1st broadcast of 1st US TV soap opera "A Woman to Remember"
1947: 1st instant developing camera demonstrated in NYC, by E H Land
1947: Whipper Billy Watson beats Bill Longson, to become wrestling champ
1950: WOI TV channel 5 in Ames-Des Moines, IA (ABC/PBS) begins broadcasting
1951: SC House urges "Shoeless Joe" Jackson be reinstated
1952: Bangladesh Martyrs Day (martyrs of Bengali Language Movement)
1952: Dick Button performs 1st figure skating triple jump in competition
1952: Liz Taylor's 2nd marriage (Michael Wilding)
1953: "Maggie" closes at National Theater NYC after 5 performances
1953: F Crick & J Watson discover structure of DNA-molecule
1953: Longest collegiate basketball game (6 OTs) Niagara beats Siena 88-81
1957: Dodgers (Ft Worth) & Cubs (LA) "trade" minor league franchises
1958: "Portotino" opens at Adelphi Theater NYC for 3 performances
1958: Egypt-Syria as UAR elect Nasser president (99.9% vote)
1961: Friedrich Drrenmatt's "Die Physiker," premieres in Zrich
1961: Gabon adopts constitution
1961: Mercury-Atlas 2 reentry Test reaches 172 km
1962: Minister De Pous confirms natural gas reserves in Groningen Neth
1963: US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1964: UK flies 24,000 rolls of Beatle wallpaper to US
1966: Indonesia's president Sukarno fires General Nasution
1968: 150,000 demonstrate against leftist students in West-Berlin
1968: Baseball announces a minimum annual salary of $10,000
1969: 1st launching of heavy N-1 rocket at Baikonur Kazachstan (explodes)
1969: Ted Williams signs 5-year contract to manage Wash Senators
1970: Jackson 5 make TV debut on "American Bandstand"
1970: Pathet Lao conquerors Xieng Khuang & Muong Suy
1971: Series of tornadoes cuts through Miss & La killing 117
1972: Michael Weller's "Moonchildren," premieres in NYC
1972: Richard Nixon becomes 1st US president to visit China
1973: Chicago Black Hawks, record 262nd NHL game without being shut-out
1973: Israeli fighters shoot Libyan aircraft down, killing 108
1974: Israeli forces leave western Suez
1974: Silver hits record $5.96« an ounce in London
1974: Yugoslavia adopts constitution
1975: John Lennon releases "Rock 'n' Roll" album
1975: John Mitchell, HR Haldeman & John D Ehrlichman sentenced to 2«-8 yrs
1976: "Rockabye Hamlet" closes at Minskoff Theater NYC after 7 perfs
1976: Cardinal Willebrands installed as archbishop of Utrecht
1977: 74 Unification Church couples wed in NYC
1979: 2 Iowa girls HS basketball teams play 4 scoreless quarters
1979: game was won 4-2 in 4th overtime period
1979: Japan launches Hakucho x-ray satellite & Corsa-B (550/580 km)
1980: Eric Heiden skates Olympic record 1500m in 1:55.44
1980: Hanni Wenzel is 1st Liechtensteiner to win Olymp gold (giant slalom)
1981: "Yorkshire Ripper" Peter Sutcliffe, murderer of 13 women, captured
1981: Charles Rocket clearly says "fuck" on Saturday Night Live
1981: Japan launches Hinotori satellite to study solar flares (580/640 k)
1981: NASA launches Comstar D-4
1982: "Ain't Misbehavin'" closes at Longacre Theater NYC after 1604 perfs
1982: "Little Me" closes at Eugene O'Neill Theater NYC after 36 performances
1982: #2939 Coconino & #4027 Mitton
1983: Donald Davis runs 1 mile backwards in 6 m 7.1 s
1983: NBA San Diego Clippers begin a 29 game road losing streak
1985: Evert van Benthem wins 13th Friese 11 city skateing race
1985: Largest NBA crowd to date 44,970 (Atlanta at Detroit)
1985: Tim Raines is awarded a $12 million salary for 1985 by arbitrator
1986: AIDS patient Ryan White returns to classes at Western Middle School
1987: Syrian army marches into Beirut
1988: Actor Dudley Moore marries actress Brogan Lane
1988: Gustafson skates world record 10km (13:48.20)
1988: Televangelist Jimmy Swaggert confesses his sins to his congregation
1989: Pete Rose meets with Commissioner Ueberroth to discuss his gambling
1989: US bust Chinese ring, capture record 820 lbs heroin ($1B st value)
1989: US capture record 820 lbs of heroin ($1 B street value)[dup]
1990: 32nd Grammy Awards: Wind Beneath My Wings, Nick of Time wins
1991: "Lost in Yonkers" opens at Richard Rodgers Theater NYC for 780 perfs
1991: Neil Simon's "Lost in Yonkers," premieres in NYC
1991: US calls the plan unacceptable
1991: USSR announces Iraq agrees to a proposal to end Persian Gulf War
1992: Kristi Yamaguchi of US wins Olympic gold medal in women's fig skating
1993: 43rd NBA All-Star Game: West beats East 135-132 (OT) at Salt Lake City
1993: Sergei Bubka pole vaults world record indoor (6.15 m)
1995: CFL's Sacramento Gold Miners become San Antonio Texans
1995: RAF-pilot Jo Salter is 1st woman to fly in a tornado
1996: Soyuz TM-23, launched into orbit
1997: "Empire Strikes Back, special edition," premieres
1997: STS 82 (Discovery 22) lands

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