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What happened in history on this day: February 18?
On February 18 in ...
- 1804 - First US land-grant college is chartered, Ohio University in Athens, Ohio.
- 1804 - New Jersey Legislature charters the first bank in the state.
- 1815 - Treaty of peace between USA and Great Britain proclaimed.
- 1834 - First US labor newspaper, The Man, is published, in New York City, New York.
- 1841 - First continuous filibuster in US Senate begins, lasting until March 11.
- 1849 - First regular steamboat service to San Francisco, California starts: gold rush prospectors from east coast.
- 1864 - Central Pacific Railroad Company completes section of track from Sacramentto to Roseville, California.
- 1865 - Battle of Fort Moultrie, South Carolina; occupied by Federals.
- 1865 - Evacuation of Charleston, South Carolina; USA Army General Tecumseh Sherman's troops burn the city.
- 1865 - US troops force Confederates to abandon Fort Anderson, North Carolina.
- 1896 - Cave of Winds at Niagara Falls goes almost dry for first time in 50 years.
- 1899 - San Francisco named as a port of dispatch for Army transports.
- 1924 - US Minister of Marine Edwin Denby ends term due to Teapot Dome-scandal.
- 1927 - US and Canada begin diplomatic relations.
- 1939 - Golden Gate International Exposition opens on Treasure Island, San Francisco, California.
- 1947 - 24 die in a train crash in Gallitzin, Pennsylvania.
- 1952 - In Los Angeles, California, the 4th Annual Emmy Awards are presented, hosted by Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz.
- Best Actor: Sid Caesar
- Best Actress: Imogene Coca
- Best Comedian or Comedienne: Red Skelton
- Best Comedy Show: The Red Skelton Show
- Best Dramatic Show: Robert Montgomery Presents
- Best Variety Show: Your Show of Shows
- Most Outstanding Personality: Bishop Fulton J. Sheen.
- 1953 - Premiere of first 3-D feature film - Bwana Devil (New York City, New York).
- 1968 - 10,000 demonstrators against US in Vietnam War in West Berlin.
- 1970 - US President Richard Nixon launches "Nixon-doctrine".
- 1972 - California Supreme Court abolishes death penalty.
- 1974 - NASA launches Italian satellite San Marcos C-2 (235/843 km).
- 1974 - US ambassador to India Daniel Moynihan presents US$2,046,700,000 check.
- 1979 - -52 degrees F (-47 degrees C), Old Forge, New York (state record).
- 1983 - Thirteen people are killed in an attempted robbery in Seattle, Washington.
- 1988 - Anthony M Kennedy sworn in as US Supreme Court Justice.
- 1992 - In New Hampshire, U.S. President George H.W. Bush defeats Pat Buchanan in the Republican primary; Paul Tsongas leads the Democratic candidates.
- 1995 - Disney releases the film The Lion King on videocassette in the US, for US$26.99.
- 1998 - Two white separatists are arrested in Nevada, accused of plotting biological warfare on New York City subways.
- 2001 - NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt is killed instantly in a crash on the last lap of the Daytona 500 while his DEI cars driven by his son, Dale Earnhardt Junior, and Michael Waltrip, finish second and first, respectively.
- 2001 - FBI agent Robert Hanssen is arrested and charged with spying for Russia for 15 years.
- 2008 - Europe's major powers and the United States recognize the independence of Kosovo.
- 2008 - Space shuttle Atlantis departs from the International Space Station, after delivering a European laboratory.
- 2010 - A single-engine Piper Cherokee plane crashes into a seven-storey office building in Austin, Texas, killing pilot Joseph Andrew Stack and one person in the building. The pilot left a long suicide note expressing his anger at federal tax authorities.
- 2020 - The Boy Scouts of America files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
- 2021 - NASA's Mars 2020 mission (containing the Perseverance rover and Ingenuity helicopter drone) lands on Mars at Jezero Crater, after seven months of travel.
Births on February 18
- 1884 - Birth of Burt Mustin in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; actor (All in the Family, Andy Griffith Show).
- 1890 - Birth of Adolphe Menjou in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; actor (Front Page, A Star is Born).
- 1890 - Birth of Edward Arnold in New York City, New York, USA; actor (Mr Smith Goes to Washington).
- 1891 - Birth of Chester Clute in New Jersey, USA; actor (Niagra Falls).
- 1907 - Birth of Billy Dewolfe in Wollaston, Massachusetts, USA; actor (Good Morning World).
- 1913 - Birth of Dane Clark in Brooklyn, New York, USA; actor (Wire Service, Bold Venture, Perry Mason).
- 1914 - Birth of Pee Wee King in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; country singer ("Pee Wee King Song").
- 1920 - Birth of Bill Cullen in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; TV game show host (over 20 different games).
- 1920 - Birth of Volodymyr Palahniuk AKA Jack Palance AKA Jack Brazzo AKA Walter Palance in Lattimer, Pennsylvania, USA; actor (City Slickers).
- 1922 - Birth of Allan Melvin in Kansas City, Missouri, USA; actor (Phil Silvers Show, Barney - All in the Family).
- 1922 - Birth of Helen Gurley Brown in Portland, Maine, USA; author/publisher (Cosmopolitan).
- 1923 - Birth of Allan Melvin in Kansas City, Missouri, USA; actor (The Brady Bunch, Barney - All in Family).
- 1925 - Birth of George Kennedy in New York City, New York, USA; actor (Cool Hand Luke, Airport, Blue Knight).
- 1927 - Birth of John W Warner; American politician (Senator-Republican-Virginia, 1979-), married Elizabeth Taylor.
- 1930 - Birth of Theodore C Freeman in Haverford, Pennsylvania, USA; captain US Air Force/astronaut.
- 1931 - Birth of Toni Morrison in Ohio, USA; American novelist (Tar Baby, Beloved, Song of Solomon), Nobel Prize laureate.
- 1941 - Birth of David Blue [Cohen] in Providence, Rhode Island, USA; rocker (Cupid's Arrow).
- 1945 - Birth of Judy Rankin in Saint Louis, Missouri, USA; LPGA golfer (Vare Trophy 1976-77).
- 1945 - Birth of Michael Nader in Saint Louis, Missouri, USA; actor (Peter - Gidget, Dex Dexter - Dynasty, All My Children).
- 1947 - Birth of Dennis De Young in Chicago, Illinois, USA; vocalist (Styx - "Grand Illusion", "It's Raining Again").
- 1949 - Birth of Cybill Shepherd in Memphis, Tennessee, USA; actress (Moonlighting, Last Picture Show).
- 1952 - Birth of Juice Newton [Judy Cohen] in Virginia, USA; singer ("Angel of the Morning").
- 1954 - Birth of John Travolta in Englewood, New Jersey, USA; actor (Welcome Back Kotter, Saturday Night Fever, Grease, Pulp Fiction).
- 1955 - Birth of Hunt Block in Washington, DC, USA; actor (Peter - Knots Landing, Ben Warren - Guiding Light).
- 1957 - Birth of Vanna White [Rosich] in North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, USA; TV game show hostess (Wheel of Fortune).
- 1962 - Birth of Julie Strain in Concord, California, USA; actress (Witchcraft IV).
- 1964 - Birth of Kevin Tapani in Des Moines, Iowa, USA; pitcher (Chicago White Sox, Minnesota Twin).
- 1964 - Birth of Lisa Elaine Comshaw in Akron, Ohio, USA; actress (Scanner Cop, Lukas' Child).
- 1964 - Birth of Matt Dillon in New Rochelle, New York, USA; actor (Flamingo Kid, Tex, Little Darlings, Kansas).
- 1967 - Birth of John Valentin in Mineola, New York, USA; infielder (Boston Red Sox).
- 1967 - Birth of Matt Turner; US baseball pitcher (Florida Marlins).
- 1968 - Birth of Molly Ringwald in Roseville, California, USA; actress (Sixteen Candles, Pretty in Pink).
- 1970 - Birth of Tyler Green; US baseball pitcher (Philadelphia Phillies).
- 1972 - Birth of Shani Lynn Nielsen in New Albany, Indiana, USA; Miss Indiana-America (1996-Top 10).
- 1975 - Birth of Scott Tucker in Birmingham, Alabama, USA; 400 metre/800 metre freestyle relay (Olympics-1996).
- 1976 - Birth of Chanda Rubin in Lafayette, Louisiana; tennis star (1996 Australian Open doubles).
Deaths on February 18
- 1917 - Death of Charles Barber; US Mint Chief Engraver (1879-1917).
- 1925 - James Lane Allen, American writer (Choir Invisible), dies at age 75.
- 1973 - Franc Costello, US gangster, dies at age 82.
- 1975 - Raymond Moley, US advisor to President Roosevelt "Brain Trust", dies at age 88.
- 1978 - Death of Maggie McNamara at age 49, American actress (Three Coins in a Fountain, Cardinal) (born 1928).
- 1981 - Death of John Knudsen Northrop, American airplane manufacturer (born 1895).
- 1993 - Edward S "Ted" Haworth, US set designer (Sayonara, Marty), dies at age 76.
- 1993 - Death of Kerry Von Erich, American professional wrestler (suicide) (born 1960).
- 1995 - Calder Willingham, US scriptwriter (End as a Man), dies at age 72.
- 1995 - John Rhea "Yank" Lawson, US jazz trumpeteer (Stormy weather), dies at age 83.
- 1998 - Death of Harry Caray, American television and radio broadcaster (Chicago Cubs), at age 77 (born 1917).
- 1999 - Death of Noam Pitlik at age 66 from lung cancer; actor (I'm Dickens He's Fenster, Ben Casey, Bob Newhart, Sanford and Son), producer (Barney Miller, 9 to 5).
- 2001 - NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt is killed instantly in a crash on the last lap of the Daytona 500 while his DEI cars driven by his son, Dale Earnhardt Junior, and Michael Waltrip, finish second and first, respectively.
- 2022 - Death of Lindsey Pearlman, found dead at age 43 in Hollywood, California, USA; actor (Empire TV show, General Hospital TV show).
- 2023 - Death of Barbara Bosson at age 83 in Los Angeles, California, USA; actor (Hill Street Blues TV show).
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