1847

Donner Party rescued from the Sierra Nevada Mountains

Born on This Day

Carson McCullers

Carson McCullers

1917 - 1967

Novelist and playwright who explored themes of loneliness and isolation in works like "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter."

Celebrities Visit SiriusXM - October 19, 2016

Smokey Robinson

1940 -

Singer-songwriter who sang as lead vocalist of the Miracles. Wrote Motown hits "Cruisin'" and "The Tracks of My Tears."

The Redford Center's Benefit Event

Amy Tan

1952 -

Author whose works like "The Joy Luck Club" explore themes of cultural identity and the immigrant experience.

1913

FEB

19

Pedro Lascuráin becomes president of Mexico for a grand total of 45 minutes—by intention—the shortest term to date for any president of any country.

Timeline

Also on This Day in History

Discover more of the major events, famous births, notable deaths and everything else history-making that happened on February 19th

1473

Polish astronomer Copernicus is born

On February 19, 1473, Nicolaus Copernicus is born in Torun, a city in north-central Poland on the Vistula River. The father of modern astronomy, he was the first modern European scientist to propose that Earth and other planets revolve around the sun. Copernicus was born into a family of well-to-do merchants, and after his father’s […]

1777

Congress overlooks Benedict Arnold for promotion

On February 19, 1777, the Continental Congress votes to promote Thomas Mifflin, Arthur St. Clair, William Alexander, Lord Stirling, Adam Stephen and Benjamin Lincoln to the rank of major general. Although the promotions were intended in part to balance the number of generals from each state, Brigadier General Benedict Arnold felt slighted that five junior […]

Benedict Arnold

1807

Aaron Burr arrested for alleged treason

Aaron Burr, a former U.S. vice president, is arrested in Alabama on charges of plotting to annex Spanish territory in Louisiana and Mexico to be used toward the establishment of an independent republic. In November 1800, in an election conducted before presidential and vice-presidential candidates shared a single ticket, Thomas Jefferson and his running mate, […]

1878

Thomas Edison patents the phonograph

On February 19, 1878, Thomas Edison is awarded U.S. Patent No. 200,521 for his invention—the phonograph. The technology that made the modern music business possible came into existence in the New Jersey laboratory where Edison created the first device to both record sound and play it back. Edison’s invention came about as spin-off from his […]

1942

FDR orders Japanese Americans into internment camps

On February 19, 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs Executive Order 9066, initiating a controversial World War II policy with lasting consequences for Japanese Americans. The document ordered the forced removal of resident “enemy aliens” from parts of the West vaguely identified as military areas. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor by the Japanese in […]

This Day In History: FDR orders Japanese Americans into internment camps, February 19, 1942

1945

U.S. Marines invade Iwo Jima

Operation Detachment, the U.S. Marines’ invasion of Iwo Jima, is launched. Iwo Jima was a barren Pacific island guarded by Japanese artillery, but to American military minds, it was prime real estate on which to build airfields to launch bombing raids against Japan, only 660 miles away. The Americans began applying pressure to the Japanese […]

1963

“The Feminine Mystique” by Betty Friedan is published

On February 19, 1963, Betty Friedan’s book The Feminine Mystique is published, shaking the ground beneath an American society rooted in a myth of pleasant domesticity and supported by the physical and emotional labor of women. Friedan may not have been the typical housewife—she had been involved in radical politics from a young age and […]

1970

Chicago Seven acquitted of conspiracy charges

The Chicago Seven (formerly the Chicago Eight—one defendant, Bobby Seale, was being tried separately) are acquitted of riot conspiracy charges, but found guilty of inciting riot. The eight antiwar activists were charged with the responsibility for the violent demonstrations at the August 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago. The defendants included David Dellinger of the […]

1981

United States calls situation in El Salvador “a communist plot”

The U.S. government releases a report detailing how the “insurgency in El Salvador has been progressively transformed into a textbook case of indirect armed aggression by communist powers.” The report was another step indicating that the new administration of Ronald Reagan was prepared to take strong measures against what it perceived to be the communist […]

1992

John Singleton, 24, becomes first Black director nominated for an Oscar

On February 19, 1992, 24-year-old recent film school graduate John Singleton becomes the youngest and first Black film director nominated for an Academy Award for his movie, Boyz n the Hood. The poignant coming-of-age drama set in gang-ridden South Central Los Angeles brought inner-city realities to the screen in a way not seen in Hollywood […]

2010

Tiger Woods apologizes for extramarital affairs

On February 19, 2010, professional golfer Tiger Woods gives a televised news conference in which he apologizes for his marital infidelities and admits to “selfish” and “foolish” behavior. The 34-year-old Woods, one of the greatest players in the history of golf as well as one of the world’s highest-paid athletes, read a scripted statement at […]

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