Lindergh's Baby

1932

Kidnapped Lindbergh baby found dead

Born on This Day

Florence Nightingale

Florence Nightingale

1820 - 1910

British reformer who revolutionized nursing in the 19th century, establishing hygiene and patient care practices that are still in use.

"Jersey Girl" - New York Premiere - Outside Arrivals

George Carlin

1937 - 2008

Stand-up comedian known for his sharp observational humor and dark satire of politics and U.S. culture.

Dior Men's Spring/Summer 2023 Collection

Tony Hawk

1968 -

Skateboarder who kickflipped the sport into the mainstream. Created more than 80 tricks. Star of billion-dollar video game franchise.

1896

MAY

12

New York City passes the nation's first anti-spitting law to combat tuberculosis, imposing fines and jail time. By 1910, more than 2,500 arrests are made—despite backlash from protesters, yep, spitting on anti-spitting signs.

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 May 12th

1780

Americans suffer worst defeat of revolution at Charleston

After a siege that began on April 2, 1780, Americans suffer their worst defeat of the revolution on May 12, 1780, with the unconditional surrender of Major General Benjamin Lincoln to British Lieutenant General Sir Henry Clinton and his army of 10,000 at Charleston, South Carolina. With the victory, the British captured more than 3,000 […]

1903

Teddy Roosevelt’s trip to San Francisco is captured on film

On May 12, 1903, President Theodore Roosevelt’s trip to San Francisco is captured on moving-picture film, making him one of the first presidents to have an official activity recorded in that medium. A cameraman named H.J. Miles filmed the president while riding in a parade in his honor. The resulting short move was titled The […]

1907

Celebrated actress Katharine Hepburn is born

On May 12, 1907, Katharine Hepburn, who due to her performances in such films as The Philadelphia Story and On Golden Pond, will become one of the most celebrated actresses of the 20th century, is born in Hartford, Connecticut. The daughter of New England intellectuals who stressed rigorous exercise and independent thinking, Hepburn studied at […]

1949

Soviet Union lifts its 11-month blockade against West Berlin

On May 12, 1949, an early crisis of the Cold War comes to an end when the Soviet Union lifts its 11-month blockade against West Berlin. The blockade had been broken by a massive U.S.-British airlift of vital supplies to West Berlin’s two million citizens. At the end of World War II, Germany was divided […]

HISTORY: Berlin Blockade

1957

Ferrari race car crashes at Mille Miglia race, killing 11

On May 12, 1957, during the famed Mille Miglia motorsport endurance race in Italy, Ferrari driver Alfonso de Portago dies in a horrific crash. The accident, which killed the 28-year-old Spaniard, his copilot Edmund Nelson and nine spectators, leads to the discontinuation of the Mille Miglia, an annual race established in 1927. Alfonso de Portago […]

1957

Race car driver A.J. Foyt gets first pro victory

On May 12, 1957, race car driver A.J. Foyt (1935- ) scores his first professional victory, in a U.S. Automobile Club (USAC) midget car race in Kansas City, Missouri. A tough-as-nails Texan, Anthony Joseph Foyt, Jr. raced midget cars—smaller vehicles designed to be driven in races of shorter distances—and stock cars before moving up to […]

1961

Lyndon B. Johnson visits South Vietnam

Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson meets with South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem in Saigon during his tour of Asian countries. Calling Diem the “Churchill of Asia,” he encouraged the South Vietnamese president to view himself as indispensable to the United States and promised additional military aid to assist his government in fighting the communists. […]

1963

Bob Dylan walks out on “The Ed Sullivan Show”

On May 12, 1963, the young and unknown Bob Dylan walked off the set of “The Ed Sullivan Show,” the country’s highest-rated variety TV show, after network censors rejected the song he planned on performing. By the end of that summer, Bob Dylan would be known to millions who watched or witnessed his performances at […]

1965

Rolling Stones record “Satisfaction,” which came to Keith Richards in his sleep

On May 12, 1965, the Rolling Stones finish the studio recording of “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction,” their first major hit. The song, which catapulted the ascendant British blues-rock group to global fame, had an unusual origin: Less than a week earlier, during the early morning hours, the band’s bleary-eyed lead guitarist Keith Richards had bolted […]

1975

American freighter ship Mayaguez seized by Cambodian navy

The American freighter Mayaguez is captured by communist government forces in Cambodia, setting off an international incident. The U.S. response to the affair indicated that the wounds of the Vietnam War still ran deep. On May 12, 1975, the U.S. freighter Mayaguez and its 39-man crew was captured by gunboats of the Cambodian navy. Cambodia […]

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