January 22, 1973: United States Legalizes Abortion
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January
- January 11, 1991: Congress Empowers Bush to Order Attack on Iraq
- January 16, 1991: Operation Desert Storm Ends
- January 20, 1981: Ronald Reagan Inaugurated as 40th U.S. President
- January 20, 1981: Hostages Released From U.S. Embassy in Iran
- January 20, 1961: John. F. Kennedy Inaugurated as 35th U.S. President
- January 22, 1973: United States Legalizes Abortion
- January 27, 1973: Vietnam War Ceasefire Signed
- January 28, 1986: Challenger Space Shuttle Explodes
February
- Black History Month
- February 1, 2003: Space Shuttle Columbia Disaster
- February 2, 1996: Gene Kelly Dies
- February 6, 1911: Birth of Ronald Reagan, 40th U.S. President
- February 7, 1964: Beatles First US Tour
- February 9, 1971 San Fernando Valley Earthquake
- February 25, 1986: Corazon Aquino Becomes President of the Philippines
- February 26, 1986: Ferdinand Marcos Arrives in Hawaii
- 2011 Oscar Nominees Historical Counterparts
March
- March 1, 1961: JFK Establishes Peace Corps Program
- March 11, 1971: Whitney M. Young Jr. Dies
- March 16, 1971: Former Republican Pres. Candidate Thomas Dewey Dies
- March 29, 1971: Charles Manson and Three Female Co-Defendants Convicted
- March 20, 1931: Las Vegas Legalizes Gambling
- March 29, 1971: Lt. Calley Found Guilty of My Lai Massacre
- March 30, 1981: Assasination Attempt on President Ronald Reagan
- March, 30 1986: Actor James Cagney Dies
April
- April 5, 1976: Howard Hughes Dies
- April 5, 1991: Former Senator John Tower Killed in Plane Crash
- April 9, 2003: Saddam Hussein Statue Falls
- April 9, 2005: Prince Charles Marries Camilla Parker Bowles
- April 11, 1961: Adolf Eichmann Trial Begins
- April 12, 1981: First U.S. Space Shuttle Launched
- April 12, 1981: Boxer Joe Louis Dies
- April 15-June 9, 1989: Tiananmen Square Protests
- April 17, 1961: US Invades Cuba (Bay of Pigs)
- April 19, 1995: Oklahoma City Bombing
- April 20, 2010: BP Oil Spill
- April 20, 2011: Former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich Retrial
- April 21, 1926: Queen Elizabeth II is Born
- April 21, 1971: Haitian Dictator Francois Duvalier Dies
- April 22, 1971: John Kerry Testifies at Congressional Hearing
- April 30, 1975: Fall of Saigon- Vietnam War Ends
May
- Commencement Addresses and Graduations
- May 1, 1931: Empire State Building Opens
- May 1, 2003: George W. Bush Declares "Mission Accomplished"
- May 1, 1966: Stokely Carmichael Becomes President of SNCC
- May 4, 1970: Kent State Shooting
- May 5, 1961: Alan Shepard Makes Suborbital Flight
- May 11, 1981: Bob Marley Dies
- May 13, 1961: Actor Gary Cooper Dies
- May 13, 1981- Pope John Paul II Shot in St. Peter's Square
- May 14, 1961: Civil Rights Freedom Riders Attacked in Alabama
- May 20, 1993: "Cheers" Finale
- May 21, 1881: The American Red Cross is Founded
- May 30, 2005: Natalee Holloway Disappears
June
- June 5, 1968: Robert F. Kennedy is Assassinated
- June 11, 2001: Timothy McVeigh Executed
- June 12, 1981: Major League Baseball Players Strike
- June 12, 1987: Reagan- "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall"
- June 13, 1994: Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman Murdered
- June 17, 1972: Watergate Scandal Arrests Made at DNC Offices
- June 18, 1983: Sally Ride Becomes First American Woman Astronaut
- June 20, 1975: "Jaws" is Released
- June 25, 2009: Michael Jackson Dies
- June 30, 1994: Tonya Harding Stripped of National Title
July
- July 1, 1991: Nelson Mandela Elected President of ANC
- July 2, 1964: The Civil Rights Act of 1964
- July 2, 1961: Ernest Hemingway Commits Suicide
- July 4, 1986: Statue of Liberty Reopens
- July 12-17, 1967: Newark, NJ Riots
- July 13, 2010: Yankees Owner George Steinbrenner Dies
- July 17, 1996: TWA Flight 800 Crashes in Atlantic
- July 21, 1969: First Man Walks on the Moon
- July 24, 2005: Lance Armstrong Wins 7th Tour de France
- July 25, 1956: Sinking of the Andrea Doria
- July 29, 1981: Prince Charles and Lady Diana Are Married
August
- August 1, 1966: University of Texas Massacre
- August 2, 1936: Berlin Olympics Begin
- August 3, 1981: Air Traffic Controllers Strike
- August 5, 1962: Marilyn Monroe Dies
- August 6, 1965: Voting Rights Act Signed
- August 6-9, 1945: Atomic Bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
- August 7, 1974: Philippe Petit Walks Between Twin Towers
- August 8, 1974: President Richard Nixon Resigns
- August 9, 1969: Manson Family Murders
- August 11, 1965: Watts Riots
- August 13, 1961: Berlin Wall Construction Begins
- August 15-18, 1969: Woodstock
- August 17, 2008: Michael Phelps Win Eighth Gold Medal in Beijing
- August 28, 1963: March on Washington
- August 31, 1997: Princess Diana Dies
September
- September 8, 1971: Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Opens
- September 9-13, 1971: Attica Prison Riots
- September 11, 2001: Attacks on World Trade Center and Pentagon
- September 12, 1958: Little Rock Desegregation
- September 16, 1989: Hurricane Hugo Batters U.S. Coast
- September 16, 1966: Metropolitan Opera House Opens
- September 17, 1978: Camp David Accords
- September 18, 1981: Former U.S. Vice President Spiro Agnew Dies
- September 20, 1973: Battle of the Sexes
- September 25, 1981: Sandra Day O’Connor on US Supreme Court
- September 26, 1960: Kennedy-Nixon Presidential Debate
October
- September 15 - October 15: Hispanic Heritage Month
- October 1962: Cuban Missile Crisis
- October 1, 1961: Roger Maris Breaks Babe Ruth’s Home Run Record
- October 6, 1981: Egyptian President Anwar Sadat Assassinated
- October 8, 1956: Don Larsen Pitches Perfect Game in World Series
- October 16, 1981: Former Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Dayan Dies
- October 16, 1969: First World Series Win For NY Mets
- October 17, 1989: San Francisco Earthquake
- October 23, 2001: Apple Launches the iPod
- October 25, 1994: Susan Smith Case Begins
- October 28, 1986: World Series Champs NY Mets Ticker Tape Parade
November
- November 4, 1979: Takeover of U.S. Embassy in Tehran
- November 5, 2008: Proposition 8 Passes In California
- November 5, 2006: Saddam Hussein Convicted of Crimes Against Humanity
- November 6, 1986: Iran-Contra Link Revealed
- November 7, 1991: Magic Johnson Announces He Has HIV
- November 9, 1989: Berlin Wall Reopens
- November 9, 1965: Northeastern U.S. Blackout
- November 12, 2001: American Airlines Flight 587 Crashes
- November 15, 1996: Former State Dept. Official Alger Hiss Dies
- November 18, 1978: Jonestown Massacre
- November 22, 1963: President John F. Kennedy Is Assassinated
- November 26, 2000: Presidential Election - Florida Recount
- November 29, 2001: Former Beatle George Harrison Dies
- November 29, 1986: Actor Cary Grant Dies
December
- December 3, 1971: Indo-Pakistani War Breaks Out
- December 7, 1941: Attack on Pearl Harbor
- December 7, 2010: Elizabeth Edwards Dies of Breast Cancer
- December 8, 1980: John Lennon Murdered
- December 10, 1963: The Beatles Spark The British Invasion
- December 15, 1966: Walt Disney Dies
- December 21, 1988: Pan Am Flight 103 – Lockerbie Bombing
- December 25, 2006: "The Godfather of Soul" James Brown Dies
- December 26, 1991: The Soviet Union Dissolves
- December 26, 2006: Former President Gerald R. Ford Dies
- December 26, 2004: Indian Ocean Earthquake and Tsunami
