Israeli politician, 5th Prime Minister of Israel, Nobel Prize laureate
Canadian singer-songwriter, dancer
Polish pianist, composer
American trombonist, composer, bandleader
English singer-songwriter, producer, actor
English actor, singer
French director, cinematographer, screenwriter
Ferrarese pianist, composer
Hungarian/English author, journalist
English footballer
Georgeana, now known as York, Maine, was the first city to be officially incorporated in what would later become the United States. The city was founded in 1636 by English pioneers and became a hub for trade and commerce in the region.
Although Pennsylvania had a history of being a slave state, in 1780 it became the first state to pass a law that gradually abolished slavery. The law provided that all newborn children of slaves would be free and that all slaves would be emancipated when they reached the age of 28.
In 1846, Michigan's legislature passed a law abolishing capital punishment, making it the first English-speaking government in the world to do so. The law was initially vetoed by the governor, but the veto was overridden by the legislature in 1847. The death penalty was retained for treason against the state.
Yellowstone National Park, located mostly in the U.S. state of Wyoming, was established in 1872 as the world's first national park. The park is known for its geothermal features, including Old Faithful geyser, as well as its wildlife, including grizzly bears, wolves, and herds of bison and elk.
French physicist Henri Becquerel discovered radioactivity in 1896 while studying the properties of uranium salts. Becquerel found that these salts emitted rays that could penetrate through objects, a discovery that would lead to the development of nuclear energy and the atomic bomb.
In 1932, Charles Lindbergh, the famous aviator who made the first solo nonstop flight across the Atlantic, had his 20-month-old son kidnapped from the family's home in New Jersey. Despite the payment of a large ransom, the child was found dead two months later. The crime remains one of the most notorious in American history.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) was created in 1947 to promote international monetary cooperation and facilitate the growth of international trade. The organization's primary purpose is to ensure the stability of the international monetary system and provide financial assistance to member countries in times of economic crisis.
In 1954, the United States tested a 15 megaton hydrogen bomb, code-named Castle Bravo, at Bikini Atoll in the Pacific Ocean. The bomb was accidentally more powerful than anticipated, and resulted in widespread radioactive contamination, including on a nearby inhabited island. This accident had significant consequences for the development of nuclear weapons and for the public perception of nuclear energy and weapons.