Today In History: June 16

[Seneca]

June 16, 2005

Today in history

On this date:

• In 1858, in a speech in Springfield, Ill., Senate candidate Abraham Lincoln said the slavery issue had to be resolved, declaring, "A house divided against itself cannot stand."

• In 1903, Ford Motor Co. was incorporated.

• In 1933, the National Industrial Recovery Act became law. (It was later struck down by the Supreme Court.)

• In 1943, comedian Charles Chaplin married his fourth wife, 18-year-old Oona O'Neill, daughter of playwright Eugene O'Neill, in Carpenteria, Calif.

• In 1955, Pope Pius XII excommunicated Argentine President Juan Domingo Peron -- a ban that was lifted eight years later.

• In 1961, Soviet ballet dancer Rudolf Nureyev defected to the West while his troupe was in Paris.

• In 1963, the world's first female space traveler, Valentina Tereshkova, was launched into orbit by the Soviet Union aboard Vostok 6.

• In 1977, Soviet Communist Party General Secretary Leonid Brezhnev was named president, becoming the first person to hold both posts simultaneously.

• In 1978, President Carter and Panamanian leader Omar Torrijos exchanged the instruments of ratification for the Panama Canal treaties.

[Straight Shooter]

1. Today is my friend's birthday.

She'll enjoy knowing about Lincoln's quote and the world's first female space traveler, Valentina Tereshkova.

Thanks for the glimpse into history. :thumbsup: