12 History Lessons + 5 Births & 6 Deaths for May 13, 2025
Today’s History:
- 1607 – English settlers establish Jamestown, Virginia, the first permanent English settlement in North America.
- 1846 – The United States declares war on Mexico, starting the Mexican-American War.
- 1862 – Mary Todd Lincoln is reported to have held séances in the White House after the death of her son Willie.
- 1917 – Three children in Fátima, Portugal, report the first of six apparitions of the Virgin Mary.
- 1939 – The SS St. Louis, carrying over 900 Jewish refugees, is turned away from Cuba, later also rejected by the U.S. and Canada.
- 1950 – Diner’s Club issues the first credit card in the United States.
- 1958 – French soldiers stage a coup in Algeria, forcing the collapse of the Fourth Republic.
- 1981 – Pope John Paul II is shot and seriously wounded by Mehmet Ali Ağca in St. Peter’s Square.
- 1994 – Johnny Carson makes a surprise final TV appearance on The Late Show with David Letterman.
- 2000 – India’s population reaches 1 billion according to official projections.
- 2014 – A mine explosion in Soma, Turkey, kills 301 workers, the country’s deadliest mining disaster.
- 2019 – The U.S. escalates tariffs on $200 billion of Chinese goods in an ongoing trade war.
Today’s Birthdays:
- 1950 – Stevie Wonder, American music legend and humanitarian (75)
- 1964 – Stephen Colbert, comedian, writer, and host of The Late Show (61)
- 1966 – Darius Rucker, musician (Hootie & the Blowfish, solo country artist) (59)
- 1977 – Samantha Morton, English actress (Minority Report) (48)
- 1986 – Robert Pattinson, British actor (Twilight, The Batman) (39)
Today’s Deaths:
- 1782 – Daniel Solander, Swedish botanist who accompanied Captain Cook (Age 49)
- 1884 – Cyrus McCormick, American inventor of the mechanical reaper (Age 75)
- 1909 – Henry Fawcett, British politician and economist (Age 66)
- 1988 – Chet Baker, American jazz trumpeter and vocalist (Age 58)
- 1995 – Arthur Lubin, American director and producer (Francis the Talking Mule) (Age 96)
- 2008 – John Phillip Law, American actor (Barbarella, The Russians Are Coming) (Age 70)
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