Today in History

Today is Wednesday, May 30, the 151st day of 2012. There are 215 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On May 30, 1922, the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., was dedicated in a ceremony attended by President Warren G. Harding, Chief Justice William Howard Taft and Robert Todd Lincoln.

On this date:

In 1431, Joan of Arc, condemned as a heretic, was burned at the stake in Rouen, France.

In 1883, 12 people were trampled to death in a stampede sparked by a rumor that the recently opened Brooklyn Bridge was in danger of collapsing.

In 1911, the first Indy 500 took place at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway; the winner was Ray Harroun, who drove a Marmon Wasp for more than 61/2 hours at an average speed of 74.6 mph and collected a prize of $10,000.

In 1912, aviation pioneer Wilbur Wright, 45, died in Dayton, Ohio, of typhoid fever more than eight years after he and his brother, Orville, launched their first airplane.

In 1937, ten people were killed when police fired on steelworkers demonstrating near the Republic Steel plant in South Chicago.

In 1943, American forces secured the Aleutian island of Attu from the Japanese during World War II.

In 1958, unidentified American service members killed in World War II and the Korean War were interred in the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery.

In 1962, Benjamin Britten's War Requiem had its world premiere at the new Coventry Cathedral in England.

In 1971, the American space probe Mariner 9 blasted off from Cape Kennedy, Fla. on a journey to Mars.

In 1972, three members of the Japanese Red Army opened fire at Lod Airport in Tel Aviv, Israel, killing 26 people. Two attackers died; the third was captured.

In 1981, the president of Bangladesh, Ziaur Rahman, was assassinated in a failed military coup.

In 2005, American teenager Natalee Holloway was last seen leaving a bar in Aruba before vanishing; her fate remains unknown, although Joran van der Sloot remains the prime suspect in her disappearance.

Ten years ago: A solemn, wordless ceremony marked the end of the agonizing cleanup at Ground Zero in New York, 81/2 months after September 11. Attorney General John Ashcroft issued new terror-fighting guidelines allowing FBI agents to visit Internet sites, libraries, churches and political organizations as part of an effort to pre-empt terrorist strikes. Nine climbers fell into a crevasse near summit of Oregon's Mount Hood; three died.

Five years ago: The Taliban claimed responsibility for shooting down a Chinook helicopter over southern Afghanistan, killing five U.S. soldiers, a Canadian and a Briton. Abdul Rahman Maadha al-Amry, a Saudi being held at the Guantanamo Bay prison since 2002, was found dead, an apparent suicide.

One year ago: President Barack Obama selected Army Gen. Martin Dempsey to be the Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman. Germany announced plans to abandon nuclear power over the next 11 years, outlining an ambitious strategy in the wake of Japan's Fukushima disaster to replace atomic power with renewable energy sources. Jim Tressel, who guided Ohio State to its first national football title in 34 years, resigned amid NCAA violations from a tattoo-parlor scandal that sullied the image of one of the country's top football programs.

Today's Birthdays: Country musician Johnny Gimble is 86. Actor Clint Walker is 85. Actor Keir Dullea is 76. Actress Ruta Lee is 76. Actor Michael J. Pollard is 73. Pro and College Football Hall of Famer Gayle Sayers is 69. Rock musician Lenny Davidson (The Dave Clark Five) is 68. Actor Stephen Tobolowsky is 61. Actor Colm Meaney is 59. Actor Ted McGinley is 54. Actor Ralph Carter is 51. Actress Tonya Pinkins is 50. Country singer Wynonna Judd is 48. Rock musician Tom Morello (Audioslave; Rage Against The Machine) is 48. Movie director Antoine Fuqua is 47. Rock musician Patrick Dahlheimer (Live) is 41. Actress Idina Menzel is 41. Actor Trey Parker is 40. Rapper Cee Lo Green is 38. Rapper Remy Ma is 32. Actor Blake Bashoff is 31. Christian rock musician James Smith (Underoath) is 30. Actor Jake Short is 15.

Thought for Today: "There are two statements about human beings that are true: that all human beings are alike, and that all are different. On those two facts all human wisdom is founded." -- Mark Van Doren, American poet (1894-1972).

Copyright 2012, The Associated Press. All rights reserved.