Today in History

Today is Wednesday, Jan. 15, the 15th day of 2014. There are 350 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On Jan. 15, 1929, civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. was born in Atlanta.

On this date:

In 1559, England's Queen Elizabeth I was crowned in Westminster Abbey.

In 1777, the people of New Connecticut declared their independence. (The republic later became the state of Vermont.)

In 1862, the U.S. Senate confirmed President Abraham Lincoln's choice of Edwin M. Stanton to be the new Secretary of War, replacing Simon Cameron.

In 1919, in Boston, a tank containing an estimated 2.3 million gallons of molasses burst, sending the dark syrup coursing through the city's North End, killing 21 people.

In 1943, work was completed on the Pentagon, headquarters of the U.S. Department of War (now Defense).

In 1947, the mutilated remains of 22-year-old Elizabeth Short, who came to be known as the "Black Dahlia," were found in a vacant Los Angeles lot; her slaying remains unsolved.

In 1967, the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League defeated the Kansas City Chiefs of the American Football League 35-10 in the first AFL-NFL World Championship Game, known retroactively as Super Bowl I.

In 1973, President Richard Nixon announced the suspension of all U.S. offensive action in North Vietnam, citing progress in peace negotiations.

In 1974, the situation comedy "Happy Days" premiered on ABC-TV.

In 1989, NATO, the Warsaw Pact and 12 other European countries adopted a human rights and security agreement in Vienna, Austria.

In 1993, in Paris, a historic disarmament ceremony ended with the last of 125 countries signing a treaty banning chemical weapons.

In 1994, singer-songwriter Harry Nilsson died in Agoura Hills, Calif., at age 52.

Ten years ago: The NASA Spirit rover rolled onto the surface of Mars for the first time since the vehicle bounced to a landing nearly two weeks earlier. Fourteen-year-old golfer Michelle Wie shot a 2-over 72 in the first round at the PGA Sony Open in Honolulu. "First Wives Club" novelist Olivia Goldsmith died in New York at age 54.

Five years ago: US Airways Capt. Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger ditched his Airbus 320 in the Hudson River after a flock of birds disabled both engines; all 155 people aboard survived. In a farewell address to the nation, President George W. Bush said while his policies were unpopular, there could be little debate about the results: "America has gone more than seven years without another terrorist attack on our soil." Congress cleared the release of the final $350 billion in bailout funds for the financial industry. After a wave of controversy, Roland Burris was sworn in as a U.S. senator from Illinois.

One year ago: New York state enacted the nation's toughest gun restrictions and the first since the Connecticut school massacre, including an expanded assault-weapon ban and background checks for buying ammunition. Twin blasts ripped through a university campus in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo, killing more than 80 people, most of them students, in the government-controlled part of the city.

Today's Birthdays: Actress Margaret O'Brien is 77. Actress Andrea Martin is 67. Actor-director Mario Van Peebles is 57. Actor James Nesbitt is 49. Singer Lisa Lisa (Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam) is 47. Actor Chad Lowe is 46. Alt-country singer Will Oldham (aka "Bonnie Prince Billy") is 44. Actress Regina King is 43. Actor Eddie Cahill is 36. NFL quarterback Drew Brees is 35. Rapper/reggaeton artist Pitbull is 33. Electronic dance musician Skrillex is 26.

Thought for Today: "A man can't ride your back unless it's bent." -- Martin Luther King Jr. (1929-1968).

Copyright 2014, The Associated Press. All rights reserved.