Today in History

Today is Monday, Feb. 16, the 47th day of 2015. There are 318 days left in the year. This is Presidents Day.

Today's Highlight in History:

On Feb. 16, 1945, American troops landed on the island of Corregidor in the Philippines during World War II.

On this date:

In 1804, Lt. Stephen Decatur led a successful raid into Tripoli Harbor to burn the U.S. Navy frigate Philadelphia, which had fallen into the hands of pirates during the First Barbary War.

In 1862, the Civil War Battle of Fort Donelson in Tennessee ended as some 12,000 Confederate soldiers surrendered; Union Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's victory earned him the nickname "Unconditional Surrender Grant."

In 1868, the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks was organized in New York City.

In 1923, the burial chamber of King Tutankhamen's recently unearthed tomb was unsealed in Egypt by English archaeologist Howard Carter.

In 1937, Dr. Wallace H. Carothers, a research chemist for Du Pont who'd invented nylon, received a patent for the synthetic fiber.

In 1959, Fidel Castro became premier of Cuba a month and a-half after the overthrow of Fulgencio Batista.

In 1961, the United States launched the Explorer 9 satellite.

In 1968, the nation's first 911 emergency telephone system was inaugurated in Haleyville, Alabama.

In 1977, Janani Luwum, the Anglican archbishop of Uganda, and two other men were killed in what Ugandan authorities said was an automobile accident.

In 1988, seven people were shot to death during an office rampage in Sunnyvale, California, by a man obsessed with a co-worker who was wounded in the attack. (The gunman, Richard Farley, is on death row.)

In 1994, more than 200 people were killed when a powerful earthquake shook Indonesia's Sumatra island.

In 1998, a China Airlines Airbus A300-600R trying to land in fog near Taipei, Taiwan, crashed, killing all 196 people on board, plus six on the ground.

Ten years ago: The NHL canceled what was left of its decimated schedule after a round of last-gasp negotiations failed to resolve differences over a salary cap -- the flash-point issue that had led to a lockout. Israel's parliament gave the final approval to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's plan to withdraw from the Gaza Strip and four West Bank settlements.

Five years ago: Officials reported the capture of Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Afghan Taliban's No. 2 commander, by a joint CIA and Pakistani team. (Baradar was set free by Pakistan in Sept. 2013 in hopes he could help jumpstart Afghanistan's peace process.) President Barack Obama announced more than $8 billion in new federal loan guarantees to build two nuclear reactors in Georgia.

One year ago: U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, during a visit to Indonesia, called climate change perhaps the "most fearsome" destructive weapon and mocked those who denied its existence or questioned its causes, comparing them to people who insist the earth is flat. Carmelo Anthony made an All-Star record eight 3-pointers and scored 30 points, and the Eastern Conference overcame 38-point efforts by Kevin Durant and Blake Griffin for a 163-155 win. At the Sochi Games, Kjetil Jansrud won the fourth straight Olympic super-G gold medal for Norway; Andrew Weibrecht of the United States wound up second while American teammate Bode Miller and Jan Hudec of Canada tied for third. (Miller, at 36, became the oldest ever Olympic Alpine medalist.)

Today's Birthdays: Actor Jeremy Bulloch is 70. Actor William Katt is 64. Rhythm-and-blues singer James Ingram is 63. Actor LeVar Burton is 58. Actor-rapper Ice-T is 57. Actress Lisa Loring is 57. International Tennis Hall of Famer John McEnroe is 56. Rock musician Andy Taylor is 54. Rock musician Dave Lombardo (Slayer) is 50. Actress Sarah Clarke is 44. Rock musician Taylor Hawkins (Foofighters) is 43. Olympic gold medal runner Cathy Freeman is 42. Actor Mahershala Ali (TV: "House of Cards"; Film: "The Hunger Games: Mockingjay" films) is 41. Singer Sam Salter is 40. Electronic dance music artist Bassnectar is 37. Rapper Lupe Fiasco is 33. Actress Chloe Wepper is 29. Pop-rock singer Ryan Follese (Hot Chelle Rae) is 28. Rock musician Danielle Haim is 26. Actress Elizabeth Olsen is 26. Actor Mike Weinberg is 22.

Thought for Today: "There are two kinds of man: the ones who make history and the ones who endure it." -- Camilo Jose Cela, Nobel Prize-winning Spanish author (1916-2002).

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