Today in History

Today is Monday, Nov. 6, the 310th day of 2017. There are 55 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On Nov. 6, 1977, 39 people were killed when the Kelly Barnes Dam in Georgia burst, sending a wall of water through Toccoa Falls College.

On this date:

In 1860, former Illinois congressman Abraham Lincoln of the Republican Party was elected President of the United States as he defeated John Breckinridge, John Bell and Stephen Douglas.

In 1861, Confederate President Jefferson Davis was elected to a six-year term of office.

In 1906, Republican Charles Evans Hughes was elected governor of New York, defeating newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst.

In 1928, in a first, the results of Republican Herbert Hoover's presidential election victory over Democrat Alfred E. Smith were flashed onto an electric wraparound sign on the New York Times building.

In 1934, Nebraska voters approved dissolving their two-chamber legislature in favor of a nonpartisan, single (or "unicameral") legislative body, which was implemented in 1937.

In 1947, "Meet the Press" made its debut on NBC; the first guest was James A. Farley, former postmaster general and former Democratic National Committee Chair; the host was the show's co-creator, Martha Rountree.

In 1956, President Dwight D. Eisenhower won re-election, defeating Democrat Adlai E. Stevenson.

In 1962, Democrat Edward M. Kennedy was elected Senator from Massachusetts.

In 1976, Benjamin L. Hooks was chosen to be the new executive director of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, succeeding Roy Wilkins.

In 1984, President Ronald Reagan won re-election by a landslide over former Vice President Walter Mondale, the Democratic challenger.

In 1986, former Navy radioman John A. Walker Jr., the admitted head of a family spy ring, was sentenced in Baltimore to life imprisonment. (Walker died in prison in 2014 at age 77.)

In 1990, about one-fifth of the Universal Studios backlot in southern California was destroyed in an arson fire.

Ten years ago: Six lawmakers were killed by a suicide bomber in northern Afghanistan during a visit to a sugar factory; 61 students also died as a result of the bombing and shots fired by guards. Country singer Hank Thompson died in Keller, Texas, at age 82. George Osmond, father of Donny and Marie Osmond and patriarch to the family's singing group The Osmond Brothers, died in Provo, Utah, at age 90.

Five years ago: President Barack Obama rolled to re-election, vanquishing Republican Mitt Romney as he picked up 332 electoral votes compared to 206 for the former Massachusetts governor; Obama also received 51 percent of the popular vote as opposed to 47 percent for Romney.

One year ago: FBI Director James Comey abruptly announced that Democrat Hillary Clinton should not face criminal charges related to newly discovered emails from her tenure at the State Department. Eritrea's Ghirmay Ghebreslassie and Kenya's Mary Keitany won the New York City Marathon.

Today's Birthdays: Actress June Squibb is 88. Country singer Stonewall Jackson is 85. Singer Eugene Pitt (The Jive Five) is 80. Singer P.J. Proby is 79. Actress Sally Field is 71. Singer Rory Block is 68. Jazz musician Arturo Sandoval is 68. TV host Catherine Crier is 63. News correspondent and former California first lady Maria Shriver is 62. Actress Lori Singer is 60. Actor Lance Kerwin is 57. Rock musician Paul Brindley (The Sundays) is 54. Former Education Secretary Arne Duncan is 53. Rock singer Corey Glover is 53. Actor Brad Grunberg is 53. Actor Peter DeLuise is 51. Actress Kelly Rutherford is 49. Actor Ethan Hawke is 47. Chef/TV judge Marcus Samuelsson is 47. Actress Thandie Newton is 45. Model-actress Rebecca Romijn is 45. Actress Zoe McLellan is 43. Actress Nicole Dubuc is 39. Actress Taryn Manning is 39. Basketball player Lamar Odom is 38. Actress Patina Miller is 33. Actress Katie Leclere is 31. Singer-songwriter Ben Rector is 31. Singer-songwriter Robert Ellis is 29. Actress Emma Stone is 29. Actress Mercedes Kastner is 28.

Thought for Today: "People change and forget to tell each other." -- Lillian Hellman, American playwright (1905-1984).