Today in History

Today is Thursday, Feb. 1, the 32nd day of 2024. There are 334 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

In Feb. 1, 2003, the space shuttle Columbia broke apart during re-entry, killing all seven of its crew members: commander Rick Husband; pilot William McCool; payload commander Michael Anderson; mission specialists Kalpana Chawla, David Brown and Laurel Clark; and payload specialist Ilan Ramon, the first Israeli in space.

On this date:

In 1790, the U.S. Supreme Court convened for the first time in New York, but because only three of its six justices were present recessed until the next day.

In 1862, "The Battle Hymn of the Republic," a poem by Julia Ward Howe, was published in the Atlantic Monthly.

In 1865, abolitionist John S. Rock became the first Black lawyer admitted to the bar of the U.S. Supreme Court.

In 1943, during World War II, one of America's most highly decorated military units, the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, made up almost exclusively of Japanese-Americans, was authorized.

In 1959, men in Switzerland rejected giving women the right to vote by a more than 2-1 referendum margin. (Swiss women gained the right to vote in 1971.)

In 1960, four Black college students began a sit-in protest at a Woolworth's lunch counter in Greensboro, North Carolina, where they'd been refused service.

In 1979, Iranian religious leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini received a tumultuous welcome in Tehran as he ended nearly 15 years of exile.

In 1991, 34 people were killed when an arriving USAir jetliner crashed atop a commuter plane on a runway at Los Angeles International Airport.

In 1994, Jeff Gillooly, Tonya Harding's ex-husband, pleaded guilty in Portland, Oregon, to racketeering for his part in the attack on figure skater Nancy Kerrigan in exchange for a 24-month sentence and a $100,000 fine.

In 2011, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak announced he would not run for a new term in September elections but rejected protesters' demands he step down immediately and leave the country.

In 2013, Hillary Rodham Clinton formally resigned as America's 67th secretary of state, capping a four-year tenure that saw her shatter records for the number of countries visited.

In 2016, the World Health Organization declared a global emergency over the explosive spread of the Zika virus, which was linked to birth defects in the Americas.

In 2020, as China's death toll from the new coronavirus rose to 259, Beijing criticized Washington's order barring entry to most foreigners who had visited China in the past two weeks.

In 2021, actor Dustin Diamond, best known as "Screech" on the 1990s sitcom "Saved by the Bell", died of cancer at age 44.

In 2023, the FBI searched President Joe Biden's Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, home as part of its investigation into the potential mishandling of classified documents.

Today's birthdays: Today's birthdays: Actor Garrett Morris is 87. Bluegrass singer Del McCoury is 85. TV personality-singer Joy Philbin is 83. Political commentator Fred Barnes is 81. Rock musician Mike Campbell (Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers) is 74. Blues singer-musician Sonny Landreth is 73. Actor-writer-producer Bill Mumy is 70. Rock singer Exene Cervenka is 68. Actor Linus Roache is 60. Princess Stephanie of Monaco is 59. Actor Sherilyn Fenn is 59. Comedian-actor Pauly Shore is 56. Actor Brian Krause is 55. Jazz musician Joshua Redman is 55. Rock musician Patrick Wilson (Weezer) is 55. Actor Michael C. Hall is 53. Rock musician Ron Welty is 53. Rapper Big Boi (Outkast) is 49. Roots rocker Jason Isbell is 45. Country singer Julie Roberts is 45. Rock singer-musician Andrew VanWyngarden is 41. TV personality Lauren Conrad is 38. Actor-singer Heather Morris is 37. Actor and mixed martial artist Ronda Rousey is 37. Rock singer Harry Styles (One Direction) is 30.