This Day in History
1976: First commercial Concorde flight
Generating a sonic boom as it traveled through the atmosphere at supersonic speed, the Concorde, a commercial aircraft built with funding from the British and French governments, began regular service on this day in 1976.
More events on this day
1996: Cleanup of 1.8 million gallons (6.8 million litres) of oil began near Block Island National Wildlife Refuge, Rhode Island, two days after the barge North Cape had run aground and created a 12-mile (19-km) oil slick.
1905: Fashion designer Christian Dior was born in Granville, France.
1885: Leadbelly—an African American folk-blues singer, songwriter, and guitarist whose ability to perform a vast repertoire of songs, in conjunction with his notoriously violent life, made him a legend—is believed to have been born this day.
1793: Louis XVI, the last Bourbon king of France, was executed by guillotine in Paris during the French Revolution.
1506: Swiss Guards first arrived at the Vatican as watchmen for the pope. |
