On this day in 1519, Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan left Spain to find a route to the Spice Islands of Indonesia. Magellan was killed during the trip, but one of his ships eventually made the journey.
Ferdinand Magellan (1480 – April 27,1521)
Magellan was killed in the Philippines during the Battle of Mactan by soldiers of leader Lapu-Lap.
James Joseph "Jim" Croce (January 10, 1943 – September 20, 1973)
On this day in 1973, pop singer Jim Croce was killed along with five others in a plane crash on his way to Sherman, TX, for a concert. He was only 30 years old.
Dr. Emil A. Naclerio, member of the surgical team that operated on the Rev. Martin Luther King, is shown at King’s bedside in Harlem Hospital in New York on Sept. 21, 1958.
President George W. Bush addresses the nation following the 9/11 attacks.
President George W. Bush with firefighter Bob Beckwith standing in standing in front of the collapsed World Trade Center buildings.
Johnny Cash and wife June Carter.
John R. Cash(February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003)
While hospitalized at Baptist Hospital in Nashville, Johnny Cash died of complications from diabetes at approximately 2:00 a.m. CT on September 12, 2003, aged 71, less than four months after his wife. It was suggested that his health worsened due to a broken heart over June’s death.
On this day in 1945, Japan surrendered to the U.S. aboard the USS Missouri, ending World War II. The war ended six years and one day after it began.
Douglas MacArthur signs the Japanese surrender documents.
On this day in 1864, during the U.S. Civil War, Union forces led by Gen. William T. Sherman (below) occupied Atlanta following the retreat of the Confederates.
On this day in 1944, future President George Herbert Walker Bush is serving as a torpedo bomber pilot in the Pacific theater of World War II when his squadron is attacked by Japanese anti-aircraft guns forcing Bush to bail out of the plane over the ocean. According to the Navy’s records, Bush’s squadron was conducting a bombing mission on a Japanese installation on the island of Chi Chi Jima in the Pacific when they encountered heavy anti-aircraft fire. The engine on Bush’s plane was set ablaze, yet Bush managed to release his bombs and head back toward the aircraft carrier San Jacinto before bailing out over the water.
George H.W. Bush turned 94 in June.
The Great Fire of London broke out on this day in 1666. It burned for three days destroying 10,000 buildings including St. Paul’s Cathedral with only six fatalities.
It was announced on this day in 1985, the Titanic had been found on by a U.S. and French expedition 560 miles off Newfoundland. The luxury liner had been missing for 73 years.
A photograph of the Titanic believed to have been taken the day before she left on her ill-fated voyage in 1912.
The last known photo of Titanic heading out for open sea off the coast of Ireland.