On Sunday, at 8:32 a.m. PDT, Mount St. Helens, a volcanic peak in southwestern Washington, suffered a massive eruption, killing 57 people and devastating some 210 square miles of wilderness.
USGS geologist Don Swanson (in red) and his colleague, Jim Moore, view a car filled with ash deposits from the May 18, 1980, eruption of Mount St. Helens. (USGS photo)
Harold R. "Harry" Truman (October 30, 1896 – May 18, 1980) Truman was the owner and caretaker of Mount St. Helens Lodge at Spirit Lake.
One of the major disasters in 19th century around the world was the eruption of the volcano Krakatau in western Pacific Ocean, Indonesia.
The volcano erupted on this day in 1883 and killed thousand people on the other islands near it. The volcanic dust was thrown into the atmosphere and affected the weather around the world, and people as far away as Britain and the United States began to see bizarre red sunsets caused by particles in the atmosphere.
On this day in 1859, the first oil well was successfully drilled in the U.S. by Colonel Edwin L. Drake (below) near Titusville, PA.
Drake Well Museum in Titusville, PA is on the site where Edwin L. Drake drilled the world’s first oil well in 1859 and launched the modern petroleum industry.
It was on this day in 1979.
Louis Francis Albert Victor Nicholas Mountbatten was born Prince Louis of Battenberg (June 25, 1900 – August 27, 1979)
President John F. Kennedy (left) Meets with Lord Louis Mountbatten (center) in 1961. Mountbatten was Chief of the Defense Staff of the British Armed Forces at the time.
Brian Epstein was found dead in his home from an overdose of sleeping pills on this day in 1967. Epstein first discovered The Beatles in November 1961.
Brian Samuel Epstein (September 19, 1934 – August 27, 1967)
Mount Vesuvius erupted killing approximately 20,000 people on this day in 79 AD. The cities of Pompeii, Stabiae and Herculaneum were buried in volcanic ash.
The above Photos of Plaster casts were made from actual victims trapped in the lava flows of the ancient Roman city of Pompeii, Italy.
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Florida City: Gary Davis cradles his chihuahua Boo Boo in front of his mobile home in the Goldcoaster Mobile Home Park the morning after Hurricane Andrew.
Washington, DC, was invaded by British forces that set fire to the White House and Capitol on this day in 1814.
An artists depiction of the White House ruins after the conflagration of August 24, 1814.
The planet Pluto was reclassified as a "dwarf planet" by the International Astronomical Union on this day in 2006. Pluto’s status was changed due to the IAU’s new rules for an object qualifying as a planet. Pluto met two of the three rules because it orbits the sun and is large enough to assume a nearly round shape. However, since Pluto has an oblong orbit and overlaps the orbit of Neptune it disqualified Pluto as a planet.
On this day in 1932, Amelia Earhart became the first woman to fly across the U.S. non-stop. The trip from Los Angeles, CA to Newark, NJ, took about 19 hours.
On this day in 1980, Mount St. Helens in Washington erupts, causing a massive avalanche and killing 57 people on this day in 1980. Ash from the volcanic eruption fell as far away as Minnesota. Seismic activity at Mount St. Helens, which is 96 miles south of Seattle, began on March 16.
USGS geologist Don Swanson (in red) and his colleague, Jim Moore, view a car filled with ash deposits from the eruption of Mount St. Helens.
On this day in 1896, the U.S. Supreme court upheld the "separate but equal" policy in the Plessy vs. Ferguson decision. The ruling was overturned 58 years later with Brown vs. Board of Education.
Pope Saint John Paul II(Karol Józef Wojtyła) (May 18, 1920 – April 2, 2005)
Pope John Paul was the second longest-serving pope in history who was the leader of the Catholic Church from 1978 to 2005. He was one of the most influential leaders of the 20th century who worked to bring Jews, Christians, and Muslims together. He was canonized as a Saint in April of 2014.
Frank Russell Capra (Francesco Rosario Capra) (May 18, 1897 – September 3, 1991)
Capra became one of America’s most influential directors during the 1930s, winning three Oscars from his six nominations as Best Director, along with three other Oscar wins from nine nominations in other categories. Among his leading films were It Happened One Night (1934), You Can’t Take It with You (1938), and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington(1939); Capra was nominated as Best Director and as producer for Academy Award for Best Picture on all three films, winning both awards on the first two.
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On this day in 2003, "Les Miserables" closed after 6,680 shows and 16 years on Broadway.
