Today:
399 BC – Philosopher Socrates is sentenced to death by the Athenian court for corrupting the youth and impiety.
1493 – Christopher Columbus writes a letter describing his discoveries in the New World to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain.
1764 – The city of St. Louis, Missouri, is founded by Pierre Laclède and Auguste Chouteau as a fur trading post.
1898 – The USS Maine explodes in Havana Harbor, Cuba, killing 266 American sailors and escalating tensions between the U.S. and Spain, leading to the Spanish-American War.
1923 – Greece becomes the last European country to adopt the Gregorian calendar.
1933 – Giuseppe Zangara attempts to assassinate U.S. President-elect Franklin D. Roosevelt in Miami, Florida, but instead kills Chicago Mayor Anton Cermak.
1942 – Singapore surrenders to Japan during World War II, leading to the largest surrender of British-led forces in history.
1965 – Canada officially adopts the red and white maple leaf flag as its national flag, replacing the Red Ensign.
1989 – The Soviet Union announces that the last of its troops have left Afghanistan after nearly a decade of war.
2005 – YouTube is launched by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim, revolutionizing online video sharing.