Today In History
Today is Wednesday, Feb. 1, the 32nd day of 2023. There are 333 days left in the year.
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHT IN HISTORY
In Feb. 1, 2003, the space shuttle Columbia broke up 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
› 1790: The U.S. Supreme Court convened for the first time in New York. (However, since only three of the six justices were present, the court recessed until the next day.)
› 1862: “The Battle Hymn of the Republic,” a poem by Julia Ward Howe, was published in the Atlantic Monthly.
› 1865: Abolitionist John S. Rock became the first Black lawyer admitted to the bar of the U.S. Supreme Court.
› 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.
› 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.)
TODAY’S BIRTHDAYS
Actor Garrett Morris is 86. Bluegrass singer Del McCoury is 84. TV personality-singer Joy Philbin is 82. Political commentator Fred Barnes is 80. Rock musician Mike Campbell (Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers) is 73. Blues singer-musician Sonny Landreth is 72. Actor-writer-producer Bill Mumy is 69. Rock singer Exene Cervenka is 67. Actor Linus Roache is 59. Princess Stephanie of Monaco is 58. Actor Sherilyn Fenn is 58. Comedian-actor Pauly Shore is 55. Actor Brian Krause is 54. Jazz musician Joshua Redman is 54. Actor Michael C. Hall is 52. Rock musician Ron Welty is 52. Rapper Big Boi (Outkast) is 48. Roots rocker Jason Isbell is 44. Country singer Julie Roberts is 44. Rock singer-musician Andrew VanWyngarden is 40 TV personality Lauren Conrad is 37. Actor-singer Heather Morris is 36. Actor and mixed martial artist Ronda Rousey is 36. Rock singer Harry Styles (One Direction) is 29.