1. 127 - Greek astronomer and mathematician Ptolemy begins his observations of the heavens (until 141 AD).

2. 685 - Cuthbert (later Saint Cuthbert) is consecrated bishop of Lindisfarne by Archbishop Theodore at York.

3. 1027 - Pope John XIX crowns Conrad II Holy Roman Emperor, founder of the Salian dynasty.

4. 1147 - Jewish community in Cologne fasts to commemorate anti - Jewish violence.

5. 1484 - William Caxton prints his translation of Aesop's Fables.

6. 1526 - King Francis I returns from Spanish captivity to France.

7. 1534 - Lübeck accepts free Dutch ships into the East Sea.

8. 1552 - Guru Amar Das becomes the third Sikh guru.

9. 1636 - University of Utrecht opening ceremony.

10. 1663 - The Quebec Seminary is established by François de Montmorency - Laval, first bishop of New France, North America's first institution of higher learning.

11. 1692 - King Maximilian is installed as land guardian of the South Netherlands.

12. 1790 - The US Congress passes the Naturalization Act, requiring a 2 - year residency.

13. 1793 - Pro - royalist uprising in the Vendée region of France.

14. 1804 - Congress orders the removal of Indians east of the Mississippi to Louisiana.

15. 1804 - The Territory of Orleans organizes in the Louisiana Purchase.

16. 1808 - Charles IV of Spain abdicates in favor of his son, Ferdinand VII.

17. 1812 - A massive earthquake in Caracas, Venezuela, measures 7.7 on the Richter scale, destroying 90% of the city and killing an estimated 15,000 - 20,000 people.

18. 1820 - Future Mormon Church leader Joseph Smith has his "first vision" in a wooded area of New York, according to Mormon scholars.

19. 1821 - Franz Grillparzer's "Das goldene Vliess" premieres in Vienna.

20. 1830 - The Book of Mormon is published in Palmyra, New York.

21. 1839 - The 1st Henley Royal Regatta is held on the River Thames, England.

22. 1845 - Joseph Francis from NYC patents a corrugated sheet - iron lifeboat.

23. 1845 - A patent is awarded for adhesive medicated plaster, the precursor of the Band - Aid.

24. 1852 - A decree regarding the streets of Paris is passed.

25. 1856 - New South Wales' first - class game, v Victoria at Melbourne, NSW wins.

26. 1859 - The 1st supposed sighting of Vulcan, a planet thought to orbit inside Mercury; it doesn't exist.

27. 1862 - Battle of La Glorieta Pass, New Mexico Territory (Apache Canyon, Pigeon's Ranch).

28. 1863 - Voters in West Virginia approve the gradual emancipation of slaves.

29. 1871 - Municipal elections bring revolutionaries to power in Paris to form a commune government.

30. 1872 - A 7.8 earthquake shakes Owens Valley, California.

31. 1872 - Thomas J. Martin, of Alabama, receives a US patent for a pipe and valve fire extinguisher system.

32. 1878 - Hastings College of Law is founded in San Francisco, California.

33. 1881 - Thessaly is freed and becomes part of Greece again.

34. 1885 - The 1st modern, legal cremation is held in England at Woking, Surrey.

35. 1885 - The Eastman Film Co manufactures the 1st commercial motion - picture film.

36. 1885 - Louis Riel's forces defeat Canadian forces at Duck Lake, Saskatchewan.

37. 1895 - King Alfonso plants a pine sapling in Madrid, starting Spain's Arbor Day.

38. 1898 - The Sabi Game Reserve opens in South Africa, the world's 1st officially designated game reserve; now part of Kruger National Park.

39. 1900 - The 1st edition of The (Free) People (Netherlands, probably Amsterdam) is published.

40. 1903 - The American Hotel opens in Amsterdam.

41. 1909 - August Strindberg's "Björn - Alb - Järle - Ti" premieres in Stockholm.

42. 1909 - In support of Mohammed Ali Shah's coup d'état against the constitutional government in Persia, a Russian military force invades northern Persia to relieve the siege of Tabriz.

43. 1910 - The US forbids immigration to criminals, anarchists, paupers, and the sick.

44. 1910 - William H. Lewis is appointed US assistant attorney general.

45. 1913 - Bulgaria captures Adrianople, ending the 1st Balkan War.

46. 1917 - The British win a battle against the Turks at Gaza.

47. 1924 - The premiere of Bernard Shaw's play "Saint Joan" opens in London.

48. 1931 - Iraq and Trans - Jordan sign a peace treaty.

49. 1934 - Driving tests are introduced in Britain.

50. 1942 - The first "Eichmann transport" to Auschwitz and Birkenau concentration camps departs.