1948
Surprise, surprise. Truman beats Dewey!
Harry S. Truman defeated Thomas E. Dewey to the surprise of pollsters and newspapers, in the greatest presidential upset in history.
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1889
North Dakota and South Dakota became the 39th and 40th states, respectively.
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1947
Howard Hughes flew the Spruce Goose on its first and only flight.
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1959
Twenty-One game show contestant Charles Van Doren admitted that he had been given questions and answers in advance.
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1976
Jimmy Carter defeated Gerald Ford, becoming the first U.S. president from the deep South since the Civil War.
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1984
Velma Margie Barfield, a convicted murderer became the first woman to be executed since capital punishment was reinstated in 1976.
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2003
V. Gene Robinson was consecrated as bishop by the U.S. Episcopal Church, becoming the first openly gay bishop in the church.
