Events, Births and Deaths Happening on this Date

1642

The Canadian city of Montreal was founded.

1804

The French Senate proclaimed Napoleon Bonaparte emperor.

1896

The Supreme Court endorsed the concept of ''separate but equal'' racial segregation with its Plessy vs. Ferguson decision, a ruling that was overturned 58 years later in Brown vs. Board of Education.

1897

A public reading of Bram Stoker's new novel, ''Dracula, or, The Un-dead,'' was staged in London.

1926

Evangelist Aimee Semple McPherson vanished while visiting a beach in Venice, Calif.; she reappeared a month later, claiming to have been kidnapped.

1933

The Tennessee Valley Authority was created.

1951

The United Nations moved out of its temporary headquarters in Lake Success, N.Y., for its permanent home in Manhattan.

1953

Jacqueline Cochran became the first woman to break the sound barrier as she piloted a North American F-86 Canadair over Rogers Dry Lake, Calif.

1980

The Mount St. Helens volcano in Washington state exploded, leaving 57 people dead or missing.

1994

Israel's three decades of occupation in the Gaza Strip ended as Israeli troops completed their withdrawal and Palestinian authorities took over.

1995

Ballet dancer Alexander Godunov was found dead at age 45.

1998

The federal government filed a sweeping antitrust case against Microsoft Corp.

1911

Composer Gustav Mahler died in Vienna, Austria.

1995

Actress Elizabeth Montgomery died in Los Angeles.