On Feb. 12, 1733, English colonists led by James Oglethorpe founded Savannah, Ga.
In 1809 Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States, was born in present-day Larue County, Ky. Also in 1809 Charles Darwin, biologist and author of “On the Origin of Species,” was born in Shrewsbury, England.
In 1818 Chile officially proclaimed its independence.
In 1909 the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People was founded.
In 1912 the Manchu Dynasty abdicated in China, making way for the establishment of a provincial republic.
In 1923 film director Franco Zeffirelli was born in Florence, Italy.
In 1924 George Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue” premiered in New York.
In 1938 author Judy Blume was born in Elizabeth, N.J.
In 1940 the radio play “The Adventures of Superman” made its debut on the Mutual network with Bud Collyer as the Man of Steel.
In 1962 the Soviet Union backed down from an attempt to restrict allied use of air corridors to Berlin.
In 1973 the first release of American prisoners of war from the Vietnam conflict took place.
In 1983 composer-pianist Eubie Blake died in New York, five days after his 100th birthday.
In 1993, in a crime that shocked Britain, two 10-year-old boys lured 2-year-old James Bulger from his mother at a shopping mall in Liverpool, England, then beat him to death.
In 1999 the Senate voted to acquit President Bill Clinton of perjury and obstruction of justice; Clinton told Americans he was “profoundly sorry” for what he’d said and done in the Monica Lewinsky affair.
In 2000 Charles Schulz, creator of the “Peanuts” comic strip, died in Santa Rosa, Calif.; he was 77. Also in 2000 Hall of Fame football coach Tom Landry, who led the Dallas Cowboys to five Super Bowls, died in Irving, Texas; he was 75.
In 2002 former Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic went on trial in The Hague, accused of war crimes. Also in 2002 Pakistan charged three men in connection with the kidnapping of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl in Karachi. (They and a fourth man were later convicted of Pearl’s murder.)
In 2004, defying a California law, San Francisco officials began performing weddings for same-sex couples.
In 2006 a record 26.9 inches of snow fell in New York’s Central Park. Also in 2006 injured figure skater Michelle Kwan withdrew from the Turin Olympics. (She was replaced on the U.S. team by Emily Hughes.) Also, snowboarding superstar Shaun White beat American teammate Danny Kass to win the Olympic gold medal.
In 2008 General Motors reported losing $38.7 billion in 2007. Also in 2008 Uno became the first beagle named Westminster’s best in show.
