FBI agent Robert Hanssen was arrested for spying for Russia
Considered the worst intelligence disaster in U.S. history, Hanssen had been selling secrets to the Soviets and Russians for 22 years. He was caught i...
February 18 in History
Significant events that happened on this day.
Historical Events
2001
1981
The first DeLorean DMC-12 rolled off the production line in Northern Ireland
The stainless steel sports car with gull-wing doors would become iconic thanks to 'Back to the Future,' but only about 9,000 were ever made. The compa...
1977
The space shuttle Enterprise took its first test flight on top of a Boeing 747
Though it never went to space, Enterprise was crucial for approach and landing tests. Named after the Star Trek starship following a massive write-in...
1930
Pluto was discovered by astronomer Clyde Tombaugh
MajorA 23-year-old assistant at Lowell Observatory in Arizona spotted the distant world while comparing photographic plates. The planet hunt that led to Pl...
1929
The Academy Awards were broadcast on radio for the first time
The second Oscar ceremony was heard by radio listeners across Los Angeles on KNX. The entire ceremony lasted only 15 minutes, a stark contrast to toda...
1911
The first official airmail flight took place in India
French pilot Henri Pequet flew 6,500 letters from Allahabad to Naini Junction, covering just 5 miles. The flight lasted about 13 minutes, but it marke...
1885
Mark Twain published 'Adventures of Huckleberry Finn' in America
MajorAfter being published in England the previous December, Twain's masterpiece finally reached American readers. The book was immediately controversial a...
1850
A Philadelphia baker invented the modern ice cream freezer
William Young patented the first ice cream maker with a hand crank and rotating paddles inside a frozen cylinder. Before this invention, making ice cr...
1841
The first continuous filibuster in the U.S. Senate began
Senator William R. King of Alabama spoke for hours to delay a vote on appointing Senate printers. This marked the beginning of a Senate tradition that...
1678
John Bunyan's 'The Pilgrim's Progress' was published
Written while Bunyan was imprisoned for religious offenses, this Christian allegory became one of the most published books in history. For 200 years,...
1516
Mary I of England was born at the Palace of Placentia
The future queen who would earn the nickname "Bloody Mary" for executing Protestant reformers was the only surviving child of Henry VIII and Catherine...