History for February 16

History for February 16 - On-This-Day.com:
Henry Adams 1838, Hugh Beaumont 1909, Sonny Bono 1935 - Singer (Sonny and Cher)


William Katt 1951 - Actor, LeVar Burton 1957 - Actor, John McEnroe 1959 - Tennis player


1804 - A raid was led by Lt. Stephen Decatur to burn the U.S. Navy frigate Philadelphia. The ship had been taken by pirates.


1857 - The National Deaf Mute College was incorporated in Washington, DC. It was the first school in the world for advanced education of the deaf. The school was later renamed Gallaudet College.


1923 - Howard Carter unsealed the burial chamber of Egyptian Pharaoh Tutankhamen. The next day he entered the chamber with several invited guests. He had originally found the tomb on November 4, 1922.


1937 - Wallace H. Carothers received a patent for nylon. Carothers was a research chemist for Du Pont.


1945 - During World War II, U.S. troops landed on the island of Corregidor in the Philippines.


1959 - Fidel Castro seized power in Cuba after the overthrow of President Fulgencio Batista.


1960 - The U.S.S. Triton began the first circumnavigation of the globe under water. The trip ended on May 10.


1970 - Joe Frazier began his reign as the undefeated heavyweight world champion when he knocked out Jimmy Ellis in five rounds. He lost the title on January 22, 1973, when he lost for the first time in his professional career to George Foreman.