History for April 18

History for April 18 - On-This-Day.com
George Henry Lewes 1817 - English philosopher, literary and theater critic, Clarence Darrow 1857 - Attorney, famous for his part in the Scopes 'monkey trial', Barbara Hale 1922 - Actress ("Perry Mason", "Airport")


Hayley Mills 1946 - Actress ("The Parent Trap"), singer, James Woods 1947 - Actor ("The Onion Field", "Casino"), Conan O'Brien 1963 - Television personality ("Late Night with Conan O'Brien")


1521 - Martin Luther confronted the emperor Charles V in the Diet of Worms and refused to retract his views that led to his excommunication.


1775 - American revolutionaries Paul Revere, William Dawes and Samuel Prescott rode though the towns of Massachusetts giving the warning that the Regulars were coming out. Later, the phrase "the British are coming" was attributed to Revere even though it is unlikely he used that wording.


1847 - U.S. troops defeated almost 17,000 Mexican soldiers commanded by Santa Anna at Cerro Gordo. (Mexican-American War)


1906 - San Francisco, CA, was hit with an earthquake. The original death toll was cited at about 700. Later information indicated that the death toll may have been 3 to 4 times the original estimate.


1938 - Superman made his debut when he appeared in the first issue of Action Comics. (Cover date June 1938)


1942 - James H. Doolittle and his squadron, from the USS Hornet, raided Tokyo and other Japanese cities.


1945 - American war correspondent Ernie Pyle was killed by Japanese gunfire on the Pacific island of Ie Shima, off Okinawa. He was 44 years old.


1989 - Thousands of Chinese students demanding democracy tried to storm Communist Party headquarters in Beijing.