On This Day: Congress establishes Everglades National Park

On this date in history:

In 1431, Joan of Arc was burned at the stake in Rouen, France, at age 19. She had been convicted of wearing men's clothing.

In 1783, the Pennsylvania Evening Post became the first daily newspaper published in the United States.

In 1806, future U.S. President Andrew Jackson took part in a duel, killing Charles Dickinson, a Kentucky lawyer who had called Jackson's wife a bigamist.

In 1868, the first major Memorial Day observance was held to honor those killed during the Civil War. It was originally known to some as Decoration Day.

Photo by Tasos Katopodis/UPI

In 1911, Ray Harroun won the first Indianapolis 500 with an average speed of 74.6 mph.

In 1922, the Lincoln Memorial was dedicated in Washington.

In 1934, the House of Representatives voted to create the Everglades National Park to preserve lands in Florida. President Harry Truman officially dedicated the park in 1947.

In 1971, the unmanned U.S. space probe Mariner 9 was launched on a mission to gather scientific data on Mars. It was the first spacecraft to orbit a planet other than Earth.

In 1972, three Japanese terrorists used automatic weapons to kill 24 people at the airport in Tel Aviv, Israel.

In 2002, U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft announced the FBI would have expanded powers to monitor religious, political and other organizations as well as the Internet as a guard against terrorist attacks.

File Photo by Michael Kleinfeld/UPI

In 2012, former Liberian President Charles Taylor, convicted of aiding war crimes, was sentenced to 50 years in prison.

In 2021, Helio Castroneves won the 105th Indy 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. It was his record fourth win.

File Photo by Edwin Locke/UPI