On This Day in History - February 11th - Almanac

Today is Tuesday, Feb. 11, the 42nd day of 2025 with 323 to follow.

The moon is waxing. Morning stars are Jupiter, Mars, Mercury and Uranus. Evening stars are Jupiter, Mars, Saturn, Uranus and Venus.

Those born on this date are under the sign of Aquarius. They include Pope Gregory XIV in 1535; photographer/inventor Henry Fox Talbot in 1800; abolitionist/writer Lydia Maria Child in 1802; inventor Thomas Edison in 1847; International Boxing Hall of Fame member Max Baer in 1909; filmmaker Joseph L. Mankiewicz in 1909; actor Eva Gabor in 1919; King Farouk, Egypt's last monarch, in 1920; actor Leslie Nielsen in 1926; actor Tina Louise in 1934 (age 91); actor Burt Reynolds in 1936; Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega in 1938; musician Gerry Goffin in 1939; musician Sergio Mendes in 1941; Jeb Bush, former Florida governor/presidential son and brother, in 1953 (age 72); musician Sheryl Crow in 1962 (age 63); actor Jennifer Aniston in 1969 (age 56); actor Damian Lewis in 1971 (age 54); Surfers' Hall of Fame member Kelly Slater in 1972 (age 53); radio host Alex Jones in 1974 (age 51); actor Isaiah Mustafa in 1974 (age 51); musician D'Angelo in 1974 (age 51); musician Mike Shinoda (Linkin Park/Fort Minor) in 1977 (age 48); musician/actor Brandy Norwood in 1979 (age 46); actor Matthew Lawrence in 1980 (age 45); musician Kelly Rowland (Destiny's Child) in 1981 (age 44); actor Natalie Dormer in 1982 (age 43); musician Aubrey O'Day (Danity Kane) in 1984 (age 41); Chilean President Gabriel Boric in 1986 (age 39); actor Taylor Lautner in 1992 (age 33); musician Rosé (Blackpink) in 1997 (age 28); musician Khalid in 1998 (age 27).

On this date in history:

In 1858, French peasant girl Bernadette Soubirous said the Virgin Mary appeared to her at Lourdes. In December 1933, the pope proclaimed Bernadette a saint.

In 1929, a Lateran treaty signed in Italy recognized the sovereignty of Vatican City.

In 1929, Miss Bobbi Trout, an 18-year-old "Tomboy" who took up flying to avoid dish-washing, broke three world aviation records.

In 1941, Glenn Miller's Chattanooga Choo Choo was awarded the first gold record, given for sales of 1 million copies.

In 1945, U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Soviet leader Josef Stalin ended a wartime conference at Yalta.

In 1965, U.S. and South Vietnamese planes made their first bombing raids on North Vietnam.

In 1970, Japan put a satellite, Ohsumi, in space, following the Soviet Union, the United States and France.

In 1990, Nelson Mandela, leader of the movement to end South African apartheid, was released after 27 years in prison.

In 1993, British Prime Minister John Major said Queen Elizabeth II would pay income tax on her personal income as well as being subject to capital and inheritance levies.

In 2006, U.S. adventurer Steve Fossett broke the solo flight record when he landed near Bournemouth, England, covering 24,997 miles after taking off from Kennedy Space Center in Florida four days earlier.

In 2009, a long, bitter political fight in Zimbabwe apparently was resolved when President Robert Mugabe swore in opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai as prime minister.

In 2011, Hosni Mubarak stepped down after nearly 30 years as president of Egypt, bowing to intense public pressure to resign after 18 days of massive, often violent protests that spawned a reported death toll of more than 800 people. Mubarak, 82, ceded power to the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces.

In 2012, Whitney Houston, an American pop singing star who sold millions of albums and starred in movies, was found dead in a Beverly Hills, Calif., hotel room. The Los Angeles coroner said the 48-year-old entertainer died of accidental drowning in her bathtub but that cocaine and heart disease also played a role.

In 2014, an Algerian Hercules C-130 military plane crashed into a mountain in eastern Algeria, killing 77 people, including civilians. There was one survivor, a soldier.

In 2016, the last four remaining armed occupiers at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon surrendered after a 41-day standoff that left one dead.

In 2018, a passenger jet carrying 71 people on board crashed after takeoff from a Moscow airport, killing all on board.

In 2024, the Kansas City Chiefs won their second Super Bowl in a row in a 25-22 defeat of the San Francisco 49ers at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes was named MVP.

A thought for the day: "Knowledge is power, if you know it about the right person." -- American writer Ethel Watts Mumford