Feb. 26
1815: Napoleon Bonaparte escaped from exile on the island of Elba, sailing back to France in an attempt to reclaim power.
1919: President Woodrow Wilson signed legislation establishing the Grand Canyon as a national park.
1993: A truck bomb built by Islamic extremists exploded in the parking garage beneath the North Tower of New York’s World Trade Center, killing six people and injuring more than 1,000 others.
Feb. 27
1933: Germany’s parliament building, the Reichstag, was severely damaged by fire. Chancellor Adolf Hitler blamed communists and used the incident to justify suspending civil liberties.
1942: The Battle of the Java Sea began during World War II, ending in a decisive victory for Imperial Japanese naval forces over the Allies.
1951: The 22nd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, limiting a president to two terms in office, was ratified.
Feb. 28
1953: Francis H.C. Crick announced that he and fellow scientist James D. Watson had discovered the double-helix structure of DNA.
1983: The final episode of the television series “M*A*S*H” aired; nearly 106 million viewers saw the finale, which remains the most-watched episode of any U.S. television series to date.
1993: A gunbattle erupted near Waco, Texas, as federal agents attempted to arrest Branch Davidian leader David Koresh on weapons charges. Four agents and six Davidians were killed, triggering a 51-day standoff.
March 1
1872: President Ulysses S. Grant signed the Yellowstone National Park Protection Act, making Yellowstone the nation’s first national park.
1932: Charles A. Lindbergh Jr., the 20-month-old son of Charles and Anne Lindbergh, was kidnapped from the family home in New Jersey.
1961: President John F. Kennedy signed an executive order establishing the Peace Corps.
1974: Seven people, including former Nixon White House aides H.R. Haldeman and John D. Ehrlichman, former Attorney General John Mitchell and former assistant Attorney General Robert Mardian, were indicted on charges of conspiring to obstruct justice in connection with the Watergate break-in.
March 2
1807: The Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves was signed by President Thomas Jefferson.
1861: The state of Texas, having seceded from the Union, was admitted to the Confederacy.
1962: Wilt Chamberlain scored 100 points for the Philadelphia Warriors against the New York Knicks, a single-game NBA record that still stands. Philadelphia won by a score of 169-147.
March 3
1845: Florida became a U.S. state.
1931: President Herbert Hoover signed a bill making “The Star-Spangled Banner” the national anthem of the United States.
1991: Motorist Rodney King was severely beaten by Los Angeles police officers after a high-speed chase in a scene captured on amateur video that sparked public outrage.
March 4
1789: The Constitution of the United States took effect as the first Federal Congress met in New York.
1801: Thomas Jefferson became the first president to be inaugurated in Washington, D.C.
1933: Franklin D. Roosevelt was inaugurated for his first term as president; he was the last U.S. president to be inaugurated on this date (subsequent inaugurations have been held on Jan. 20). In his inaugural speech, Roosevelt stated, “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.”
