Portal:United States/On this day/May 18
On this day for the United States
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Events
- 1631 – In Dorchester, Massachusetts, John Winthrop takes the oath of office and becomes the first Governor of Massachusetts.
- 1652 – Rhode Island passes the first law in North America making slavery illegal.
- 1863 – American Civil War: The Siege of Vicksburg begins.
- 1869 – The Public Credit Act is signed by Ulysses S. Grant, one of his first actions as President of the United States.
- 1876 – Wyatt Earp starts work in Dodge City, Kansas.
- 1896 – The United States Supreme Court rules in Plessy v. Ferguson that separate but equal is constitutional.
- 1917 – World War I: The Selective Service Act of 1917 is passed, giving the President the power of conscription.
- 1926 – Evangelist Aimee Semple McPherson disappears while visiting a Venice, California, beach.
- 1933 – New Deal: President Franklin Delano Roosevelt signs an act creating the Tennessee Valley Authority.
- 1953 – Jackie Cochran becomes the first woman to break the sound barrier.
- 1958 – An F-104 Starfighter sets a world speed record of 1,404.19 mph (2,259.82 km/h).
- 1969 – Apollo program: Apollo 10 launched.
- 1980 – 1980 Mount St. Helens eruption: Mount St. Helens erupts in Washington, killing 57 people and causing $3 billion in damage.
- 1992 – The Archivist of the United States officially announces the 27th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
- 1998 – United States v. Microsoft: The United States Department of Justice and 20 U.S. states file an antitrust case against Microsoft.
- 2004 – Arizona Dimondback's pitcher, Randy Johnson, throws a perfect game against the Atlanta Braves.