February 3 February 3 is the 34th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. There are 331 days remaining, (332 in leap years). In the Northern hemisphere, there are 88 days in winter (in a non-leap year). We are considered halfway through winter on February 3. Events upto 19th century 1451 - Murad II, Sultan of the Ottoman Empire dies and is succeeded by his son Mehmed II. 1488 - Bartholomeu Diaz of Portugal lands in Mossel Bay after rounding the Cape of Good Hope at the tip of Africa, becoming the first known European to travel this far south. 1783 - American Revolutionary War: Spain recognizes United States independence. 1787 - Shays' Rebellion is crushed, ending an uprising that would prompt negotiations that would result in the drafting of the Constitution of the United States. 1809 - Illinois Territory is created. 1815 - The first commercial cheese factory is founded (Switzerland). 1867 - Prince Mutshuhito becomes Emperor Meiji of Japan. 1870 - The 15th Amendment to the United States Constitution is passed. 20th century 1900-1949 1900 - Gubernatorial candidate William Goebels is assassinated in Frankfort, Kentucky. Former-Secretary of State Caleb Powers was later found guilty in a conspiracy to kill Goebels. 1913 - The 16th Amendment to the United States Constitution is ratified, authorizing the Federal government to impose and collect income tax. 1916 - Parliament buildings in Ottawa, Canada burn down. 1917 - World War I: The United States breaks off diplomatic relations with Germany a day after Germany announces a new policy of unrestricted submarine warfare. 1918 - The Twin Peaks Tunnel begins service as the longest streetcar tunnel in the world (11,920 feet long). 1931 - 258 die in New Zealand's worst natural disaster, the Napier earthquake. 1941 - World War II: The Nazis forcibly restore Pierre Laval to office in occupied Vichy, France. 1944 - United States troops capture the Marshall Islands. 1945 - World War II: Soviet Union agrees to enter the Pacific Theatre conflict against Japan. 1947 - Percival Prattis becomes the first African American news correspondent allowed in the United States House and Senate press gallery. 1950-1999 1951 - Dick Button wins the American figure skating championship for the sixth time. 1952 - The earliest known tropical storm makes landfall in South Florida. 1959 - plane crash that kills Buddy Holly, Richie Valens and The Big Bopper. This date becomes known as "The Day The Music Died". 1966 - The unmanned Soviet Luna 9 spacecraft makes the first controlled rocket-assisted landing on the Moon. 1969 - In Cairo, Yasser Arafat is appointed Palestinian Liberation Organization leader at the Palestinian National Congress. 1972 - The first Winter Olympics to be held in Asia open in Sapporo, Japan. 1984 - Space Shuttle Challenger is launched on the tenth space shuttle mission. 1988 - Iran-Contra Affair: The United States House of Representatives rejects President Ronald Reagan's request for $36.25 million to aid Nicaraguan Contras. 1989 - After a stroke, P.W. Botha resigns party leadership and the presidency of South Africa. 1998 - Karla Faye Tucker is executed in Texas becoming the first woman executed in the United States since 1984. 1998 - A United States Marine Corps pilot causes the death of 20 skiers in Italy riding on a lift suspended by a cable snapped by the low-flying plane. 21st century 2002 - Super Bowl XXXVI: The New England Patriots defeat the St. Louis Rams, 20-17, to win their first Super Bowl championship. Births upto 19th century 1721 - Friedrich Wilhelm von Seydlitz, general (d. 1773) 1754 - George Crabbe, poet, naturalist (d. 1832) 1809 - Felix Mendelssohn, composer (d. 1847) 1811 - Horace Greeley, journalist, editor, publisher (d. 1872) 1821 - Elizabeth Blackwell, first female physician in the United States (d. 1910) 1859 - Hugo Junkers, industrialist and aircraft designer (d. 1935) 1862 - James Clark McReynolds, U.S. Supreme Court justice (d. 1946) 1874 - Gertrude Stein, writer and patron of the arts (d. 1946) 1887 - Georg Trakl, poet (d. 1914) 1893 - Gaston Julia, mathematician (d. 1978) 1894 - Norman Rockwell, artist, illustrator (d. 1978) 1898 - Alvar Aalto, architect (d. 1976) 20th century 1904 - Pretty Boy Floyd, gangster (d. 1934) 1907 - James Michener, author (d. 1997) 1909 - Simone Weil, philosopher (d. 1943) 1918 - Joey Bishop, comedian, actor 1918 - Helen Stephens, American sprinter 1924 - Andrzej Szczypiorski, writer (d. 2000) 1927 - Val Doonican, Irish singer and entertainer 1930 - Gillian Ayres, painter 1932 - Peggy Ann Garner, actress (d. 1984) 1940 - Fran Tarkenton, Football Hall of Famer 1943 - Blythe Danner, actress 1947 - Dave Davies, musician 1945 - Bob Griese, Football Hall of Famer 1947 - Paul Auster, novelist 1947 - Melanie Safka, singer/songwriter 1950 - Morgan Fairchild, actress 1956 - Nathan Lane, actor 1971 - Sarah Kane, playwright (d. 1999) 1974 - Miriam Yeung, actress and singer Deaths 1014 - Sweyn I, king of Denmark (b. ca. 965) 1428 - Ashikaga Yoshimochi, Ashikaga shogun (b. 1386) 1468 - Johannes Gutenberg, publisher (b. ca. 1390s) 1889 - Belle Starr, outlaw (b. 1848) 1924 - Woodrow Wilson, President of the United States (b. 1856) 1956 - Émile Borel, mathematician, politician, statesman, member of the French Resistance during World War II (b. 1871) 1959 - Rock and roll performers Buddy Holly (b. 1936), Ritchie Valens (b. 1941) and The Big Bopper (b. 1930), in a plane crash outside Clear Lake, Iowa 1960 - Fred Buscaglione, Italian singer and actor 1989 - John Cassavetes, actor, director, writer (b. 1929) 1996 - Audrey Meadows, actress (b. 1926) Holidays and observances Saint Blaise Roman Catholics visit churches to have their throats blessed. Boy Scout Sunday Feast day of Saint Werburgh In the United States, Four Chaplains Day. FAVORITE ARTICLES: History of the World    History of the United States    History of Europe    Ancient History    History    Military History    World War I    Bombing of Dresden    California    US Constitution    Frank Sinatra    Boston    Marbury v. Madison This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License at http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html You may copy and modify it as long as the entire work (including additions) remains under this license. You must provide a link to http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html To view or edit this article at Wikipedia go to http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/February_3