This Day in History Class

On this day in 1889, Dr. Susan La Flesche Picotte became the first Native American woman in the U.S. to receive a medical degree. / On this day in 1900, the Gold Standard Act went into effect, making gold the sole standard for redeeming paper money.

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On this day in 1988, protests at Gallaudet University in support of naming the school's first deaf president ended. Dr. I. King Jordan, a deaf man, became the university's president. / On this day in 1697, the Mayan city of Nojpetén fell to Spanish troops.

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On this day in 1930, Gandhi and dozens of his followers set out on the Salt March to protest the salt tax and the British Raj. / On this day in 1912, Juliette Gordon Low founded the Girl Scouts of the United States of America.

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The first public basketball game took place on this day in 1892. / On this day in 1918, the first case of the Spanish flu was reported in the U.S.

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Today on the show, we celebrate Women's History Month by honoring the life and work of Lillian Wald with special guest Marjorie Feld, who wrote the book "Lillian Wald: A Biography." / On this day in 1906, an explosion and fire in a French mine killed 1,099 people, making it one of the deadliest mining disasters in history. 

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On this day in 1959, the Barbie doll was introduced at the American Toy Fair in New York City. / On this day in 1916, the Battle of Columbus began as a raid that Pancho Villa led on the border town of Columbus, New Mexico.

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On this day in 1917, the February Revolution began in Russia. / On this day in 1957, the Suez Canal was reopened after being closed for several months during the Suez Crisis. 

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On this day in 1965, about 600 people set out from Selma, Alabama, to begin a 50-mile march to Montgomery. But not long after they left, law enforcement stopped the march with violence. / On this day in 1971, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman gave a speech in Dhaka encouraging people to prepare for a war for independence.

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Cassie Chadwick was a career con artist who claimed to be Andrew Carnegie's daughter. On this day in 1905, her trial began. / On this day in 1869, Russian chemist Dmitri Mendeleev presented the first periodic table.

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On this day in 1770, a brawl broke out in Boston and turned into a deadly fight. The fight, which became known as the Boston Massacre, helped pave the way for the American Revolution. / On this day in 1904, Nikola Tesla attempted to explain ball lightning in the publication Electrical World and Engineer.

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