On this day in 1963, the first message was sent on the Moscow-to-Washington hotline.

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On this day in 1914, the Women’s Defense Relief Corps was established in Britain.

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On this day in 1830, American engineer Peter Cooper raced his "Tom Thumb” locomotive against a horse-drawn railroad car. 

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On this day in 1955, the first copies of “The Guinness Book of Records” were printed and distributed for free in pubs across England and Ireland. 

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On this day in 1939, the first televised professional baseball game was broadcast from an experimental TV station in New York City.

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On this day in 1784, four counties in western North Carolina declared their independence as the State of Franklin.

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On this day in 1929, the animated short “The Skeleton Dance” held its official premiere at the Roxy Theatre in New York City.

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On this day in 1883, three powerful tornadoes wreaked havoc in southeast Minnesota.

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On this day in 1977, a NASA rocket launched the Voyager 2 space probe from Cape Canaveral, Florida.

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On this day in 1791, American author and astronomer Benjamin Banneker wrote a 1,400-word letter to Thomas Jefferson, challenging his views on slavery.

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