Nov 4
1927
Work begins on Mount Rushmore
On this day in 1927, sculptor Gutzon Borglum began work on Mount Rushmore. To give the monument national appeal, Borglum sculpted presidents, choosing the ones he felt represented important moments in the country’s history: its founding (George Washington), territorial expansion (Thomas Jefferson), economic development (Theodore Roosevelt), and preservation during the Civil War (Abraham Lincoln). The work took just over 14 years to complete and was declared finished on October 31, 1941.
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Tass/Sovfoto
Sputnik 1 launched by U.S.S.R.
On this day in 1957 the Soviet Union launched Sputnik 1, the first artificial satellite, which orbited Earth until 1958, inaugurated the space age, and heightened Cold War competition between the U.S.S.R. and the U.S. [Explore a timeline of the space race.]
Featured Biography
Courtesy of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc.
Actor Charlton Heston, born this day in 1923 in Illinois, remains best known for his performances in Ben-Hur (for which he won an Academy Award) and The Ten Commandments.
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2014
Jean-Claude Duvalier (“Baby Doc”), who was president of Haiti from 1971 to 1986, died in Port-au-Prince while he was on trial for alleged human rights abuses.
PH1 R. Oriez/U.S. Department of Defense
1993
The Battle of Mogadishu ended with 18 U.S. soldiers and hundreds of Somalis dead. It brought to an end the U.S.-led military intervention in Somalia that had begun in 1992.
Bettmann/Getty Images
1989
The racehorse Secretariat, who in 1973 won the U.S. Triple Crown (the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness Stakes, and the Belmont Stakes), was euthanized after contracting laminitis. [Test your knowledge of famous horses.]
© Crawley/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock.com
1970
American singer Janis Joplin, who was known for her fierce and uninhibited musical style, died of an accidental overdose of heroin. [Is 27 an especially deadly age for musicians?]
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Inc.
1895
Film comedian and director Buster Keaton, who was known for his deadpan expression and his imaginative and often elaborate visual comedy, was born in Piqua, Kansas. [Sort fact from fiction in our quiz about movies.]
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
1853
The Crimean War began as Ottoman Turks (later joined by England and France) declared war on Russia; the fighting lasted more than two years and ended with Russia’s defeat. [Take our quiz about the Ottoman Empire.]
Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
1822
Rutherford B. Hayes, who became the 19th president of the United States (1877–81) after a contested election and went on to end Reconstruction in the South, was born in Ohio. [Find out more about the eight elections that changed U.S. history.]
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1582
The Gregorian calendar was introduced, and over the following centuries numerous countries adopted it. [Learn about the 10 days that vanished because of the Gregorian calendar.]
Image: Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
1535
An English-language translation of the Bible by Miles Coverdale, which became the model for many subsequent versions, was published in either Zürich or Cologne.
Photos.com/Getty Images
1190
King Richard I, on his way to Jerusalem during the Third Crusade, invaded a hostile Sicily and took the key city of Messina. [Take our quiz about the kings of England.]
