On this Day ~ May 18th
0526
St John I ends his reign as Catholic Pope
1096
Crusaders massacre Jews of Worm
1631
English colony Massachusetts Bay grants puritarian voting right
1631
John Winthrop is elected 1st governor of Massachusetts
1642
Montréal Canada founded
1703
Dutch & English troops occupy Cologne
1756
England declares war on France
1765
Fire destroys a large part of Montreal, Quebec.
1803
Britain declares war on France after General Napoleon Bonaparte continues interfering in Italy & Switzerland
1804
Napoleon Bonaparte proclaimed Emperor of France
1851
Amsterdam-Nieuwediep telegraph connection linked
1852
Massachusetts rules all school-age children must attend school
1860
Republican Party nominates Abraham Lincoln for president
1896
US Supreme court affirms "separate but equal" policy (Plessy v Ferguson)
1910
Passage of Earth through tail of Halley's Comet causes near-panic
1918
TNT explosion in chemical factory in Oakdale PA kills 200
1927
Ritz Hotel opens in Boston
1934
Congress approves "Lindbergh Act", makes kidnapping a capital offense
1934
TWA begins commercial service
1940
German troops conquer Brussels
1944
Polish 2nd Army corps captures convent of Monte Cassino Italy
1951
UN moves HQ to NYC
1953
1st woman to break the sound barrier (Jacqueline Cochrane, USA)
1965
Gene Roddenberry suggests 16 names including Kirk for Star Trek Captain
1967
Silver hits record $1.60 an ounce in London
1971
President Nixon rejects the 60 demands of Congressional Black Caucus
1972
John Sebastian makes 63 consecutive free throws while blindfolded
1974
"The Streak" by Ray Stevens hits #1
1978
Italy legalizes abortion
1980
Mount St Helens blows its top in Washington State, 60 die
1985
"One Night In Bangkok" by Murray Head hits #3
1990
"Return To Green Acres" TV movie airs
1994
Israel withdraws from the Gaza Strip
1995
Alain Juppé becomes Prime Minister of France.
1998
United States v. Microsoft: The United States Department of Justice and 20 U.S. states file an antitrust case against Microsoft.
2004
Randy Johnson throws the 17th perfect game in Major League Baseball history and became the oldest pitcher to throw a perfect game.