1914: ‘Empress of Ireland’ sinks after collision
The British liner carrying 1,477 people sinks in Canada’s St. Lawrence River after colliding with another ship, Norwegian freighter Storstad, due to heavy fog. The disaster led to drowning of around 1,012 passengers and crew.
1917: John F. Kennedy is born
John Fitzgerald Kennedy, who would become the 35th president of the U.S., is born in Brookline, Massachusetts, U.S. He was the first American president to be born in the 20th century and would serve in that post from Jan. 20, 1961 to Nov. 22, 1963, when he was assassinated in Dallas, Texas, U.S.
1953: First men to reach summit of Everest
Mount Everest is conquered as Edmund Hillary of New Zealand and Tensing Norgay of Nepal becomes the first climbers to reach the summit.
1968: Manchester United wins its first European Cup
Manchester United becomes the first English club to win the European Cup beating Portuguese side Benfica by four goals to one.
1973: Tom Bradley becomes first African-American mayor of Los Angeles
Tom Bradley (L) becomes the first African-American to become Mayor of Los Angeles. He served from 1973 to 1993 (the longest tenure by any mayor in the city’s history).
1982: Pope John Paul II visits Canterbury
Pope John Paul II becomes the first pontiff to visit Canterbury Cathedral.
1985: Riots break out at the European Cup Final in Brussels
During the 1985 European Cup final between Juventus and Liverpool at the Heysel Stadium in Brussels, Belgium, 39 people lose their lives and around 400 are injured due to riots between fans of both the teams.
Image Credit: Dominique Faget/AFP/Getty Images
