Source: HistoryNet.com
1498: Christopher Columbus leaves on his third voyage of exploration.
1654: Louis XIV is crowned king of France.
1775: The United Colonies change their name to the United States.
1903: Professor Pierre Curie reveals the discovery of Polonium.
1914: The first vessel passes through the Panama Canal.
1981: Israeli F-16 fighter-bombers destroy Iraq’s only nuclear reactor.
1994: The Organization of African Unity formally admits South Africa as its fifty-third member.