In 1802, Congress passed a bill that established the position of Librarian of Congress. In 1837, Michigan was admitted as the Union's 26th state. In 1950, the Indian constitution went into effect, marking the birth of the Republic of India. In 1998, President Bill Clinton publicly denied having had any "sexual relations" with a former White House intern. In 2005, the U.S. Senate voted to confirm Condoleezza Rice as secretary of state.

Douglas MacArthur (1880-1964), military leader; Bessie Coleman (1892-1926), aviator; Maria von Trapp (1905-87), matriarch of singing family/memoirist; Paul Newman (1925-2008), actor; Jules Feiffer (1929- ), cartoonist/writer; David Strathairn (1949- ), actor; Lucinda Williams (1953- ), singer/songwriter; Ellen DeGeneres (1958- ), TV personality/comedian; Wayne Gretzky (1961- ), hockey player; Gustavo Dudamel (1981- ), orchestra conductor; Peter Sagan (1990- ), pro cyclist

In 1986, Chicago crushed New England, 46-10, in Super Bowl XX; the Bears defense held the Patriots to seven rushing yards.

The first Library of Congress burned (with the rest of the Capitol building) in 1814 and its 3,000 books were destroyed. The library was rebuilt partially by buying President Thomas Jefferson's personal library (6,487 books) in 1815.

"Rules are mostly made to be broken and are too often for the lazy to hide behind." – Douglas MacArthur