On Feb. 25, 1870, Hiram R. Revels, R-Miss., became the first black member of the United States Senate as he was sworn in to serve out the unexpired term of Jefferson Davis.
On Feb. 25, 1888, John Foster Dulles, the American Secretary of State from 1953-1959, was born. Following his death on May 24, 1959, his obituary appeared in The Times.
On This Date
| 1570 | Pope Pius V excommunicated England's Queen Elizabeth I. |
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| 1836 | Inventor Samuel Colt patented his revolver. |
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| 1870 | Hiram Revels, a Mississippi Republican, was sworn in as the first black member of the U.S. Senate. |
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| 1901 | United States Steel Corp. was incorporated by J.P. Morgan. |
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| 1913 | The 16th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, giving Congress the power to levy and collect income taxes, was declared in effect. |
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| 1943 | Beatles guitarist George Harrison was born in Liverpool, England. |
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| 1948 | Communists seized power in Czechoslovakia. |
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| 1950 | "Your Show of Shows" debuted on NBC. |
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| 1956 | Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev harshly criticized the late Josef Stalin in a speech before a Communist Party congress in Moscow. |
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| 1964 | Cassius Clay (who later changed his name to Muhammad Ali) became the world heavyweight boxing champion by defeating Sonny Liston in Miami Beach. |
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| 1990 | Nicaraguans voted in an election that led to victory for opponents of the ruling Sandinistas. |
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| 1991 | An Iraqi Scud missile hit a U.S. barracks in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, killing 28 Americans during the Persian Gulf War. |
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| 1999 | A jury in Jasper, Texas, sentenced white supremacist John William King to death for the dragging death of James Byrd Jr., an African-American man. |
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Current Birthdays
Comedian Chelsea Handler ("Chelsea Lately") turns 36 years old today.
AP Photo/Dan Steinberg
Actress Rashida Jones ("The Office," "Parks and Recreation") turns 35 years old today.
AP Photo/Dan Steinberg
| 1919 | Monte Irvin, Baseball Hall of Famer, turns 92 |
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| 1937 | Bob Schieffer, Broadcast journalist, turns 74 |
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| 1944 | Karen Grassle, Actress ("Little House on the Prairie"), turns 67 |
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| 1949 | Jack Handey, Author, former TV writer ("Saturday Night Live"), turns 62 |
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| 1958 | Jeff Fisher, Football coach, turns 53 |
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| 1965 | Veronica Webb, Actress, turns 46 |
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| 1966 | Alexis Denisof, Actor ("Angel"), turns 45 |
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| 1966 | Tea Leoni, Actress, turns 45 |
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| 1967 | Carrot Top, Comedian, turns 44 |
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| 1971 | Sean Astin, Actor ("Lord of the Rings" movies), turns 40 |
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| 1973 | Julio Iglesias Jr., Singer, turns 38 |
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Historic Birthdays
John Foster Dulles2/25/1888 - 5/24/1959American Secretary Of State (1953-59).Go to obituary »
| 75 | Johann Philipp Krieger 2/25/1649 - 2/7/1725
German composer |
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| 85 | Carlo Goldoni 2/25/1707 - 2/6/1793
Italian dramatist |
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| 78 | Pierre-Auguste Renoir 2/25/1841 - 12/3/1919
French painter |
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| 86 | Benedetto Croce 2/25/1866 - 11/20/1952
Italian historian, humanist, and philosopher |
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| 48 | Enrico Caruso 2/25/1873 - 8/2/1921
Italian operatic tenor |
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| 96 | Vyacheslav M. Molotov 2/25/1890 - 11/8/1986
Russian statesman and foreign minister |
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| 75 | Dame Myra Hess 2/25/1890 - 11/25/1965
English pianist |
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| 79 | Marcel Paul Pagnol 2/25/1895 - 4/18/1974
French writer and film producer/director |
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| 76 | Anthony Burgess 2/25/1917 - 11/22/1993
English novelist and critic |
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| 78 | Barney Ewell 2/25/1918 - 4/4/1996
American Olympic sprinter |
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