1859 – French acrobat Blondin crossed Niagara Falls on a tightrope as 5,000 spectators watched.
1908 – An asteroid exploded above Tunguska in Siberia, leaving 800 square miles of scorched or blown-down trees.
1934 – Adolf Hitler began his “blood purge” of political and military leaders in Germany in what came to be known as “The Night of the Long Knives.”
1971 – The 26th Amendment to the Constitution, lowering the minimum voting age to 18, was ratified as Ohio became the 38th state to approve it.
1994 – The U.S. Figure Skating Association stripped Tonya Harding of the national championship and banned her from the organization for life for an attack on rival Nancy Kerrigan.
