Today

1871 ÷ Journalist-explorer Henry M. Stanley found missing Scottish missionary David Livingstone in central Africa. Stanley delivered his famous greeting: "Dr. Livingstone, I presume?"

1969 ÷ The children's educational program Î'Sesame Street'' made its debut on PBS.

1982 ÷ The newly finished Vietnam Veterans Memorial was opened to visitors in Washington, D.C.

Tuesday

1620 ÷ Forty-one Pilgrims aboard the Mayflower, anchored off Massachusetts, signed a compact calling for a Î'body politick.''

1918 ÷ Fighting in World War I came to an end with the signing of an armistice between the Allies and Germany.

2000 ÷ A cable car crammed with skiers and snowboarders caught fire while being pulled through an Alpine tunnel in Austria, killing 155 people.

Wednesday

1927 ÷ Josef Stalin became the undisputed ruler of the Soviet Union as Leon Trotsky was expelled from the Communist Party.

1954 ÷ Ellis Island closed after processing more than 20 million immigrants since opening in New York Harbor in 1892.

2001 ÷ An American Airlines flight crashed near New York's Kennedy airport, killing 265 people.

Thursday

1927 ÷ The Holland Tunnel opened to the public, linking New York City and New Jersey beneath the Hudson River.

1942 ÷ The minimum draft age was lowered from 21 to 18.

1985 ÷ A mudslide triggered by the Nevado del Ruiz volcano buried the city of Armero, Colombia, killing some 23,000 people.

Friday

1832 ÷ The first streetcar ÷ a horse-drawn vehicle called the John Mason ÷ went into operation in New York City.

1851 ÷ Herman Melville's novel "Moby Dick" was published.

1995 ÷ The U.S. government instituted a partial shutdown, closing national parks and museums while government offices operated with skeleton crews.