Today in History....January 8

On this day in …

1790, President George Washington delivers the first State of the Union address to the assembled Congress in New York City
1815, U.S. forces led by Gen. Andrew Jackson defeated the British in the Battle of New Orleans --- the closing engagement of the War of 1812

1867, Congress overrides President Andrew Johnson's veto of a bill granting all adult male citizens of the District of Columbia the right to vote, and the bill becomes law. It was the first law in American history that granted African-American men the right to vote. In the aftermath of the Civil War, the Republican-dominated Congress sought to enfranchise African-American men, who thus would be empowered to protect themselves against exploitation

1877, Crazy Horse and his warriors fight their final losing battle against the U.S. Cavalry in Montana

1916, Allied forces stage a full retreat from the shores of the Gallipoli Peninsula in Turkey, ending a disastrous invasion of the Ottoman Empire. The Gallipoli Campaign resulted in 250,000 Allied casualties and greatly discredited Allied military command. Roughly an equal number of Turks were killed or wounded

1918, President Wilson outlined his "14 Points" for lasting peace after World War

1959, Charles De Gaulle was inaugurated as president of France's Fifth Republic

1964, President Johnson declared a "War on Poverty" in his State of the Union address

1965, the Star of India and other stolen gems were returned to the American Museum of Natural History in New York

1973, secret peace talks between the U.S. and North Vietnam resumed near Paris

1982, American Telephone and Telegraph settled the Justice Department's antitrust lawsuit against it by agreeing to divest itself of the 22 Bell System companies

1987, for the first time, the Dow Jones industrial average closed above 2,000, ending the day at 2,002.25

1996, the state of Arkansas put three men to death in the second triple execution since capital punishment was reinstated in 1976 2001, President Bush signed the most far-reaching federal education bill in nearly four decades