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***Today's Highlight in History:
On July 7, 1865, four people were hanged in Washington, D.C., for conspiring with John Wilkes Booth to assassinate President Lincoln.
On this date:
- In 1807, Napoleon I of France and Czar Alexander I of Russia signed a treaty at Tilsit ending war between their empires.
- In 1896, the Democratic national convention opened in Chicago.
- In 1898, the United States annexed Hawaii.
- In 1908, the Democratic National Convention opened in Denver.
- In 1930, construction began on Boulder Dam (later Hoover Dam).
- In 1948, six female reservists became the first women to be sworn into the regular U.S. Navy.
- In 1958, President Eisenhower signed the Alaska Statehood Act, which went into effect in January 1959.
- In 1981, President Reagan announced he was nominating Arizona Judge Sandra Day O'Connor to become the first female justice on the U.S. Supreme Court.
- In 1983, 11-year-old Samantha Smith of Manchester, Maine, left for a visit to the Soviet Union at the personal invitation of Soviet leader Yuri V. Andropov.
- In 2005, suicide terrorist bombings in three Underground stations and a double-decker bus killed 52 victims and four bombers in the worst attack on London since World War II.
Ten years ago:
- A jury in Santa Monica, Calif., convicted Mikhail Markhasev of murdering Ennis Cosby, Bill Cosby's only son, during a roadside robbery. (Markhasev was sentenced to life in prison without possibility of parole.)
- Imprisoned Nigerian opposition leader Moshood Abiola died of what the government said was a heart attack.
- The American League defeated the National League 13-8 in baseball's All-Star Game, played in Denver.
Five years ago:
- A chunk of foam insulation fired at shuttle wing parts blew open a gaping 16-inch hole, yielding what one member of the Columbia investigation team said was the "smoking gun" proving what brought down the spaceship.
- NASA launched its second Mars rover.
- A federal judge approved a settlement fining WorldCom $750 million for its $11 billion accounting scandal.
- Golfer Hilary Lunke won the U.S. Women's Open.
One year ago:
- A truck bomb devastated the public market in Armili, Iraq, killing at least 115 people.
- A 24-hour music marathon spanning seven continents reached the Western Hemisphere with rappers, rockers and country stars taking the stage at Live Earth concerts to fight climate change.
- Venus Williams claimed her fourth Wimbledon title with a 6-4, 6-1 victory over Marion Bartoli.
Today's Birthdays:
- Blues musician Pinetop Perkins is 95.
- Musician-conductor Doc Severinsen is 81.
- Country singer Charlie Louvin is 81.
- Historian-author David McCullough is 75.
- Rock star Ringo Starr is 68.
- Singer-musician Warren Entner (The Grass Roots) is 64.
- Rock musician Jim Rodford is 63.
- Actor Joe Spano is 62.
- Pop singer David Hodo (The Village People) is 61.
- Country singer Linda Williams is 61.
- Actress Shelley Duvall is 59.
- Actress Roz Ryan is 57.
- Actor Billy Campbell is 49.
- Rock musician Mark White (Spin Doctors) is 46.
- Singer-songwriter Vonda Shepard is 45.
- Actor-comedian Jim Gaffigan is 42.
- Rhythm-and-blues musician Ricky Kinchen (Mint Condition) is 42.
- Actress Jorja Fox is 40.
- Actress Cree Summer is 39.
- Actress Kirsten Vangsness is 36.
- Actor Troy Garity is 35.
- Actor Hamish Linklater is 32.
- Olympic silver and bronze medal figure skater Michelle Kwan is 28.
- Rapper Cassidy is 26.
- Country singer Gabbie Nolen is 26.
Thought for Today:
"There is no escape — man drags man down, or man lifts man up."
Attributed to Booker T. Washington, American educator and author (1856-1915).
"Let's all be careful out there!"
