1861 Confederate mail service officially began today.

1861 The Federal blockade of the City of Fernandina started today with the arrival of the Union ship, U.S.S. Perry, under the command of Lieutenant Enoch G. Parrott.

1864 Federal troops moving out of Jacksonville surprised Confederate troops at Camp John Milton on McGirt's Creek and drove them toward Baldwin. The Union troops numbered about 2,500. They destroyed the Confederate camp.

1881 The sale of 4 million acres of Florida public land to Hamilton Disston was approved today by the Florida Legislature. Disston purchased the land for 25 cents an acre. Through this sale, the State of Florida managed to avoid bankruptcy.

1899 The City of Dunedin was incorporated today by the Florida Legislature.

1899 The City of Vernon was incorporated today.

1905 Jacksonville's Carnegie Library, dedicated as the first free library in the eastern part of the Southern States, opened today.

1909 The Florida Citrus Exchange was organized in Tampa today.

1934 Singer Patrick Aloyesius Boone ("Pat") was born today in Jacksonville.

1937 Aviatrix Amelia Earnhart and navigator Fred Noonan left Miami International Airport today as they continued their "round-the-world" flight. The flight would end a few weeks later with the disappearance of the plane and its occupants. The "Amelia Earhart Mystery" is still unsolved.

1964 The U.S. Supreme Court reversed an earlier ruling by the Florida Supreme Court and ruled that school prayers and Bible readings in public schools were unconstitutional.

1969 The Merritt Island Public Library was dedicated today.

1862 Confederate troops surprised a detachment of 11 men from the U.S.S. Kingfisher on an expedition up the Aucilla River. Two Union soldiers were killed and nine captured.

1864 A detachment of soldiers from the U.S.S. Sunflower destroyed a sizable salt works on the shores of Tampa Bay. Four kettles, a quantity of salt, and several furnaces were also destroyed.

1865 Florida-born Confederate General Edmund Kirby Smith surrendered his army to Federal forces today in Texas.

1878 The Florida Supreme Court ruled today that cigarette manufacturers can be held liable in the deaths of smokers.

1991 The space shuttle (STS 40) was launched today from Cape Canaveral.

1995 Hurricane Allison made landfall between St. Georges Island and St. Marks in the Panhandle today.

1840 William Dudley Chipley, West Florida entrepreneur and railroad developer, was born today in Columbus, Georgia.

1863 The U.S.S. Tahoma captured the Confederate schooner Statesman in Tampa Bay. The Tahoma's crew was able to effect the capture despite harassing fire from a Confederate artillery battery.

1905 The City of Largo was incorporated today by the Florida Legislature.

1925 Gulf County, Florida's 66th county, was created today by the Florida Legislature. The county is named in honor of the Gulf of Mexico, which forms its southern boundary. County Seat: Port St. Joe

1939 Singer-songwriter Gary U S Bonds, nee Gary Anderson, was born today in Jacksonville.

1944 Thousands of Floridians and soldiers/sailors trained in Florida participated in the Normandy invasion today. The Normandy operation marked the beginning of the end for Nazi Germany.

1944 Florida College, the alma mater of evangelist Billy Graham, was chartered today in Temple Terrace.

1956 Crime novelist Patricia Cornwell was born today in Miami.

1990 A Fort Lauderdale Federal judge ruled the "2 Live Crew" album, As Nasty As They Wanna Be, as obscene and devoid of redeeming social or artistic value.

1995 Hurricane Allison continued to cut a path of destruction across Northern Florida today. It would eventually cause one death and approximately $1.7 million in damages.

1837 More than 700 Seminoles slipped away from the United States Army and made their way to the Everglades as the program to transport Seminoles to Oklahoma began.

1862 Confederate General Joseph J. Finegan, commander of Middle and East Florida, has begun the construction of a seven-gun redoubt at Alum Bluff on the Apalachicola River.

1873 African-American sawmill workers idled mills in North Florida today. The workers, members of the Jacksonville Labor League, were seeking a 10-hour day and a minimum payment of $1.50 per day.

1913 Port St. Joe was incorporated today by the Florida Legislature.

1929 The City of Chief land was incorporated today by the Florida Legislature.

1917 The first man in Cocoa to register for the newly created draft was David W. Jones. Jones was also the smallest man to register, measuring a mere 4 feet, 1 inch in height and weighing only 87 pounds.

1845 Andrew Jackson, general and former President of the United States, died today at the "Hermitage," his plantation in Tennessee. Jackson was especially important in the modern history of Florida, since he was largely responsible for its acquisition by the United States following his invasion of the then Spanish province.

1925 The charter for the City of Avon Park, founded in 1886, was approved by the Florida Legislature today.

1925 The Naval Aviation Museum at the Naval Air Station Pensacola was formally opened today.

1943 William Calley, the Army lieutenant convicted in the My Lai massacre in South Vietnam, was born today in Miami.

1864 The U.S.S. Proteus captured the British schooner R.S. Hood off the Florida coast today.

1865 The first African-American missionary, Reverend William G. Steward, arrived in Jacksonville today from Charleston to begin organizing churches for the newly liberated freedmen in the state.

1891 The City of Clermont was incorporated today. The city was later re-incorporated in 1917.

1966 Hurricane Alma struck northwest Florida today, 20 miles east-northeast of Apalachicola. Alma caused $10 million and six deaths.

1862 United States Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles instructed units of the Federal navy to investigate rumors that Confederates had constructed a road from the northern Indian River Lagoon to Volusia that would allow them to escape the Union naval patrols.

1863 The U.S.S. Fort Henry captured 250 bushels of corn belonging to Confederate Senator David levy Yulee today on a barge off the mouth of the Withlacoochee River.

1864 The United States' steamer, Union, today captured the Confederate sloop Caroline off Jupiter Inlet.

1865 The Midway African Methodist Episcopal Church was established today.

1919 Vero, now Vero beach, was incorporated today by the Florida Legislature.

1921 The Town of River Junction (now Chattahoochee) was incorporated today by the Florida Legislature.

1936 The first land for Hillsborough River State Park, near Zephyrhills, was acquired today. The park, which opened in 1938, would become a favorite camping spot for the "Tin Can Tourists" who came to the Sunshine State.

1963 Governor Farris Bryant signed a bill today to create Florida Technological University (Now the University of Central Florida) in Orlando.

1990 "2 Live Crew," a rap group, was arrested today in Hollywood, Florida, for performing songs from their album which had already been ruled obscene by a Federal judge.

1862 The Union navy captured two Confederate vessels in the Gulf of Mexico today. The U.S.S. Susquehanna captured the Princeton, a blockade runner, while the U.S.S. Bainbridge captured the schooner Biagorry and its cargo of cotton.

1913 Preparations are underway today for tomorrow's grand opening of the first bridge crossing to Miami Beach.

1925 The City of Clewiston was incorporated today.

1937 The City of Fort Walton was incorporated today.

1953 The Sabal palmetto palm tree was designated as Florida's official state tree today by the Florida Legislature.

1964 Dr. Martin Luther King and seventeen companions were arrested today in St. Augustine (in violation of Florida's unwanted guest law) for their attempt to desegregate a well-known and popular restaurant in the city.

1993 The United States Supreme Court ruled today that the City of Hialeah could not outlaw animal sacrifices for religious reasons.

1565 French settlers at Fort Caroline continue to experience severe conditions, particularly the lack of food.

1913 The first bridge crossing to Miami Beach opened today and signaled the intense development of that area.

1928 The first city elections were held today in Cocoa Beach.

1861 Confederate President Jefferson Davis has designated today as a Confederate "Day of Thanksgiving," and has called for fasting and prayer for the protection of the Confederate States of America.

1863 The U.S.S. Sunflower today captured the Confederate blockade runner, Pushmataha, near the Tortugas.

1915 Okaloosa County, Florida's 52nd county, was created by the Florida Legislature today. The name of the county is derived for the Choctaw Indian language for "black water." The Blackwater River is located in the county. Okaloosa County was created from land taken from Santa Rosa and Walton Counties. County seat: Crestview

1942 The City of Dania, which was originally founded as "Modello," was chartered today by the Florida Legislature.

1974 Governor Reubin Askew announced the appointment of Dorothy Glisson as Florida Secretary of State, thus making her the state's first female Cabinet officer.

1826 Captain Joseph Fry, called the "Cuban Martyr," was born today in Tampa. Fry was executed in 1873 by Spanish authorities for carrying Cuban rebels aboard his ship.

1863 The Federal ship, U.S.S. Somerset, shelled Confederate salt works on Alligator Bay, near St. George's Sound. Following the shelling, 65 Union sailors and marines were put ashore. They destroyed 65 kettles, 200 bushels of salt, and thirty houses.

1934 The first bachelor's degrees were awarded by the Jacksonville College of Music today. The Jacksonville College of Music is now part of Jacksonville University.

1963 Marymount College in Boca Raton was founded today.

1822 The City of Jacksonville was founded today.

1862 The U.S.S. Somerset and the U.S.S. Tahoma shelled the Confederate fort near the lighthouse at the St. Marks River. When Confederate artillery units withdrew, Federal troops landed and burned the fort, the interior of the lighthouse, and the buildings used as barracks for the Confederate troops.

1863 G. Troup Maxwell announced today that he would be a candidate for the Confederate Congress from the Second Florida Congressional district. General elections are scheduled for October.

1893 The City of Palmetto was incorporated today by the Florida Legislature.

1917 The "new" Cocoa High School was dedicated today.

1931 North Miami Beach, originally chartered as "Fulford," was reincorporated today by the Legislature.

1978 Former Florida Supreme Court Justice David L. McCain was disbarred by the Florida Supreme Court for conduct undermining the judicial process. McCain was disbarred for using his influence on lower court justices for his friends.

1779 Spain joined the fledgling United States of America today by declaring war against England. Spain hoped to retrieve the colonies of East and West Florida lost to the English in 1763. Spain would regain the territory in 1783.

1834 The stagecoach road between Tallahassee and Pensacola was delayed when the construction of the portion between Marianna and the Apalachicola River was delayed. The U.S. Quartermaster, overseeing the project, brought charges of mismanagement against the contractor.

1862 The U.S.S. Somerset captured the British blockade runner, Curlew, off the coast near Cedar Key.

1863 The Circassian, a Union supply steamer, captured the Confederate sloop, John Wesley, off the coast of St. Marks today. The Wesley was carrying a cargo of 12 bales of cotton.

1864 Federal troops from the schooner J.S. Chambers, dispatched up the Waccasassa River, returned to their ship today with 12 bags of cotton.

1949 The first rural postal route, 57 miles long, began in Brevard County today. The route originated from the Melbourne Post Office.

1955 NBA player Wayne "Tree" Rollins was born today in Winter Haven.

1955 Judge and Mrs. Chillingsworth of West Palm Beach mysteriously disappeared today. They have never been seen or heard from since.

1970 The City of Miami experienced the first of what would become three days of rioting in the Liberty City area.

1838 Captain L. J. Beall and a detachment of twenty enlisted men from the 2nd U.S. Dragoons were attacked today at Kenahapa Prairie by a group of Seminoles. Six enlisted men were wounded in the fray. Seminole casualties are unknown.

1871 James Weldon Johnson, African-American poet, teacher, activist, and diplomat, was born today in Jacksonville.

1880 The first post office in Melbourne opened today.

1929 The first regularly scheduled flight from North to South America departed Miami today. Clipper airplanes, carrying mail and passengers, took four days to complete the trip to Miami to Cartagena, Colombia.

1942 Four German saboteurs from a U-boat landed today on Ponte Vedra Beach. They were to link up with a second team of agents in New York. All were arrested within three days, following the defection of one of the members, Walter Dasch, and all of them, with the exception of Dasch, were subsequently executed.

1950 Betty Rowland of Rollins College won the Women's National Intercollegiate Golf Championship today in Columbus, Ohio.

1958 Florida Presbyterian College, now Eckerd College, was founded today in St. Petersburg.

1862 The 7th Florida Infantry Regiment and the 1st Florida Cavalry joined Confederate troops in Tennessee. The Confederate troops are under the command of St. Augustine native, Edmund Kirby Smith.

1863 The Federal schooner, John S. Chamber, today captured the British blockade runner Rebekah thirty miles west of Charlotte Harbor. The Rebekah was carrying a cargo of whiskey.

1863 The U.S.S. Tahoma today captured the British blockade runner Harriet near Anclote Keys. The Tahoma also chased another British ship, the Mary Jane, ashore near Clearwater. The Mary Jane was destroyed by the Tahoma.

1919 Florida's first Kiwanis Club was organized in Tampa today.

1953 KC and the Sunshine Band guitarist, Jerome Smith, was born today in Miami.

1983 Dr. Sally Ride became the first American woman in space today when she rode the space shuttle into orbit.

1990 James Edward Pough gunned down eight people in a Jacksonville loan office today.

1915 Mrs. Zena M. Drier cast the first non-school board election ballot in the Fellsmere municipal election.

1947 Although in use since 1939, the Banana River Naval Air Station (now Patrick Air Force Base) was dedicated today.

1861 The First Florida Cavalry began assembling at Camp Mary David, six miles south of Tallahassee. The unit will be activated for Confederate service in two weeks.

1862 The U.S.S. Beauregard captured the blockade runner Lucy off Deadman's Point Key today.

1862 Colonel J. J. Finley and the 6th Florida Infantry regiment arrived in Chattanooga today.

1864 An armed expedition from the U.S.S. Iuka returned from a raid up the Waccasassa River today. The raiders brought with them twenty-seven bales of captured cotton.

1918 Ralph Rubin, a Cocoa man, was credited with discovering a German spy on a train as he came home on his first leave from service.

1968 The Orlando Art Association was renamed the Loch Haven Art Center, Incorporated today.

1846 The first issue of the Whig Banner was published today in Palatka. The Whig Banner was the first newspaper published in that city.

1884 John Wellborn Martin, the 24th governor of Florida, was born today in Marion County. (For more information, see entries for January 6 and February 22.)

1887 The City of Welaka was incorporated by the Florida Legislature today.

1982 The Florida Senate, meeting in special session, declined to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment.

1993 The space shuttle (STS-57) was launched today from Cape Canaveral.

1948 Today control of the Banana River Naval Air Station was transferred to the United States Air Force, which made it the headquarters for the Long Range Missile Testing program.

1961 The City of Lauderdale Lakes was incorporated today.

1965 The Florida Legislature chartered Florida International University today.

1827 A Catholic Mass was conducted today in Tallahassee by Monsignor Michael Portier, the Bishop of Mobile.

1845 James A. Berthelot of Tallahassee was elected as the first President of the Florida Senate today.

1862 The U.S.S. Pursuit captured the Confederate sloop Kate today. The Kate had sailed from Nassau with an assorted cargo.

1863 The U.S.S. Beauregard has been assigned blockade duty north of Cape Canaveral and Mosquito Inlet.

1881 The City of Hawthorne was incorporated today.

1938 Marineland, then called marine Studios, opened today near St. Augustine. More than 30,000 tourists, scientists and photographers attended.

1972 Hurricane Agnes struck Florida with a vengeance today. In her stay in the Sunshine State, twenty-five people would die.

1823 Gadsden County, Florida's fifth county, was established today. The county is named in honor of James Gadsden, an aide-de-camp to Andrew Jackson during the 1818 campaign. County Seat: Quincy

1845 Hugh Archer of Leon County was elected the first Speaker of the Florida State House of Representatives today.

1863 The U.S.S. Tahoma today captured a Confederate flatboat in a bayou near the Manatee River. The flatboat was carrying a cargo of sugar and molasses.

1950 The first German V-2 rocket was launched today from Cape Canaveral. Captured German rockets became the basis of the United States' early missile program.

1564 The Fort Caroline colony, located on a bluff above the St. Johns River, was started today by Rene Laudonniere.

1845 Governor William Moseley was inaugurated as Florida's first governor today.

1863 The U.S.S. Sagamore captured the British schooner Frolic off the Crystal River. The Frolic carried a cargo of cotton and turpentine.

1864 The U.S.S. Proteus today captured a British steamer, the Jupiter, off the east coast of Florida. All cargo had been thrown overboard prior to capture.

1868 Florida was conditionally re-admitted to the United States today. federal occupation of the state, however, would not end until 1877.

1992 The space shuttle (STS-50) was launched today from Cape Canaveral.

1549 Fray Luis Cancer de Barbastro, a Dominican friar working in the St. Petersburg area as a missionary to Native Americans, was clubbed to death by members of the Calusa tribe.

1864 The U.S.S. Norfolk Packet captured the blockade running sloop, Sarah Mary, off Mosquito Inlet today. The Sarah Mary was carrying a cargo of cotton.

1893 The first rails of Henry Flagler's Florida East Coast Railroad reached the Brevard County community of Eau Gallie today.

1907 The first public school term in Panama City ended today.

1862 The 2nd Florida Infantry Regiment, fighting at Ellison's Mill, Virginia, lost 8 soldier killed today and 52 wounded. Among the soldiers killed was Captain G. W. Parkhill.

1911 Joe Lang Kershaw, the first African-American male to be elected to the Florida House of representatives in the 20th Century, was born today in Live Oak. Kershaw was elected to the House in 1968 and represented Dade County.

1982 The space shuttle (STS-4) was launched today from Cape Canaveral.

1566 Three Spanish Jesuit monks--Father Rogel, Father Martinez and Brother Villareal--left Spanish to join Pedro Menendez de Aviles in Florida. Their purpose was to Christianize the Native Americans in the peninsula.

1863 Boats from the U.S.S. Fort Henry captured the schooner Anna Maria in the Steinhatchee River. The Anna Maria was carrying a cargo of cotton.

1864 Troops boarded three Federal ships today at Punta Rassa to sail north to Bayport. This is preliminary to an attack on Brooksville.

1817 General Gregor McGregor and his crew of adventurers captured Amelia Island today in the name of the combined governments of Mexico, Venezuela and New Granada.

1864 Master W. L. Martine, commanding the U.S.S. Roebuck, dispatched a shore crew of twelve sailors to investigate rumors of increased blockade running near Jupiter Inlet.

1931 The highest temperature ever recorded in Florida was reached today at Monticello. The high mark was 109 degrees.

1936 First lands acquired for O'Leno Recreation Area near High Springs.

1778 British troops turned back attacking Americans in a skirmish at Alligator Creek, near Callahan.

1871 An application was filed with the U.S. Postmaster today for a post office at Arlington. Arlington was later renamed Eau Gallie.

1862 The 2nd Florida Infantry regiment sustained heavy losses today in the Battle of Frazier's farm in Virginia.

1864 Troops from the U.S.S. Roebuck today captured the Confederate sloop Last Resort in Jupiter Inlet. The sloop was carrying a cargo of six bales of cotton.

1936 Actress Nancy Dussault was born today in Pensacola.

1945 University of Miami tennis star Francisco "Pancho" Segura won his third consecutive national collegiate tennis championship today in straight sets. His opponent was Lt. Frank Mehner of the U.S. Military Academy.

1965 NBA basketball player Mitch Richmond was born today in Fort Lauderdale.