1956 Dutch swimmer Cockie Gastelaars broke two decades' world record for 100m freestyle

1945 International Monetary Fund was formally established by 29 member countries

1993 Czechoslovakia was divided into two independent states

1996 Sri Lanka won the Cricket World Cup

1994 Nelson Mandela sworn in as the first black president of South Africa

1932 Radio City Music Hall opened in New York City

1807 Innovation of the steamboat

2003 The Spirit Rover was launched by NASA to start the Mars Exploration Rover mission

1994 The implementation of the North American Free Trade Agreement

1767 King Taksin was crowned King of Thailand (Siam)

2018 WHO officially announced it will categorize gaming addiction as a mental health condition

1949 Queen Juliana of the Netherlands signed the papers to grant independence to Indonesia

1836 Spain recognized the independence of Mexico by signing the Santa María–Calatrava Treaty

1863 President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation

1808 The slave trade became illegal when the United States enacted a law banning the importation of slaves

1964 Kenya became a republic