March 19
1649 The House of Commons of England passes an
act abolishing the House of Lords, declaring it "useless and dangerous to the people of England".
1687 Explorer
Robert Cavelier de La Salle, searching for the mouth of the Mississippi River, is murdered by his own men.
1863 The
SS Georgiana, said to have been the most powerful Confederate cruiser, is destroyed on her maiden voyage with a cargo of munitions, medicines and merchandise then valued at over $1,000,000.
1895
Auguste and Louis Lumiθre record their first footage using their newly patented
cinematograph.
1918 The U.S. Congress establishes
time zones and approves
daylight saving time.
1920 The United States Senate rejects the
Treaty of Versailles for the second time (the first time was on November 19, 1919).
1931 Gambling is
legalized in Nevada. And there was much rejoicing. I mean, like,
a lot of rejoicing. They're
still rejoicing.
1941 World War II: The 99th Pursuit Squadron also known as the
Tuskegee Airmen, the first all-black unit of the US Army Air Corps, is activated.
1945 World War II: Adolf Hitler issues his
"Nero Decree" ordering all industries, military installations, shops, transportation facilities and communications facilities in Germany to be destroyed.
1954
Willie Mosconi sets a world record by running 526 consecutive balls without a miss during a
straight pool exhibition at East High Billiard Club in Springfield, Ohio, setting a record which remains unbroken.
1962
Bob Dylan releases his first album,
Bob Dylan, for Columbia Records.
1965 The wreck of the
SS Georgiana, valued at over $50,000,000 and said to have been the most powerful Confederate cruiser, is discovered by teenage diver and pioneer underwater archaeologist
E. Lee Spence, exactly 102 years after its destruction.
1966
Texas Western, coached by Don Haskins, becomes the first college basketball team to win the
Final four (defeating University of Kentucky

) with an all-black starting lineup. The story is told in Haskins' autobiography (and movie of the same name)
Glory Road.
1969 The 385 metres (1,263 ft) tall TV-mast at
Emley Moor transmitting station, United Kingdom, collapses due to ice build-up.
1979 The United States House of Representatives begins broadcasting its day-to-day business via the cable television network
C-SPAN.
1982
Falklands War: Argentinian forces land on South Georgia Island, precipitating war with the United Kingdom.
1987 Televangelist
Jim Bakker resigns as head of the
PTL Club due to a brewing sex scandal; he hands over control to
Jerry Falwell.
2008
GRB 080319B: A gamma ray burst that is the farthest object visible to the naked eye is briefly observed. It originated 7.5 billion light-years from Earth, and was visible to the naked eye for approximately 30 seconds.
Births
1813 David Livingstone (subject of Henry Stanley's famous quote "Dr. Livingstone, I presume?". Livingstone was, literally, the only other white person for hundreds of miles in any direction.),
1883 Norman Haworth, 1848 Wyatt Earp, 1849 Alfred von Tirpitz, 1860 William Jennings Bryan, 1891 Earl Warren, 1894 Moms Mabley♪ ♫, 1905 Albert Speer, 1906 Adolf Eichmann, 1923 Pamela Britton (Lorelei on
My Favorite Martian), 1925 Brent Scowcroft, 1928 Patrick McGoohan (
The Prisoner), 1936 Ursula Andress, 1946 Paul Atkinson

(The Zombies), 1946 Ruth Pointer♪ ♫(eldest of The Pointer Sisters), 1947 Glenn Close, 1952 Harvey Weinstein (co-founded Miramax movie studio), 1953 Ricky Wilson♪ ♫(The B-52s), 1955 Bruce Willis, 1958 Andy Reid, 1964 Jake Weber, 1973 Brant Bjork

(Kyuss)
Deaths
1687 Renι-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle, 1943 Frank Nitti (mobster), 1950 Edgar Rice Burroughs (created Tarzan, and
John Carter),
1950 Norman Haworth,
1982 Randy Rhoads

(Quiet Riot, Ozzy Osbourne), 1990 Andrew Wood♪ ♫(Mother Love Bone), 2005 John DeLorean\_____(founded the DeLorean Motor Company), 2008 Arthur C. Clarke (
2001: A Space Odyssey), 2008 Paul Scofield, 2014 Fred Phelps (scum)