1530: “The Recess”, the final decree of the Diet of Augsburg signed by Charles V and Catholic princes reaffirming Catholic rites and principles (after departure of Protestant Princes)

1620: The Mayflower reaches Cape Cod and explores the coast

1805: Lewis and Clark Expedition, led by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, reaches the Pacific Ocean, first European Americans to cross the west

1863: US President Abraham Lincoln delivers his Gettysburg address beginning; “Four score and seven years ago…”

1942: Operation Uranus: Soviet offensive begins during Battle of Stalingrad, 1 million Soviet soldiers encircle the German Sixth Army

1969: Apollo 12’s Charles Conrad and Alan Bean become the 3rd and 4th humans on the Moon

1985: US President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev meet for the first time

Source: Onthisday.com