This day in history

[February 11, 2009]  (AP)  Today is Wednesday, Feb. 11, the 42nd day of 2009. There are 323 days left in the year.

Today's highlight in history:

On Feb. 11, 1858, French teenager Bernadette Soubirous reported the first of 18 visions of a lady dressed in white in a grotto near Lourdes. (The Catholic Church later accepted that the visions were of the Virgin Mary.)

On this date:

In 1812, Massachusetts Gov. Elbridge Gerry signed a redistricting law favoring his party, giving rise to the term "gerrymandering."

In 1861, President-elect Abraham Lincoln departed Springfield, Ill., for Washington.

In 1909, heavyweight boxer Max Baer was born in Omaha, Neb.; Oscar-winning writer-producer-director Joseph L. Mankiewicz was born in Wilkes-Barre, Pa.

In 1929, the Lateran Treaty was signed, with Italy recognizing the independence and sovereignty of Vatican City.

In 1937, a six-week-old sit-down strike against General Motors ended, with the company agreeing to recognize the United Automobile Workers Union.

In 1945, President Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Soviet leader Josef Stalin signed the Yalta Agreement during World War II.

In 1975, Margaret Thatcher was elected leader of Britain's opposition Conservative Party.

In 1979, followers of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini seized power in Iran.

In 1989, the Rev. Barbara C. Harris became the first woman consecrated as a bishop in the Episcopal Church, in a ceremony held in Boston.

In 1990, South African black activist Nelson Mandela was freed after 27 years in captivity.

Ten years ago: A federal jury in New York found several gun makers responsible in three area shootings for letting guns fall into the hands of criminals and assessed damages; gun makers were found liable in six other instances, but no monetary damages were awarded. (However, the plaintiffs suffered a setback in 2001 when the New York Court of Appeals invalidated such claims.)

Five years ago: Wesley Clark dropped out of the race for the White House. A car bomb at an army recruiting center in Baghdad, Iraq, killed 47 people. Cable TV giant Comcast Corp. launched a hostile bid to buy The Walt Disney Co. for more than $54 billion. (Comcast later dropped its bid).

One year ago: The Defense Department charged Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and five other detainees at Guantanamo Bay with murder and war crimes in connection with the Sept. 11 attacks. (Charges against one were later dropped.) Yahoo Inc. rejected Microsoft Corp.'s unsolicited takeover bid. Tom Lantos, a 14-term California congressman who was a forceful voice for human rights, died in Bethesda, Md., at age 80.

Today's birthdays: Actor Leslie Nielsen is 83. Actor Conrad Janis is 81. Actress Tina Louise is 75. Actor Burt Reynolds is 73. Songwriter Gerry Goffin is 70. Actor Sonny Landham is 68. Bandleader Sergio Mendes is 68. Rhythm-and-blues singer Otis Clay is 67. Actor Philip Anglim is 57. Actress Catherine Hickland is 53. Rock musician David Uosikkinen (The Hooters) is 53. Actress Carey Lowell is 48. Singer Sheryl Crow is 47. Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is 45. Actress Jennifer Aniston is 40. Actor Damian Lewis is 38. Actress Marisa Petroro is 37. Singer D'Angelo is 35. Actor Brice Beckham is 33. Rock M-C/vocalist Mike Shinoda (Linkin Park) is 32. Singer-actress Brandy is 30. Actor Matthew Lawrence is 29. Rhythm-and-blues singer Kelly Rowland is 28. Actress Q'orianka Kilcher is 19. Actor Taylor Lautner is 17.

Thought for today: "Time is really the only capital that any human being has, and the one thing that he can't afford to lose." -- Thomas Alva Edison (born this day in 1847, died in 1931)

[Associated Press]

Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.