1861: Texas voted to secede from the Union.

1968: Perhaps the most famous photograph of the Vietnam War was taken today, when Saigon's police chief (Nguyen Ngoc Loan) executed a Viet Cong officer with a pistol shot to the head.

1995: Republican members of the US House of Representatives pushed a bill that restricted the federal government's ability to impose unfunded mandates on states.

2000: Sen. John McCain defeated Texas Gov. George W. Bush in the Republican New Hampshire primary; Vice President Al Gore defeated Bill Bradley in the Democratic primary.

2003: The space shuttle Columbia broke up on re-entry, killing all seven crew members.

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