1838 - Dressed in a sailor's uniform and carrying identification papers provided by a free Black seaman, future abolitionistFrederick Douglass boards a train in Maryland on his way to freedom from slavery.
1855 - Indian Wars: In Nebraska, 700 soldiers under American General William Harney avenge the Grattan Massacre by attacking a Sioux village killing 100 men, women, and children.
1878 - Over 640 die when when the crowded pleasure boat Princess Alice collides with the Bywell Castle in the River Thames.
1895 - The first professional football game is played, in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, between the Latrobe YMCA and the Jeannette Athletic Club. (Latrobe won the contest 12-0.).
1902 - Popular author Sarah Orne Jewett is thrown out of a carriage, virtually ending her writing career.