Today in History: Feb. 8

The capture of Roanoke Island off North Carolina by Union troops during the American Civil War, February 1862.  (Photo by Kean Collection/Getty Images)
In 1862, the Civil War Battle of Roanoke Island, North Carolina, ended in victory for Union forces led by Gen. Ambrose E. Burnside.  (Photo by Kean Collection/Getty Images)
File - In this Feb. 4, 2013 file photo, shows a close up detail of a Boy Scout uniform worn during a news conference in front of the Boy Scouts of America headquarters in Irving, Texas. Attorneys for the Boy Scouts of America have reached a settlement with a former San Antonio Scout who says he was abused by his adult leader. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez, File)
In 1910, the Boy Scouts of America was incorporated.   (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez, File)
Britain's Queen Elizabeth II steps from her plane, for the first time as sovereign, at London Airport, on Feb. 7, 1952, after cutting short her official trip to Kenya on the death of her father King George VI.  (AP Photo)
In 1952, Queen Elizabeth II proclaimed her accession to the British throne following the death of her father, King George VI. Here, Queen Elizabeth II steps from her plane, for the first time as sovereign, at London Airport, on Feb. 7, 1952. (AP Photo)
FILE -In this Jan. 21, 1968 file photo, The Supremes with Diana Ross, front, Cindy Birdsong and Mary Wilson dance with their arms in the air as they perform at the annual "Bal pare" party in Munich, West Germany. Ross, Wilson and the Florence Ballard made up the first successful configuration of the group. Cindy Birdsong replaced Ballard in 1967. Wilson, now 70, reminisced in an interview with Associated Press on June 12, 2014, about a major milestone: the 50th anniversary of the Supremes first No. 1, million-selling song, “Where Did Our Love Go” - released June 17, 1964.  (AP Photo/Frings, file)
In 1965, the Supremes’ record “Stop! In the Name of Love!” was released by Motown. In this Jan. 21, 1968 file photo, The Supremes with Diana Ross, front, Cindy Birdsong and Mary Wilson dance with their arms in the air as they perform at the annual “Bal pare” party in Munich, West Germany. (AP Photo/Frings, file)
The Orangeburg, Times- Democrat newspaper hit the streets Friday, February 9, 1968 with these headlines after disastrous exchange of gunfire Thursday night between state police and rioting Black students at South Carolina State College. Three were killed and many wounded. (AP Photo)
In 1968, three college students were killed in a confrontation with highway patrolmen in Orangeburg, South Carolina, during a civil rights protest against a whites-only bowling alley. The Orangeburg, Times- Democrat newspaper hit the streets Friday, February 9, 1968 with these headlines after disastrous exchange of gunfire Thursday night between state police and rioting Black students at South Carolina State College. Three were killed and many wounded. (AP Photo)
Victoria Crake, employee of auctioneers  Lyon and Turnbull, looks at the Death Mask of Mary Queen of Scots, that is on show at the auctioneers in Edinburgh,  Tuesday Aug. 1,  2006. Members of the public will be able to view the mask at the free  Edinburgh Fringe Festival exhibition which begins on August 6. (AP Photo/ Danny Lawson / PA)  **  UNITED KINGDOM OUT NO SALES NO ARCHIVE  **
On Feb. 8, 1587, Mary, Queen of Scots was beheaded at Fotheringhay Castle in England after she was implicated in a plot to murder her cousin, Queen Elizabeth I. Victoria Crake, employee of auctioneers Lyon and Turnbull, looks at the Death Mask of Mary Queen of Scots, that is on show at the auctioneers in Edinburgh, Tuesday Aug. 1, 2006. Members of the public will be able to view the mask at the free Edinburgh Fringe Festival exhibition which begins on August 6. ** UNITED KINGDOM OUT NO SALES NO ARCHIVE ** (AP Photo/ Danny Lawson / PA)
This is a general view of the Wren Building with a cannon in the front yard at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Va., on Feb. 1, 1993.  The school is the nation's second oldest institution of higher education and is celebrating its 300th birthday with a royal visit.  (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
In 1693, a charter was granted for the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg in the Virginia Colony. This is a general view of the Wren Building with a cannon in the front yard at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Va., on Feb. 1, 1993. The school is the nation’s second oldest institution of higher education and is celebrating its 300th birthday with a royal visit. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
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The capture of Roanoke Island off North Carolina by Union troops during the American Civil War, February 1862.  (Photo by Kean Collection/Getty Images)
File - In this Feb. 4, 2013 file photo, shows a close up detail of a Boy Scout uniform worn during a news conference in front of the Boy Scouts of America headquarters in Irving, Texas. Attorneys for the Boy Scouts of America have reached a settlement with a former San Antonio Scout who says he was abused by his adult leader. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez, File)
Britain's Queen Elizabeth II steps from her plane, for the first time as sovereign, at London Airport, on Feb. 7, 1952, after cutting short her official trip to Kenya on the death of her father King George VI.  (AP Photo)
FILE -In this Jan. 21, 1968 file photo, The Supremes with Diana Ross, front, Cindy Birdsong and Mary Wilson dance with their arms in the air as they perform at the annual "Bal pare" party in Munich, West Germany. Ross, Wilson and the Florence Ballard made up the first successful configuration of the group. Cindy Birdsong replaced Ballard in 1967. Wilson, now 70, reminisced in an interview with Associated Press on June 12, 2014, about a major milestone: the 50th anniversary of the Supremes first No. 1, million-selling song, “Where Did Our Love Go” - released June 17, 1964.  (AP Photo/Frings, file)
The Orangeburg, Times- Democrat newspaper hit the streets Friday, February 9, 1968 with these headlines after disastrous exchange of gunfire Thursday night between state police and rioting Black students at South Carolina State College. Three were killed and many wounded. (AP Photo)
Victoria Crake, employee of auctioneers  Lyon and Turnbull, looks at the Death Mask of Mary Queen of Scots, that is on show at the auctioneers in Edinburgh,  Tuesday Aug. 1,  2006. Members of the public will be able to view the mask at the free  Edinburgh Fringe Festival exhibition which begins on August 6. (AP Photo/ Danny Lawson / PA)  **  UNITED KINGDOM OUT NO SALES NO ARCHIVE  **
This is a general view of the Wren Building with a cannon in the front yard at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Va., on Feb. 1, 1993.  The school is the nation's second oldest institution of higher education and is celebrating its 300th birthday with a royal visit.  (AP Photo/Steve Helber)

Today is Friday, Feb. 8, the 39th day of 2019.

Today’s Highlights in History:

On Feb. 8, 1587, Mary, Queen of Scots was beheaded at Fotheringhay Castle in England after she was implicated in a plot to murder her cousin, Queen Elizabeth I.

On this date:

In 1693, a charter was granted for the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg in the Virginia Colony.

In 1862, the Civil War Battle of Roanoke Island, North Carolina, ended in victory for Union forces led by Gen. Ambrose E. Burnside.

In 1904, the Russo-Japanese War, a conflict over control of Manchuria and Korea, began as Japanese forces attacked Port Arthur.

In 1910, the Boy Scouts of America was incorporated.

In 1922, President Warren G. Harding had a radio installed in the White House.

In 1924, the first execution by gas in the United States took place at the Nevada State Prison in Carson City as Gee Jon, a Chinese immigrant convicted of murder, was put to death.

In 1952, Queen Elizabeth II proclaimed her accession to the British throne following the death of her father, King George VI.

In 1965, Eastern Air Lines Flight 663, a DC-7, crashed shortly after takeoff from New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport; all 84 people on board were killed. The Supremes’ record “Stop! In the Name of Love!” was released by Motown.

In 1968, three college students were killed in a confrontation between demonstrators and highway patrolmen at South Carolina State University in Orangeburg in the wake of protests over a whites-only bowling alley. The science-fiction film “Planet of the Apes,” starring Charlton Heston, had its world premiere in New York (it went into general release the following April.)

In 1989, 144 people were killed when an American-chartered Boeing 707 filled with Italian tourists slammed into a fog-covered mountain in the Azores.

In 1992, the XVI Olympic Winter Games opened in Albertville, France.

In 1993, General Motors sued NBC, alleging that “Dateline NBC” had rigged two car-truck crashes to show that 1973-to-87 GM pickups were prone to fires in side impact crashes. (NBC settled the lawsuit the following day and apologized for its “unscientific demonstration.”)

In 2009: Robert Plant and Alison Krauss won five Grammys, including album of the year, for “Raising Sand.” R&B singer Chris Brown was arrested on suspicion of making a criminal threat (he was later sentenced to five years of probation for beating his longtime girlfriend, singer Rihanna). The NFC rallied to a 30-21 victory over the AFC in the Pro Bowl.

In 2014: In an assertion of same-sex marriage rights, Attorney General Eric Holder announced that same-sex spouses could not be compelled to testify against each other, should be eligible to file for bankruptcy jointly and were entitled to the same rights and privileges as federal prison inmates in opposite-sex marriages. On the first day of medal competition at the Sochi Winter Olympics, Sven Kramer of the Netherlands led a clean sweep by the Dutch in the men’s 5,000-meter speed skating while in slopestyle’s Olympic debut, U.S. snowboarder Sage Kotsenburg won the first gold medal of the games.

In 2018: The federal government stumbled into a shutdown that would end by morning, its second in less than a month, as rogue Senate Republicans blocked a speedy vote on a massive, bipartisan, budget-busting spending deal. For the second time in a week, the Dow Jones industrials plunged by more than 1,000 points as a sell-off in the stock market deepened. Hundreds of thousands lined the streets of Philadelphia as the Eagles celebrated their Super Bowl victory with a parade.

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