Today is Saturday, March 4, the 63rd day of 2017. There are 302 days left in the year.
Today's highlight:
On March 4, 1917, Republican Jeannette Rankin of Montana took her seat as the first woman elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, the same day President Woodrow Wilson took his oath of office for a second term (it being a Sunday, a private ceremony was held inside the U.S. Capitol; a second, public swearing-in took place the next day).
On this date:
In 1789, the Constitution of the United States went into effect as the first Federal Congress met in New York. (The lawmakers then adjourned for lack of a quorum.)
In 1791, Vermont became the 14th state.
In 1797, John Adams was inaugurated the second president of the United States.
In 1837, the Illinois town of Chicago was incorporated as a city with a population of 4,170.
In 1925, President Calvin Coolidge's inauguration was broadcast live on 21 radio stations coast-to-coast.
In 1937, at the 9th Academy Awards, "The Great Ziegfeld" was named outstanding production of 1936 and its leading lady, Luise Rainer (RY'-nuhr), best actress; Paul Muni won best actor for "The Story of Louis Pasteur."
In 1940, Kings Canyon National Park in California was established.
In 1952, Ronald Reagan and Nancy Davis were married in San Fernando Valley, Calif.
In 1960, an explosives-laden French freighter, La Coubre, exploded in Havana's harbor, killing at least 75 people.
In 1977, some 1,500 people were killed in an earthquake that shook southern and eastern Europe.
In 1987, President Ronald Reagan addressed the nation on the Iran-Contra affair, acknowledging that his overtures to Iran had "deteriorated" into an arms-for-hostages deal.
In 1998, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that sexual harassment at work can be illegal even when the offender and victim are of the same gender.
