1808

The federal law prohibiting the importation of enslaved people to the United States took effect.

1863

President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation during the Civil War, declaring that all enslaved people in rebellious states “are, and henceforward shall be free.”

2000

An anxious world held its breath as computers silently switched to the year 2000, but the dreaded “Y2K bug” caused few serious issues.