Discover what happened on March 18 in history, along with notable celebrity birthdays and fun Days of the Year to celebrate.
What Happened on March 18 in History?
Important events on this day include Henry Wells and William Fargo founding American Express, the first electric razor going on sale, and the largest art robbery in history taking place in Boston.
MARCH 18 – TODAY IN HISTORY:
1813 – David Melville received a patent for the gas streetlight.
1818 – Congress approved the first pensions for government service.
1834 – The first railroad tunnel in the U.S. was completed in Pennsylvania.
1837 – The University of Michigan prepared to move to Ann Arbor from Detroit.
1852 – Henry Wells & William Fargo founded American Express.
1881 – Barnum and Bailey’s “Greatest Show on Earth” opened in Madison Square Gardens in New York, NY.
1899 – Phoebe, a moon of the planet Saturn, was discovered.
1910 – The first American horror movie was patented. It was a one-reel Edison Studio production of Frankenstein.
1911 – Theodore Roosevelt opened the Roosevelt Dam in Arizona. It was the largest dam in the U.S. at the time.
1911 – North Dakota enacted a hail insurance law.
1931 – Schick Inc. began marketing the first electric razor.
1933 – The Studebaker car company ran out of money and entered receivership.
1942 – The third military draft began in the U.S. because of World War II.
1945 – Maurice “Rocket” Richard became the first National Hockey League (NHL) player to score 50 goals.
1949 – The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was ratified.
1952 – In Philadelphia, PA, the first plastic lenses were fitted for a cataract patient.
1954 – RKO Pictures was sold for $23,489,478 to Howard Hughes. It became the first motion picture studio to be owned by an individual.
1959 – President Dwight Eisenhower signed the Hawaii statehood bill.
1963 – The Supreme Court handed down the Miranda decision concerning legal council for defendants.
1966 – The Scott Paper Company began selling paper dresses for $1.
1968 – Congress repealed the requirement for a gold reserve to back U.S. currency.
1970 – The U.S. Postal Service experienced their first postal strike.
1970 – Wilson was selected to be the official football and official time scoreboard of the NFL.
1970 – The NFL adopted a rule that required all players names to appear on the back of their jerseys.
1981 – The U.S. disclosed that there were biological weapons tested in Texas in 1966.
1981 – The TV show “The Greatest American Hero” premiered as a two-hour pilot movie, starring William Katt as teacher Ralph Hinkley.
1982 – Channel 17 in Grand Rapids came on the air as WWMA. About a year later the call letters were changed to WXMI.
1986 – The Treasury Department announced that a clear, polyester thread was to be woven into bills in an effort to thwart counterfeiters.
1987 – The U.S. performed nuclear tests at a Nevada test site.
1989 – A 4,400-year-old mummy was discovered at the Pyramid of Cheops in Egypt.
1990 – Thirteen paintings, collectively worth around $300 million, were stolen from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston, MA. It was the largest art robbery in history.
1990 – The 32-day lockout of baseball players ended.
1992 – Leona Hemsly was sentenced to 4 years in prison for tax evasion.
1992 – Donna Summer received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
1994 – Zsa Zsa Gabor filed for bankruptcy.
2000 – The U.S. Postal Service issued a 20-cent stamped postcard that featured the historic Ryman Auditorium, the home of the Grand Ole Opry for more than 30 years.
2010 – Dennis Hopper received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He died two months later from prostate cancer.
2020 – A man in his 50s died at Beaumont Hospital in Wayne County, becoming Michigan’s first death tied to the coronavirus. On the same day, the U.S.-Canadian border closed for non-essential travel and automakers shut down all North American plants as a precaution.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS ON MARCH 18:
John Kander – 99 years old (1927) – Pianist and composer
Carl Gottlieb – 88 years old (1938) – Actor and screenwriter
Jeff Mullins – 84 years old (1942) – Basketball player and coach
James Conlon – 76 years old (1950) – Conductor and educator
Brad Dourif – 76 years old (1950) – Actor
Ben Cohen – 75 years old (1951) – Businessman and philanthropist, co-founded Ben and Jerry's
Bill Frisell – 75 years old (1951) – Guitarist and composer
Timothy N. Philpot – 75 years old (1951) – Lawyer, author, and judge
Will Durst – 74 years old (1952) – Journalist and actor
Francis G. Slay – 71 years old (1955) – Lawyer and politician, 45th Mayor of St. Louis
Thomas Ian Griffith – 64 years old (1962) – Actor, producer, screenwriter, musician and martial artist
James McMurtry – 64 years old (1962) – Singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor
Mike Rowe – 64 years old (1962) – Television personality
Vanessa L. Williams – 63 years old (1963) – Model, actress, and singer
Bonnie Blair – 62 years old (1964) – Speed skater
Jerry Cantrell – 60 years old (1966) – Singer-songwriter and guitarist
Michael Bergin – 57 years old (1969) – Actor
Queen Latifah – 56 years old (1970) – Rapper, producer, and actress
Mariaan de Swardt – 55 years old (1971) – South African-American tennis player, coach, and sportscaster
Dane Cook – 54 years old (1972) – Comedian, actor, director, and producer
Reince Priebus – 54 years old (1972) – Lawyer and politician
Luci Christian – 53 years old (1973) – Voice actress and screenwriter
Sutton Foster – 51 years old (1975) – Actress, singer, and dancer
Brian Griese – 51 years old (1975) – Football player and sportscaster
Scott Podsednik – 50 years old (1976) – Baseball player
Mike Quackenbush – 50 years old (1976) – Wrestler, trainer, and author, founded Chikara wrestling promotion
Fernando Rodney – 49 years old (1977) – Dominican-American baseball player
Terrmel Sledge – 49 years old (1977) – Baseball player and coach
Brian Scalabrine – 48 years old (1978) – Basketball player, coach, and sportscaster
Adam Levine – 47 years old (1979) – Singer-songwriter, guitarist, and television personality
Kasib Powell – 45 years old (1981) – Basketball player
Doug Warren – 45 years old (1981) – Soccer player
Chad Cordero – 44 years old (1982) – Baseball player
Adam Pally – 44 years old (1982) – Actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
Ethan Carter III – 43 years old (1983) – Wrestler
Andy Sonnanstine – 43 years old (1983) – Baseball player
Rajeev Ram – 42 years old (1984) – Tennis player
Vonzell Solomon – 42 years old (1984) – Singer and actress
Cory Schneider – 40 years old (1986) – Ice hockey player
Eric Wood – 40 years old (1986) – Football player and sportscaster
C. J. Miles – 39 years old (1987) – Basketball player
Rebecca Soni – 39 years old (1987) – Swimmer
Lily Collins – 37 years old (1989) – English-American actress
Travis Frederick – 35 years old (1991) – Football player
Solomon Hill – 35 years old (1991) – Basketball player
Dylan Mattingly – 35 years old (1991) – Singer-songwriter and guitarist
J. T. Realmuto – 35 years old (1991) – Baseball player
Anthony Barr – 34 years old (1992) – Football player
Trey Mancini – 34 years old (1992) – Baseball player
Ryan Truex – 34 years old (1992) – Race car driver
Solo Sikoa – 33 years old (1993) – Wrestler
Kris Dunn – 32 years old (1994) – Basketball player
Ronnie Stanley – 32 years old (1994) – Football player
Julia Goldani Telles – 31 years old (1995) – Actress and dancer
Ciara Bravo – 29 years old (1997) – Actress
Jordan Whitehead – 29 years old (1997) – Football player
Brenden Rice – 24 years old (2002) – Football player
DAYS OF THE YEAR FOR MARCH 18:
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For additional information check out websites like: www.on-this-day.com, www.born-today.com, www.famousbirthdays.com, www.daysoftheyear.com, and www.nationaldaycalendar.com.
