On this date in history:

In 1881, P.T. Barnum and James A. Bailey merged their circuses to form The Greatest Show on Earth. The circus later merged with the Ringling Bros. to form Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, which closed for five years beginning in 2017.

In 1939, Madrid surrendered to the nationalist forces of Generalissimo Francisco Franco in the Spanish Civil War.

In 1968, the counterculture musical Hair opened on Broadway.

In 1969, Dwight D. Eisenhower, World War II hero and 34th president of the United States, died in Washington at age 78.

In 1979, a failure in the cooling system at the nuclear power plant on Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania caused a near meltdown. It was the worst accident at a U.S. civilian nuclear facility.

In 1984, Bob Irsay moved the Baltimore Colts NFL team to Indianapolis without any announcement. Less than a month later, two longtime fans of the team sued the owner for severe emotional distress.

In 1991, just days before the 10th anniversary of an attempt on his life, former U.S. President Ronald Reagan endorsed a seven-day waiting period for handgun purchases, reversing his earlier opposition.

In 1993, Russian President Boris Yeltsin survived an impeachment vote by the Congress of People's Deputies.

In 1996, the U.S. Congress approved the presidential line-item veto.

In 2005, an 8.6-magnitude earthquake jolted the western coast of Sumatra, killing at least 1,300 people and destroying hundreds of buildings.

In 2006, lobbyist Jack Abramoff, with ties to several members of Congress, was sentenced to six years in prison after a conviction on fraud charges. He was released from prison in 2010.

In 2009, the space shuttle Discovery landed at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida after a 13-day mission to the International Space Station during which the ISS was brought up to full power with the installation of its fourth set of solar wings.

In 2010, U.S. President Barack Obama visited Afghanistan for the first time since taking office, an unannounced trip to meet with Afghan President Hamid Karzai and address U.S. troops.

In 2018, 68 people died after a fire broke out during a riot at a police station in Valencia, Venezuela. Prisoners there set fire to a mattress in an attempt to escape.

In 2023, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris met with Ghanian President Nana Akufo-Addo during the former's weeklong trip to Africa.

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