The Mississippi River is rocked by earthquakes, Baltimore burns, Chaplin debuts "The Tramp," The Beatles arrive in America, and space shuttle astronauts make the first untethered spacewalk, all on this day.
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Public domain
1812: Author Charles Dickens, generally regarded as the greatest novelist of the Victorian period, is born in Landport, Portsmouth, Hampshire, England. Dickens is well known for such works as "A Tale of Two Cities," "Oliver Twist," "David Copperfield," "Great Expectations" and "A Christmas Carol."