1817 – Mississippi becomes the 20th U.S. state.
1861 – American Civil War: The Confederate States of America accept a rival state government's pronouncement that declares Kentucky to be the 13th state of the Confederacy.
1864 – American Civil War: Sherman's March to the Sea: Major General William Tecumseh Sherman's Union Army troops reach the outer Confederate defenses of Savannah, Georgia.
1869 – The Kappa Sigma Fraternity is founded at the University of Virginia.
1884 – Mark Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is published.
1898 – Spanish–American War: The Treaty of Paris is signed, officially ending the conflict.
1899 – Delta Sigma Phi fraternity is founded at the City College of New York.
1901 – The first Nobel Prizes are awarded.
1906 – U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt wins the Nobel Peace Prize for his role in the mediation of the Russo-Japanese War, becoming the first American to win a Nobel Prize.
1927 – The phrase "Grand Ole Opry" is used for the first time on-air.
1941 – World War II: Battle of the Philippines: Imperial Japanese forces under the command of General Masaharu Homma land on Luzon.
1955 – Mighty Mouse Playhouse premieres on American television.
1978 – Arab–Israeli conflict: Prime Minister of Israel Menachem Begin and President of Egypt Anwar Sadat are jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
1787 – Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet, American educator, founded the American School for the Deaf (d. 1851)
1830 – Emily Dickinson, American poet (d. 1886)
1851 – Melvil Dewey, American librarian, created the Dewey Decimal System (d. 1931)
1911 – Chet Huntley, American journalist (d. 1974)
1936 – Howard Smith, American journalist, director, and producer (d. 2014)
1956 – Rod Blagojevich, American lawyer and politician, 40th Governor of Illinois
1985 – Raven-Symoné, American actress, singer, and dancer
1909 – Red Cloud, American tribal chief (b. 1822)
1920 – Horace Elgin Dodge, American businessman, co-founded Dodge (b. 1868)
1946 – Walter Johnson, American baseball player, manager, and sportscaster (b. 1887)
1946 – Damon Runyon, American journalist and author (b. 1884)
1967 – Otis Redding, American singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1941)
1977 – Adolph Rupp, American basketball player and coach (b. 1901)
1990 – Armand Hammer, American businessman, founded Occidental Petroleum (b. 1898)
2005 – Richard Pryor, American comedian, actor, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1940)
2017 - Angry Grandpa, (Born Charles Green) American Internet personality (b. 1950)