What Happened on April 9?

April 9 is National Unicorn Day — a celebration of mythical horned horses — on the same date American and Filipino troops began the Bataan Death March in 1942, Prince Charles married Lady Diana Spencer in 1981, and singer Paul Robeson was born in 1898.

• 1682 — La Salle reaches the mouth of the Mississippi River and claims Louisiana

  French explorer René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle, arrived at the Mississippi's Gulf outlet and claimed the vast river valley for King Louis XIV of France. Read the full story →

• 1865 — General Robert E. Lee surrenders at Appomattox Court House

  Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered to Union General Ulysses S. Grant in Virginia, effectively ending the American Civil War after four years of fighting. Read the full story →

• 1866 — Congress passes the Civil Rights Act of 1866 over President Johnson's veto

  Lawmakers overrode President Andrew Johnson's veto to pass the first federal civil rights law in U.S. history, declaring that all citizens had equal rights regardless of race. Read the full story →

• 1942 — Allied troops surrender on Bataan — the Death March begins

  After months of fierce fighting, about 75,000 American and Filipino soldiers surrendered on the Bataan Peninsula in the Philippines; many were forced on a brutal 65-mile march. Read the full story →

• 1959 — NASA introduces the Mercury Seven — America's first astronauts

  At a press conference in Washington, D.C., NASA unveiled seven military test pilots who would become the first Americans to fly in space. Read the full story →

Famous birthdays

Paul Robeson (1898–1976) · Hugh Hefner (1926–2017) · Kristen Stewart (1990) · Cynthia Nixon (1966)

Days & observances

National Unicorn Day · Bataan Day (Araw ng Kagitingan) · National Cherish an Antique Day · National Winston Churchill Day