November 02
1889
North Dakota and South Dakota became the 39th and 40th states, respectively.
1947
Howard Hughes flew the Spruce Goose on its first and only flight.
1948
Harry S. Truman defeated Thomas E. Dewey to the surprise of pollsters and newspapers, in the greatest presidential upset in history.
1959
Twenty-One game show contestant Charles Van Doren admitted that he had been given questions and answers in advance.
1976
Jimmy Carter defeated Gerald Ford, becoming the first U.S. president from the deep South since the Civil War.
1984
Velma Margie Barfield, a convicted murderer became the first woman to be executed since capital punishment was reinstated in 1976.
2003
V. Gene Robinson was consecrated as bishop by the U.S. Episcopal Church, becoming the first openly gay bishop in the church.
Birthdays
James Polk
1795–1849, James Knox Polk was born in Mecklenburg County, N.C., on Nov. 2, 1795.
Jean-Baptiste-Simeon Chardin
painter (1699)
George Boole
mathematician (1734)
Marie Antoinette
queen of France (1755)
Warren G. Harding
U.S. president (1865)
Carlos Bulosan
writer (1911)
Burt Lancaster
film actor (1913)
K.D. Lang
singer (1961)
Nelly
rapper (1974)