May 22
1455
The first battle in the 30-year War of Roses took place at St. Albans.
1761
The first life insurance policy in the United States was issued in Philadelphia.
1849
Abraham Lincoln received patent number 6469 for his floating dry dock.
1927
An earthquake near Xining, China, measuring 8.3 claimed approximately 200,000 victims.
1947
Harry S. Truman’s Doctrine brought aid to Greece and Turkey to combat the spread of Communism.
1972
Richard Nixon arrived in Moscow, becoming the first U.S. president to visit the Soviet Union.
1990
North Yemen and South Yemen merged to form the Republic of Yemen.
1992
Johnny Carson hosted the last episode of his Tonight Show.
2003
The UN Security Council approved a resolution lifting the economic sanctions against Iraq and supporting the U.S.-led administration in Iraq.
2011
At least 140 people are killed and hundreds more injured as a three-quarter-mile-wide tornado hits Joplin, Missouri. The tornado is among the deadliest in the nation’s history, destroying nearly a third of the city and damaging about 2,000 buildings, including water treatment and sewage plants.
2012
Tokyo Skytree, which at 634 meters high is the tallest tower in the world, opened to the public.
Birthdays
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
1859–1930, British author and creator of Sherlock Holmes, born in Edinburgh.
Richard Wagner
composer (1813)
Mary Cassatt
painter (1844)
Sir Laurence Olivier
actor (1907)
Betty Williams
peace activist (1943)