February 9

Volleyball is invented, initially known as mintonette (1895); World's first intercontinental ballistic missile, the R-7 Semyorka, becomes operational (1959); NFL star Saquon Barkley is born (1997); "Crime and Punishment" author Fyodor Dostoyevsky dies (1881)

February 8

Execution of Mary, Queen of Scots (1587); French author Jules Verne born (1828); Boy Scouts of America is founded (1910); Hollywood legend Lana Turner born (1921); Actor James Dean born (1931); Hollywood Walk of Fame breaks ground (1960); Nasdaq Stock Market index holds first trading day (1971).

February 7

English writer Charles Dickens born (1812); American writer Sinclair Lewis born (1885); The Great Baltimore Fire breaks out (1904); The US bans all Cuban imports and exports (1962); Country musician Garth Brooks born (1962); "Beatlemania" arrives in America (1964); Author and pilot Anne Morrow Lindbergh dies (2001).

February 6

Babe Ruth born (1895); Former President Ronald Reagan born (1911); Bob Marley born (1945); King George VI dies, Elizabeth II becomes queen (1952); Jack Kilby of Texas Instruments patents the first microchip (1959); Singer Rick Astley born (1966); Tennis legend and activist Arthur Ashe dies (1993).

February 5

Roger Williams, founder of Rhode Island, arrives in Boston (1631); Baseball legend Hank Aaron born (1934); English actress Charlotte Rampling born (1946); Apollo 14 astronauts land on the moon (1971); Brazilian football player Neymar born (1992); Medgar Evers’ murderer convicted after 30 years (1994); President Donald Trump acquitted in his first impeachment trial (2020). 

February 4

George Washington elected first president of the US (1789); Aviation innovator Charles Lindbergh born (1902); Rosa Parks born (1913); Feminist Betty Friedan is born (1921); Facebook launches (2004); Actor and playwright Ossie Davis dies (2005).

February 3

15th Amendment to US Constitution ratified, granting voting rights regardless of race (1870); American novelist Gertrude Stein born (1874); Luna 9 becomes first spacecraft to make soft landing on the moon (1966); Eileen Collins becomes the first woman to pilot a space shuttle (1995).