Today in History, June 16, 1884: First roller coaster opened at Coney Island in New York

Today is June 16. On this date in:

1567

Mary, Queen of Scots, was imprisoned in Lochleven Castle in Scotland. (She escaped almost a year later but ended up imprisoned again.)

1858

Accepting the Illinois Republican Party's nomination for the U.S. Senate, Abraham Lincoln said the slavery issue had to be resolved, declaring, “A house divided against itself cannot stand.”

1883

Baseball’s first “Ladies’ Day” took place as the New York Gothams offered women free admission to a game against the Cleveland Spiders. (New York won, 5-2.)

1884

The first roller coaster in America opened at Coney Island in Brooklyn, New York.

1903

Ford Motor Co. was incorporated.

1908 

The Republican National Convention convened in Chicago where President Theodore Roosevelt picked Cincinnatian William Howard Taft as his successor.

1911

IBM had its beginnings as the Computing-Tabulating-Recording Co. which was incorporated in New York State.

1933

The National Industrial Recovery Act became law with President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s signature. (The Act was later struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court.)

1933

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. was founded as President Roosevelt signed the Banking Act of 1933.

1944

George Stinney, a 14-year-old black youth, was electrocuted by South Carolina for the murders of white girls, Betty June Binnicker, 11, and Mary Emma Thames, 7. (His conviction was vacated in 2014 when a circuit ruled Stinney did not receive a fair trial.)

1963

The world’s first female space traveler, Valentina Tereshkova, 26, was launched into orbit by the Soviet Union aboard Vostok 6; she spent 71 hours in flight, circling the Earth 48 times before returning safely.

1978

President Jimmy Carter and Panamanian leader Omar Torrijos signed the instruments of ratification for the Panama Canal treaties during a ceremony in Panama City.

1996

Russian voters went to the polls in their first independent presidential election; the result was a runoff between President Boris Yeltsin (the eventual winner) and Communist challenger Gennady Zyuganov.

2009

President Barack Obama met with South Korean President Lee Myung-bak at the White House; afterward, Obama declared North Korea a “grave threat” to the world and pledged the U.S. and its allies would aggressively enforce fresh penalties against the nuclear-armed nation. 

2015

Real estate mogul Donald Trump launched his successful campaign to become president.