Historical events on March 21

MARCH 21, 1952
The Moondog Coronation Ball (poster pictured), generally considered to be the first major rock and roll concert, took place at the Cleveland Arena in Cleveland, Ohio.
The Moondog Coronation Ball was a concert held at the Cleveland Arena in Cleveland, Ohio, on March 21, 1952. It is generally
Read More

MARCH 21, 1913
More than 360 were killed and 20,000 homes were destroyed in the Great Dayton Flood in Dayton, Ohio, U.S.
The Great Dayton Flood of 1913, part of the Great Flood of 1913, resulted from flooding by the Great Miami River reaching
Read More

MARCH 21, 1788
A large fire destroyed 856 of the 1,100 structures in New Orleans.
The Great New Orleans Fire (1788) was a fire that destroyed 856 of the 1,100 structures in New Orleans, Louisiana, on March
Read More

MARCH 21, 1946
The Los Angeles Rams signed Kenny Washington, making him the first African-American player in the National Football League since 1933.
The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Rams compete in the
Read More

MARCH 21, 1814
War of the Sixth Coalition: During their march on Paris, Coalition forces defeated Napoleon's French army on the final day of the Battle of Arcis-sur-Aube.
In the War of the Sixth Coalition, sometimes known in Germany as the Wars of Liberation, a coalition of Austria, Prussia, Russia,
Read More

MARCH 21, 2019
A major explosion at a chemical plant in Yancheng, China, killed 78 people and injured 640 others.
On 21 March 2019, a major explosion occurred at a chemical plant in Chenjiagang Chemical Industry Park, Chenjiagang, Xiangshui County, Yancheng, Jiangsu,
Read More

MARCH 21, 1963
Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary on Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay, California—one of the world's most notorious and best known prisons—was closed.
United States Penitentiary, Alcatraz Island, also known simply as Alcatraz or the Rock, was a maximum security federal prison on Alcatraz Island,
Read More

MARCH 21, 1861
Alexander H. Stephens, Vice President of the Confederate States of America, gave an extemporaneous speech laying out the Confederacy's rationale for seceding from the United States.
Alexander Hamilton Stephens was an American politician who served as the first and only vice president of the Confederate States from 1861
Read More

MARCH 21, 1925
Ravel's opera L'enfant et les sortilèges (cover pictured), to a libretto by Colette, was premiered at the Opéra de Monte-Carlo.
L'enfant et les sortilèges: Fantaisie lyrique en deux parties is an opera in one act, with music by Maurice Ravel to a
Read More

MARCH 21, 1937
A police squad, acting under orders from Governor of Puerto Rico Blanton Winship, opened fire on demonstrators protesting the arrest of Puerto Rican Nationalist leader Pedro Albizu Campos, killing 21 people and injuring 235 others.
Blanton C. Winship was an American military lawyer and veteran of both the Spanish–American War and World War I. During his career,
Read More

MARCH 21, 1825
During his tour of the United States, the Marquis de Lafayette laid the cornerstone for the Nathanael Greene Monument in Savannah, Georgia.
From July 1824 to September 1825, the French Marquis de Lafayette, the last surviving major general of the American Revolutionary War, made
Read More

MARCH 21, 1968
War of Attrition: The Battle of Karameh took place between the Israel Defense Forces and allied troops of the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Jordanian Armed Forces.
The War of Attrition involved fighting between Israel and Egypt, Jordan, the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) and their allies from 1967 to 1970.

MARCH 21, 1556
Former Archbishop of Canterbury Thomas Cranmer, one of the founders of Anglicanism, was burnt at the stake for heresy in Oxford, England.
The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the ceremonial head of the
Read More

MARCH 21, 1918
First World War: The German Army opened the Spring Offensive with Operation Michael, attempting to break through the Allied lines and to seize ports on the English Channel.
World War I or the First World War, also known as the Great War, was a global conflict between two coalitions: the
Read More

MARCH 21, 1960
Police in Sharpeville, South Africa, opened fire on a group of unarmed black demonstrators who were protesting pass laws, killing 69 people and wounding 180 others.
Sharpeville is a township situated between two large industrial cities, Vanderbijlpark and Vereeniging, in southern Gauteng, South Africa. Sharpeville is one of
Read More