18 February 1861
On this date in 1861…
Jefferson Davis took the oath as provisional president of the Confederate States of America at his inauguration in Montgomery, Alabama.
- Other Years:
- 1685 – Fort St. Louis was established by French soldiers at Matagorda Bay forming the basis for a French claim to Texas.
- 1817 – Confederate General Lewis A. Armistead was born in New Bern, North Carolina.
- 1861 – General David Twiggs surrendered all federal military posts in Texas to state authorities.
- 1876 – Twenty-Fifth U.S. Infantry soldiers fought Indians in the Carrizo Mountains of Texas with no casualties recorded on either side.
- 1878 – Rancher John Tunstall was murdered by outlaw Jessie Evans and others, sparking the Lincoln County War in Lincoln County, New Mexico.
- 1885 – Mark Twain published The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
- 1915 – Confederate veteran and Western outlaw Frank James died at the age of 72 at his home in Clay County, Missouri.
- 2001 – “The Intimidator,” NASCAR star Dale Earnhardt died in a crash on the final lap of the Daytona 500.
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