On this day in 1948, Margaret Chase Smith was elected senator, and became the first woman to serve in both the US House of Representatives and the United States Senate.
On this day in 1971, Chinese Communist Party Chairman Mao Zedong's second in command and successor Marshal Lin Biao fled the country via plane after the failure of alleged coup against Mao. The plane crashed in Mongolia, killing all aboard.
And this day in 1989 saw the largest anti-Apartheid march in South Africa, led by Desmond Tutu.