On this day in 1897, Italian scientist Guglielmo Marconi obtained a patent for radio in London.
On this day in 1964, US President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act meant to prohibit segregation in public places.
On this day in 2000, Vicente Fox Quesada was elected the first President of México from an opposition party, after more than 70 years of continuous rule by the Partido Revolucionario Institucional.
And on this day in 2002, Steve Fossett became the first person to fly solo around the world nonstop in a balloon.