SATURDAY, JANUARY 3, 2009

Today is Saturday, January 3, the third day of 2009. There are 362 days left in the year.

1431 _ Joan of Arc handed over to the bishop

1521 _ Martin Luther excommunicated by Roman Catholic Church

1852 _ First Chinese arrive in Hawaii

1868 _ Meiji Restoration returns authority to Japan's emperors

1910 _ British miners strike for 8-hour working day

1925 _ Mussolini dissolves Italian parliament/becomes dictator

1959 _ Alaska admitted as 49th U.S. state

1961 _ U.S. breaks diplomatic relations with Cuba

1970 _ Marxist government takes over in Congo

1988 _ Margaret Thatcher becomes longest-serving British P.M. this century