Today is Saturday, May 17, the 138th day of 2008. There are 228 days left in the year.
1814 _ Denmark cedes Norway to Sweden (National Day)
1846 _ Saxophone is patented by Antoine Joseph Sax
1881 _ Revised version of the New Testament published
1884 _ Alaska becomes a U.S. territory
1921 _ Belgian-Luxembourg sign a customs union
1949 _ The British government recognizes the Republic of Ireland
1969 _ Russian probe Venera 6 landed on Venus
1971 _ The Washington State bans sex discrimination
1973 _ The Senate Watergate Committee begins its hearings
1989 Vincent Van Gogh's ``Portrait of Dr. Gachet" auctioned for $825 million