February 19

356 – Emperor Constantius II issues a decree closing all pagan temples in the Roman Empire.

1649 – The Second Battle of Guararapes takes place, effectively ending Dutch colonization efforts in Brazil.

1674 – England and the Netherlands sign the Treaty of Westminster, ending the Third Anglo-Dutch War. A provision of the agreement transfers the Dutch colony of New Amsterdam to England, and it is renamed New York.

1807 – Charged with Treason for supposedly plotting a rebellion and secession in the then western frontier, former Vice President Aaron Burr is arrested in Wakefield, Alabama, but later acquitted due to a lack of evidence.

1846 – In Austin, Texas, the Republic of Texas government officially transfers power to the State of Texas government following annexation by the United States.

1847 – 4 months after becoming trapped by snowfall near Truckee Lake in the Sierra Nevada mountain range of California, the first group of rescuers finally reaches the Donner Party.

1878 – Thomas Edison receives a patent for his phonograph.

1915 – The first naval attack on the Dardanelles begins when a strong Anglo-French task force bombards Ottoman artillery along the coast of Gallipoli during World War I

1942 – During World War II, President Roosevelt signs executive order 9066, allowing the U.S. military to relocate Japanese Americans to internment camps.

1943 – The first actions between U.S and German ground forces begins around the Kasserine Pass of the Atlas Mountains in Tunisia.

1945 – U.S. forces, mainly consisting of 3 divisions of U.S. Marines, begin assault landings on the Japanese island of Iwo Jima. During the assault, Gunnery Sergeant John Basilone, awarded the Medal of Honor for action on Guadalcanal, is killed by mortar fire.

1976 – Executive Order 9066, which led to the relocation of Japanese Americans to internment camps, is finally officially rescinded by President Gerald Ford’s Proclamation 4417.

1985 – William J. Schroeder becomes the first recipient of a Jarvik 7 artificial heart to leave the hospital. 18 days later he suffers a stroke that leaves him in a permanent coma but lives until August of the next year.

2002 – NASA’s Mars Odyssey space probe begins to map the surface of Mars from orbit.