April 30th
* 1492 - Spain gives Christopher Columbus his commission of exploration.
* 1789 - On the balcony of Federal Hall on Wall Street in New York City, George Washington takes the oath of office becoming the first elected President of the United States.
* 1803 - Louisiana Purchase: The United States purchases the Louisiana Territory from France for $15 million, more than doubling the size of the young nation overnight.
* 1812 - The Territory of Orleans becomes the 18th U.S. state under the name Louisiana.
* 1864 - American Civil War: Battle of Jenkin's Ferry - Retreating Union troops led by General Frederick Steele repel Confederate forces under General Edmund Kirby Smith.
* 1900 - Hawaii becomes a territory of the United States, with Sanford B. Dole as governor.
* 1900 - Casey Jones dies attempting to save the runaway train Cannonball Express.
* 1904 - Louisiana Purchase Exposition World's Fair opens in Saint Louis, Missouri.
* 1904 - The ice cream cone makes its debut.
* 1927 - The Federal Industrial Institute for Women, opens in Alderson, West Virginia as the first women's federal prison in the United States.
* 1938 - The cartoon short Porky's Hare Hunt, debuts in movie theaters, introducing Bugs Bunny.
* 1939 - Franklin Delano Roosevelt becomes the first President of the United States to appear on television.
* 1939 - The 1939 New York World's Fair opens.
* 1945 - Adolf Hitler and Eva Braun commit suicide after being married for one day.
* 1945 - The morning radio program Arthur Godfrey Time starring Arthur Godfrey debuts.
(He helped Lenny Bruce get his start)
* 1948 - The Land Rover is unveiled at the Amsterdam Auto Show, thus providing self-important pricks in Hollywood with something to drive.
* 1966 - Anton LaVey founds the Church of Satan. \m/
\m/
* 1973 - Watergate Scandal: President Richard Nixon announces that top White House aids H.R. Haldeman, John Ehrlichman, and others have resigned.
* 1975 - Vietnam War: North Vietnamese troops occupy Saigon, ending the war.
* 1983 - Michael Jackson's song "Beat It" hits number 1 on the Billboard music charts.
* 1988 - In Dublin, Ireland, Céline Dion wins the thirty-third Eurovision Song Contest for Switzerland singing "Ne partez pas sans moi" (Don't leave without me).
* 1991 - A tropical cyclone hits Bangladesh killing an estimated 125,000 people.
* 1992 - The last episode of the Cosby Show airs.
* 1993 - CERN announces that the World Wide Web will be free to everyone.
* 1993 - During a changeover at a tennis tournament in Hamburg, Germany, Monica Seles is stabbed in the back by a deranged fan of rival Steffi Graf. Seles would not play competitively for more than two years after the incident.
* 1999 - NATO membership expands by approving the admission of the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland (the nations will be formally admitted following NATO's 50th anniversary summit next April). NATO aircraft destroy the Belgrade-Azala Tower.
* 1999 - Cambodia joins the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) bringing the total members to 10.
* 1999 - Neo-nazi bomber David Copeland detonates his third bomb in front of the Admiral Duncan pub and is arrested the night after.
* 2001 - Dennis Tito, the first space tourist in space lifts off in a Russian rocket heading for the International Space Station.
* 2002 - A referendum in Pakistan overwhelmingly approves the Presidency of Pervez Musharraf for another five years.
* 2004 - The last edition of NPR's Morning Edition with Bob Edwards as host airs.
Births
* 1602 - William Lilly, astrologer (d. 1681)
* 1662 - Queen Mary II of England (d. 1694)
* 1777 - Carl Friedrich Gauss, mathematician, astronomer and physicist (d. 1855)
* 1867 - Burton Mossman, Arizona Ranger (d. 1956)
* 1870 - Franz Lehár, composer (d. 1948)
* 1877 - Alice B. Toklas, muse (d. 1967)
* 1883 - Jaroslav Hašek, Czech novelist (d. 1923)
* 1889 - Ellis Wilson, artist
* 1893 - Joachim von Ribbentrop, Nazi foreign minister (d. 1946)
* 1898 - Cornelius Vanderbilt Jr., reporter, columnist, author, lecturer
* 1908 - Eve Arden, actress, also listed as 1912 (d. 1990)
* 1909 - Queen Juliana of the Netherlands (d. 2004)
* 1910 - Al Lewis, actor (The Munsters)
* 1911 - Luise Rinser, narrator (d. 2002)
* 1916 - Claude Shannon, the "father of information theory (d. 2001)
* 1916 - Robert Shaw, American conductor (d. 1999)
* 1926 - Cloris Leachman, actress (Oscar winner, 1971) also listed as 1930
* 1929 - Klausjürgen Wussow, actor
* 1933 - Willie Nelson, country musician, composer, actor
* 1938 - Gary Collins, actor
* 1938 - Larry Niven, science fiction author
* 1940 - Burt Young, actor
* 1941 - Johnny Farina, guitarist (Santo and Johnny)
* 1943 - Bobby Vee, singer
* 1944 - Jill Clayburgh, actress
* 1944 - Richard Schoff, singer (The Sandpipers)
* 1945 - Annie Dillard, poet, essayist, novelist
* 1946 - King Carl XVI Gustav of Sweden
* 1946 - Don Schollander, Olympic gold medalist in swimming
* 1946 - Ulla Hahn, lyricist
* 1948 - Perry King, actor (
Riptide, bitches)
* 1949 - Rand Noël, astrologer, philosopher
* 1953 - Marie Osmond, singer (The Osmonds)
* 1955 - Nicolas Hulot, journalist, author
* 1961 - Isiah Thomas, basketball player, coach, owner
* 1964 - Barrington Levy, reggae and dancehall musician
* 1967 - Turbo B, rapper (Snap)
* 1969 - Clark Vogeler, rock guitarist (The Toadies)
* 1972 - J.R. Richards, singer (Dishwalla)
* 1973 - Jeff Timmons, R&B singer (98 Degrees)
* 1975 - Elliott Sadler, NASCAR driver
* 1978 - Tom Fulp, computer artist, creator and owner of Newgrounds
* 1982 - Kirsten Dunst, actress
Deaths
* 65 - Lucan, Roman poet (b. 39)
* 1341 - John III of Dreux, Duke of Brittany
* 1847 - Archduke Charles, Austrian general
* 1865 - Robert Fitzroy, English admiral and meteorologist (b. 1805)
* 1875 - Jean Frederic Waldeck, French explorer, lithographer and cartographer (b. 1766)
* 1883 - Édouard Manet, impressionist painter (b. 1832)
* 1936 - Alfred Edward Housman, poet (b. 1859)
* 1943 - Otto Jespersen, Danish philologist (b. 1860)
* 1945 - Adolf Hitler and Eva Braun (suicide)
* 1956 - Alben W. Barkley, former Vice President of the United States (b. 1877)
* 1970 - Inger Stevens, actress (b. 1934)
* 1974 - Agnes Moorehead, actress (b. 1900)
* 1981 - Peter Huchel, German poet
* 1982 - Lester Bangs, music journalist, author, musician (b. 1949)
* 1983 - George Balanchine, dancer, choreographer (b. 1904)
* 1983 - Muddy Waters, blues musician (b. 1915)
* 1989 - Sergio Leone, Italian filmmaker (b. 1929)
* 2003 - Peter 'Possum' Bourne, 3-time Asia-Pacific Rally champion
* 2003 - Wim van Est, Dutch cyclist