1. In 1845, Florida became the 27th state in the United States. Prior to that, it had been a territory of the U.S. for more than 17 years.
2. In 1967, astronaut Edward White II, a native of San Antonio, Texas, died in a training accident at Cape Kennedy (now known as Cape Canaveral) in Florida. White was the first American to walk in space, during the Gemini 4 mission in 1965.
3. On January 27, 1984, the Miami Hurricanes football team won their first-ever national championship, defeating Nebraska 31-30 in the Orange Bowl. The victory capped off a remarkable season for the Hurricanes, who finished with a record of 11-1.
4. In 1998, a tornado struck Kissimmee, Florida, causing significant damage and resulting in the deaths of 25 people. The tornado was part of a larger outbreak that affected a number of other communities in the region.
5. On January 27, 2003, the space shuttle Columbia disintegrated during re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere, killing all seven astronauts on board. The disaster occurred just 16 minutes before the shuttle was scheduled to land at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.