1. In 1820, Massachusetts became the first state in the United States to require all school-aged children to attend school. This law, known as the Massachusetts Compulsory Education Law, became a model for other states in later years.

2. On March 3, 1851, the Massachusetts legislature passed the Ruffian Law, which was intended to prevent the spread of slavery into the state. The law authorized authorities to arrest and jail anyone suspected of being a slave-catcher or participating in the slave trade.

3. Massachusetts native James B. Conant was born on March 3, 1893. Conant was a chemist and educator who became president of Harvard University in 1933. He was instrumental in transforming the university into a world-class institution of higher learning.

4. On March 3, 1915, the Boston Braves (now the Atlanta Braves) held the first-ever spring training at their new facility in St. Petersburg, Florida. The team had previously trained in Hot Springs, Arkansas, but moved to Florida due to concerns about race relations in the South.

5. On March 3, 1924, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) announced the creation of the world's first artificial radioactivity. Scientists at MIT had managed to produce a tiny amount of a radioactive isotope by bombarding lithium with alpha particles. This discovery would pave the way for future research into nuclear physics and the development of nuclear energy.