1. In 1837, the Washington and Alexandria Railroad was officially opened, connecting the two cities and paving the way for expansion and growth in the area.

2. On November 7, 1924, the first annual Marine Corps Marathon was held in D.C., with 24 runners participating. Today, the marathon is one of the largest in the world, attracting tens of thousands of participants each year.

3. In 1967, civil rights leader Stokely Carmichael (later known as Kwame Ture) spoke at Howard University in D.C., where he famously coined the term “Black Power.”

4. On this day in 1991, the U.S. Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1991, which strengthened existing civil rights laws and provided for monetary damages in cases of discrimination.

5. In 2000, the state of Florida held a pivotal recount in the presidential election between George W. Bush and Al Gore. The outcome of the election hinged on the results in Florida, and on November 7, 2000, the Palm Beach County Canvassing Board ordered a manual recount of all ballots in the county.