1493 – Explorer Christopher Columbus arrived back in Lisbon, Portugal on the 4th March 1493, aboard his ship Niña from his voyage to The Bahamas and other islands in the Caribbean.

1519 – Hernan Cortes arrived in Mexico in search of the Aztec civilization and their wealth on the 4th March 1519.

1675 – John Flamsteed was appointed the first Astronomer Royal of England on the 4th March 1675.

1678 – Antonio Vivaldi the Italian violinist and composer was born on the 4th March 1678 (died 1741).

1932 – Miriam Makeba the South African singer-songwriter and actress was born on the 4th March 1932 (died 2008).

1932 – Ed Roth the American illustrator was born on the 4th March 1932 (died 2001).

1938 – Anton Balasingham the Sri Lankan-English negotiator was born on the 4th March 1938 (died 2006).

1944 – Bobby Womack the American singer-songwriter was born on the 4th March 1944.

1947 – Bob Lewis the American guitarist  from Devo was born on the 4th March 1947.

1948 – Shakin’ Stevens the Welsh singer-songwriter was born on the 4th March 1948.

1951 – Chris Rea the English singer-songwriter and guitarist was born on the 4th March 1951.

1952 – Ronn Moss the American singer-songwriter from Player was born on the 4th March 1952.

1952 – Peter Kuhfeld the English painter was born on the 4th March 1952.

1953 – John Edwards the Australian television producer was born on the 4th March 1953.

1955 – Tim Costello the Australian minister was born on the 4th March 1955.

1955 – Rowland Charles Gould the English guitarist from Level 42 was born on the 4th March 1955.

1958 – Lennie Lee the South African painter was born on the 4th March 1958.

1962 – Simon Bisley the English illustrator was born on the 4th March 1962.

1964 – Karen Knowles the Australian singer-songwriter from The Seekers was born on the 4th March 1964.

1966 – Steve Bastoni the Italian-Australian actor was born on the 4th March 1966.

1967 – Evan Dando the American singer-songwriter and guitarist from The Lemonheads was born on the 4th March 1967.

1968 – Patsy Kensit the English actress and singer was born on the 4th March 1968.

1969 – Matt Tilley the Australian comedian and radio host was born on the 4th March 1969.

1977 – Jeremiah Green the American drummer from Modest Mouse was born on the 4th March 1977. YouTube Vevo video: Modest Mouse (2004) ~ Float On…

1631 – Esaias Boursse the Dutch painter was born on the 3rd March 1631 (died 1672).

1816 – William James Blacklock the English painter was born on the 3rd March 1816 (died 1858).

1845 – Florida was admitted as the 27th U.S. state on the 3rd March 1845.

1847 – Alexander Graham Bell the Scottish-American engineer and inventer of the Telephone was born on the 3rd March 1847 (died 1922).

1875 – Georges Bizet‘s opera Carmen received its première on the 3rd March 1875, at the Opéra Comique in Paris.

1893 – Beatrice Wood the American illustrator and potter was born on the 3rd March 1893 (died 1998).

1904 – Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany became the 1st person to make a sound recording of a political document on the 3rd March 1904, using Thomas Edison‘s phonograph cylinder.

1914 – Asger Jorn the Danish painter was born on the 3rd March 1914 (died 1973).

1915 – NACA the predecessor of NASA was founded on the 3rd March 1915.

1920 – Ronald Searle the English illustrator was born on the 3rd March 1920 (died 2011).

1923 – TIME magazine was published for the 1st time on the 3rd March 1923.

1931 – The United States adopted The Star-Spangled Banner as its national anthem on the 3rd March 1931.

1933 – Margaret Fink the Australian film producer was born on the 3rd March 1933.

1937 – Bobby Driscoll the American actor was born on the 3rd March 1937 (died 1968).

1938 – Oil was discovered in Saudi Arabia on the 3rd March 1938.

1938 – The Mallard the fastest steam driven train on the planet, was built on the 3rd March 1938 by LNER Doncaster Works England.

1942 – Mike Pender the English singer-songwriter and guitarist from The Searchers was born on the 3rd March 1942.

1945 – George Miller the Australian director, screenwriter, and producer was born on the 3rd March 1945.

1948 – Snowy White the English singer-songwriter and guitarist from Thin Lizzy and Pink Floyd was born on the 3rd March 1948.

1951 – Jackie Brenston with Ike Turner and his band recorded Rocket 88 on the 3rd March 1951, at Sam Phillips‘ recording studios in Memphis, Tennessee. It is often referred to as the 1st rock and roll record.

1954 – John Lilley the American singer-songwriter and guitarist from The Hooters was born on the 3rd March 1954.

1957 – Thom Hoffman the Dutch actor and photographer was born on the 3rd March 1957.

1962 – Glen E. Friedman the American photographer was born on the 3rd March 1962.

1966 – Tone Lōc the American rapper, producer, and actor was born on the 3rd March 1966.

1969 – NASA launched Apollo 9 on the 3rd March 1969, to test the lunar module.

1976 – Fraser Gehrig the Australian footballer was born on the 3rd March 1976.

1977 ~ Ronan Keating the Irish singer, songwriter, X Factor judge, originally from Boyzone was born on the 3rd March 1977. Ronan Keating’s official website: www.RonanKeating.com

1982 – Jessica Biel the American actress and singer was born on the 3rd March 1982.

1991 – An amateur video captureed the beating of Rodney King by Los Angeles police officers on the 3rd March 1991.

1992 – Jordy Lucas the Australian actress was born on the 3rd March 1992.

1997 – The tallest free-standing structure in the Southern Hemisphere, Sky Tower in Auckland, New Zealand, opened on the 3rd March 1997.

2005 – Steve Fossett became the 1st person to fly an airplane non-stop around the world solo without refueling on the 3rd March 2005.

2009 – The Historical Archive of the City of Cologne collapsed on the 3rd March 2009.

1498 – Vasco da Gama‘s fleet visited the Island of Mozambique on the 2nd March 1498.

1717 – The Loves of Mars and Venus was the 1st ballet performed in England on the 2nd March 1717.

1791 – Long-distance communication sped up with the unveiling of a semaphore machine on the 2nd March 1791, in Paris.

1797 – The Bank of England issued the 1st one-pound and two-pound banknotes on the 2nd March 1797.

1842 – Carl Jacobsen the Danish brewer was born on the 2nd March 1842 (died 1914).

1882 – Queen Victoria narrowly escaped an assassination attempt on the 2nd March 1882, by Roderick McLean in Windsor.

1886 – Willis H. O’Brien the American animator was born on the 2nd March 1886 (died 1962).

1904 – Dr. Seuss the American author, poet, and illustrator was born on the 2nd March 1904 (died 1991).

1921 – Ernst Haas the Austrian photographer was born on the 2nd March 1921 (died 1986).

1933 – The film King Kong opened at New York’s Radio City Music Hall on the 2nd March 1933.

1942 – Lou Reed the American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer was born on the 2nd March 1942.

1948 – Rory Gallagher the Irish singer-songwriter and guitarist from Taste was born on the 2nd March 1948 (died 1995).

1948 – Jeff Kennett the Australian politician and 43rd Premier of Victoria was born on the 2nd March 1948.

1949 – The 1st automatic street light was installed on the 2nd March 1949, in New Milford, Connecticut.

1950 – Karen Carpenter the American singer and drummer from The Carpenters was born on the 2nd March 1950 (died 1983).

1955 – Dale Bozzio the American singer from Missing Persons was born on the 2nd March 1955.

1956 – Morocco gained its independence from France on the 2nd March 1956.

1956 – Mark Evans the Australian bass player from AC/DC was born on the 2nd March 1956.

1959 – GX Jupitter-Larsen the American painter was born on the 2nd March 1959.

1962 – Jon Bon Jovi the American singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer, and actor was born on the 2nd March 1962.

1963 – Anthony Albanese the Australian politician and 15th Deputy Prime Minister of Australia was born on the 2nd March 1963.

1969 – In Toulouse, France, the 1st test flight of the Anglo-French Concorde was conducted on the 2nd March 1969.

1971 – Dave Gorman the English comedian and author was born on the 2nd March 1971.

1971 – Lisa Lackey the Australian actress was born on the 2nd March 1971.

1972 – The Pioneer 10 space probe was launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida on the 2nd March 1972, with a mission to explore the outer planets.

1977 – Chris Martin the English singer-songwriter from Coldplay was born on the 2nd March 1977.

1978 – Czech Vladimír Remek became the 1st non-Russian or non-American to go into space on the 2nd March 1978, when he was launched aboard Soyuz 28.

1983 – Compact Discs and players were released for the 1st time in the United States and other markets on the 2nd March 1983. They had previously been available only in Japan.

1984 – Elizabeth Jagger the English model and actress was born on the 2nd March 1984.

1989 – 12 European Community nations agreed to ban the production of all chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) by the end of the century, on the 2nd March 1989.

1990 – Nelson Mandela was elected deputy President of the African National Congress on the 2nd March 1990.

1998 – Data sent from the Galileo spacecraft indicated that Jupiter‘s moon Europa has a liquid ocean under a thick crust of ice on the 2nd March 1998.

1565 – The city of Rio de Janeiro was founded on the 1st March 1565 .

1803 – Ohio was admitted as the 17th U.S. state on the 1st March 1803.

1901 – The Australian Army was formed on the 1st March 1901.

1927 – Harry Belafonte the American singer-songwriter and actor was born on the 1st March 1927.

1937 – Jimmy Little the Australian guitarist, actor and educator was born on the 1st March 1937 (died 2012).

1947 ~ Alan Thicke the Canadian actor, comedian, songwriter, game and talk show host, best known as Jason Seaver in Growing Pains was born Alan Willis Jeffery in Kirkland Lake, Ontario, Canada on the 1st March 1947. Alan Thicke is the father of singer-songwriter Robin Thicke.

1952 – Leigh Matthews the Australian footballer and coach was born on the 1st March 1952.

1954 – Ron Howard the American actor, director, and producer was born on the 1st March 1954.

1960 ~ Benedict Allen (FRGS) the British writer, traveller and adventurer was born on the 1st March 1960.

1975 ~ Countdown the Australian music television show was first broadcast in colour on the 1st March 1975. The ABC broadcast Countdown from from the 8th November 1974 until  the 19th July 1987. Countdown was the most popular music program in Australian TV history. Countdown had a strong influence on radio programmers because of its huge and loyal audience, and the great amount of Australian content it featured. Countdown online : Countdown.com.au | CountdownMemories.com | YouTube video:First Colour Countdown | 1 March 1975, ABC TV…

1991 ~ Sophie Stuckey the London, actress was born on the 1st March 1991. Sophie Stuuckley is known for her roles in Doctor Sleep, I Capture the Castle, The Dark and My Life in Ruins.