February 9
1780
Capt. Paul Cuffee and six other African-American residents of Massachussetts petition the state legislature for the right to vote; the court awards them equal rights.
1950
United States Senator Joe McCarthy accused more than 200 staff in the State Department of being Communist, launching his anti-red crusade.
1964
The “GI Joe” action doll debuts.
1965
President Lyndon Johnson ordered the first U.S. combat troops to Da Nang, South Vietnam to provide protection for the key U.S. air base there. U.S. advisors had been in the country since the retreat of the French in 1954 but this was the first commitment of American combat troops in South Vietnam. There was considerable reaction around the world to the new stage of U.S. involvement in the war.
Deanna Dee-Dee Taylor 