Puccini's opera Madame Butterfly premiers at the La Scala Theater, Thomas Jefferson was elected President with Aaron Burr as his Vice President, and Baltimore was the first city with gas lights in This Day in History video. The date is February 17th. Madame Butterfly closed after one night and when it reopened it became very popular.
Samuel Sandoval, one of the last original Navajo Code Talkers, recalls enlisting in the Marines at 18 to help create an unbreakable code. Using their sacred, unwritten language, he and his brothers-in-arms forged a secret weapon that never fell to the enemy.
Historian Zonnie Gorman shares the legacy of the Navajo Code Talkers, including her father, Carl. These heroes used their native language to help secure every major Pacific battle. As Major Connor noted, without them, Iwo Jima would never have been taken.