Associated Press

On May 16, 1866, Congress authorized minting of the first five-cent piece, also known as the “Shield nickel.”

In 1939, the federal government began its first food stamp program in Rochester, New York.

In 1943, the nearly month-long Warsaw Ghetto Uprising came to an end as German forces crushed the Jewish resistance and blew up the Great Synagogue.

In 1966, China launched the Cultural Revolution, a radical as well as deadly reform movement aimed at purging the country of “counter-revolutionaries.”

In 1990, death claimed entertainer Sammy Davis Jr. in Los Angeles at age 64 and “Muppets” creator Jim Henson in New York at age 53.

In 2013, “The Office” aired its final episode after nine seasons on the air on NBC.

In 2022, the U.S. COVID-19 death toll hit 1 million.