This Day in History for June 29 – Globe Theater Burns and More

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history:

1613 – The Globe Theatre in London, England burns to the ground during a performance of Shakespeare’s Henry VIII (More info)

1956 – The Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 is signed, officially creating the United States Interstate Highway System (More info)

1972 – In Furman v. Georgia, the US Supreme Court rules that arbitrary and inconsistent imposition of the death penalty could constitute cruel and unusual punishment; it results in a de facto moratorium on capital punishment until 1976. (More info)

1974 – Dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov defects from the Soviet Union to Canada while on tour with Bolshoi Ballet (More info)

1995 – The shuttle Atlantis docks with the Russian space station Mir, forming the largest man-made satellite ever to orbit Earth (More info)