View Historical Events by Day: What Happened Today in History: March 2

The first formal French-language newspaper, "Le Mercure Galant," is published in France.

The Act of Union between Great Britain and Ireland is passed, creating the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.

The U.S. Congress passes the Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves, banning the importation of slaves into the United States.

The U.S. Congress passes the Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves, banning the importation of slaves into the United States.

The Republic of Texas formally declares independence from Mexico at the convention of Washington-on-the-Brazos which was attended by 45 delegates, representing 21 municipalities. Over the next ten days, delegates prepared a constitution for the Republic of Texas; David G. Burnet was elected president. The new constitution explicitly legalized slavery which Mexico had officially abolished slavery in Texas in 1829. Texas was annexed by the United States in 1845 and became the 28th state on December 29, 1845. On March 2, 1861, Texas becomes the seventh state to secede from the Union. More

Pioneer 10 is launched to study Jupiter. It was NASA's first mission to the outer planets. The mission was a spectacular success and the spacecraft notched a series of firsts unmatched by any other robotic spacecraft to date. More