Here are some notable historical events that occurred on February 3 throughout history:
1488: Portuguese explorer Bartholomeu Dias landed at Mossel Bay in present-day South Africa, marking the first known European landing on the southern tip of the continent.
1509: The Battle of Diu saw the Portuguese navy decisively defeat a combined fleet from the Ottoman Empire, Venice, Egypt's Mamluk Sultanate, and others off the coast of India, securing Portuguese dominance in Indian Ocean trade routes.
1870: The 15th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was ratified, prohibiting the denial of voting rights based on race, color, or previous condition of servitude (a key step in post-Civil War civil rights for African Americans).
1943: During World War II, the U.S. Army transport ship SS Dorchester was torpedoed by a German U-boat off Greenland. In an act of heroism, four chaplains (known as the "Four Chaplains") gave their life jackets to others and went down with the ship while praying.
1959: Often called "The Day the Music Died", rock 'n' roll pioneers Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J.P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson (along with pilot Roger Peterson) perished in a plane crash near Clear Lake, Iowa, during a tour.
1966: The Soviet Union's Luna 9 probe achieved the first soft landing on the Moon and transmitted photos of the lunar surface back to Earth.
1972: The Iran Blizzard began, lasting about a week and becoming the deadliest snowstorm in recorded history, killing at least 4,000 people.
Other events include the ratification of the U.S. income tax amendment (related events around 1913) and various space, military, and political milestones.
Notable births on February 3:
Felix Mendelssohn (1809), German composer known for works like the "Wedding March."
Elizabeth Blackwell (1821), the first woman to earn a medical degree in the United States.
Norman Rockwell (1894), iconic American illustrator and painter.
Notable deaths on February 3:
Woodrow Wilson (1924), 28th U.S. President.
Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and The Big Bopper (1959), as noted above.
February 3 has seen a mix of exploration, civil rights advancements, heroism in war, tragic losses in music, and space achievements.