Sesame Street premieres. Sesame Street, the long-running American children's television series, premiered on TV stations.

North American Numbering Plan begins. The plan standardized distance calling and gave phone numbers in cities a fixed 3 digit prefix, also called an area code. This made making long-distance calls faster and easier and without the involvement of an operator. The first call under the plan was made between the mayors of Englewood, New Jersey and Alameda, California.

Windshield wiper patented. The US patent office granted inventor Mary Anderson a patent for automatic windshield wipers - a device that is used to remove or wipe the front and back windshields in automobiles.

Wilmington riots begin. Thought to be one of the only incidents of insurrection against a local government in the United States, the Wilmington Race Riots of 1898 or the Wilmington Massacre of 1898 began after an election voted in a biracial city council. In retaliation, white supremacists overthrew the council, destroyed a lot of property and killed many black people in the city over the course of a few days.

US Marine Corps is created. The elite military force capable of operating on land, sea and air was founded in Philadelphia during the American Revolutionary War. A resolution of the Second Continental Congress formed two battalions of Continental Marines that became the forerunners of today's marine corps.