Today in history—April 20

571: The Prophet Muhammad is born in Mecca in what is now Saudi Arabia.  A prosperous merchant, he will experience his vision at the age of 40.

1653: Oliver Cromwell dissolves the English Parliament. “You have been sat too long here for any good you have been doing.  Depart, I say, and let us have done with you! In the name of God—go!”

1769: Pontiac, the Ottawa chief who in 1763 led attacks on the British for their refusal to allow free trade in firearms and ammunition, is murdered at Cahokia, Illinois, by a member of the rival Peoria tribe.

1862: Louis Pasteur completes the first test of his new “pasteurization” process.

1889: One of the few vegetarian artists to become head of a major European state, Adolf Hitler, is born at at Braunau am Inn, Austria.

1895: The Grunden-Martin Woodenware Co. sends a request for the “lowest price” from Fairmount Glass Works for an order of Mason jars.

1914: Colorado National Guardsmen clash with striking employees of the Colorado Fuel & Iron Co.; after a day of battle, 26 people are dead in what comes to be known as the “Ludlow Massacre.”

1920: U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens (Northwestern Law 1947) is born at Chicago, Illinois.

1923: Rita Frances Rizzo, the nun who will found the EWTN broadcasting network (now in 110 countries) is born at Canton, Ohio.

1926: Western Electric Co. and Warner Bros. announce the new Vitaphone sound process, which will lead the next year to the first “talking” picture.

2001: Violence erupts at rallies in Quebec City protesting free trade.