The 6th President of the United States, serving from 1825 to 1829. Son of President John Adams, he was a brilliant diplomat who later became a fierce opponent of slavery in Congress, famously arguing the Amistad case before the Supreme Court.
U.S. Vice President Aaron Burr fatally wounds former Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton in a duel. The duel took place in Weehawken, New Jersey, and Hamilton died of his wounds the following day.
Harper Lee's debut novel 'To Kill a Mockingbird' is published in the United States. The book immediately became a literary sensation, winning the Pulitzer Prize and becoming a classic of modern American literature.