October 11, 1779

1779 Polish patriot and American Revolution hero Casimir Pulaski died after being wounded in the American and French attempts to re-take Savannah from British control.

October 11, 1853

1853 The cornerstone of the 55-foot-high Pulaski Monument was laid in Monterey Square in Savannah.

October 11, 1865

1865 President Andrew Johnson paroled Confederate Vice President Alexander Stephens of Georgia.

October 11, 1918

1918 Spanish influenza cases remained relatively low in Atlanta, while the University of Georgia announced classes would resume October 21. Classes had been suspended October 7 as a precaution against the Spanish flu epidemic.

October 11, 1927

1927 "Lindbergh Day" was held in Atlanta. Events began at 1 p.m. at Candler Field. Charles Lindbergh flew the "Spirit of St. Louis" over the city and landed at Candler Field at 2 p.m. The entourage left for downtown Atlanta, where a parade was held. Shortly before 4 p.m., Lindbergh arrived at Georgia Tech Stadium, where he gave an address to 20,000 spirited onlookers. From there, he traveled to the Biltmore Hotel for ceremonies with the governor of Georgia and Atlanta’s mayor. The next morning, Lindbergh was off to Spartanburg, South Carolina--the next stop on his scheduled tour.

October 11, 1979

1979 The U.S. Postal Service released a Casimir Pulaski postal card to mark the 200th anniversary of his death following a mortal injury during the siege of Savannah, in which American and French forces tried to retake Savannah from the British. First-day-of-issue ceremonies were held in Savannah.

October 11, 1980

1980 The University of Georgia football team continued its national championship run with a 28-21 win over the University of Mississippi. With Herschel Walker injured for most of the game, reserve running back Carnie Norris and quarterback Buck Belue took up the slack, accounting for over 250 yards and two touchdowns between them.

October 11, 1992

1992 Deion Sanders acoomplished a sports feat never before done on this day - actually two feats. He played in two separate professional sports games in one day. He played for the Atlanta Falcons in the afternoon, then caught a plane to Pittsburg to play for the Atlanta Braves in the playoffs that night.

October 11, 2001

2001 Former Georgia state school superintendent Linda Schrenko was indicted for allegedly using education money to help finance her re-election campaign.

October 11, 2002

2002 Former president and native Georgian Jimmy Carter was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for decades of work in promoting human rights and international peace. The former governor of Georgia announced that the $1,000,000 associated with the award would be used by the Carter Center in Atlanta. Carter became the second Georgia native to receive the Nobel Peace Prize--which is a record for any American state. In 1964, Martin Luther King, Jr. was the first native-born Georgian to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. Though not born in Georgia, Pres. Woodrow Wilson (who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1919) spent part of his youth in Augusta and practiced law in Atlanta.