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On Friday, July 23rd, the 204th day of 1999 there were 161 days left in the year. What happened on July 23rd in earlier years? You’d be surprised!

1715 - The first lighthouse in America was authorized for construction at Little Brewster Island, Massachusetts

1827 - The first swimming school in America opened in Boston, MA.

1829 - The first typewriter was patented by William Burt.

1903 - The Ford Motor Company sold its first automobile, designed by Henry Ford, in Detroit.

1938 - The first federal game preserve, with about 2,000 acres of land in Utah, was approved by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

1972 - Eddie Merckx of Belgium won his fourth consecutive Tour de France bicycling competition.

1994 - The space shuttle “Columbia” returned to earth after a 15-day mission which included experiments on the effects of weightlessness on aquatic animals.

Dodger pitcher Don Drysdale is 63.

Actor-comedian Woody Harrelson is 38.

Actress Charisma Carpenter (”Buffy the Vampire Slayer”) is 29.

Country singer Alison Krauss is 28.

Actor-comedian Marlon Wayans is 27.