Author Toni Morrison won the Nobel Peace Prize for literature for her work and essays about the Black American experience.
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Portuguese explorer Juan RodrĂguez Cabrillo discovers Catalina Island off the coast of California.
Arnold Schwarzenegger became Governor of California.
A Spanish nurse became the first person to contract Ebola outside of West Africa.
The Massachusetts Charter was signed, which established the Province of Massachusetts Bay.
British Newspaper 'The Independent' was first published.