On This Day in History, November 2, Harry Truman defeated Thomas E. Dewey in the Presidential Election of 1948. This was a surprise to the Chicago Tribune whose front page the night before had declared Dewey as the winner. On November 1, 1983 Martin Luther King's birthday was made into a national holiday. It is still the only national holiday to honor a single American. On November 2, 2000, the first multi-national space crew reached its destination of the International Space Station. Lastly, on November 2, 1947, Howard Hughes flew his Spruce Goose. This was the largest aircraft ever built, and it was more like a flying boat. However, Hughes proved his critics wrong as he flew the craft for one mile. This was the first and only flight of the Spruce Goose.
This Day In History: November 2