Today is Saturday, July 21, the 203rd day of 2012. There are 163 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On July 21, 1925, the so-called "Monkey Trial" ended in Dayton, Tenn., with John T. Scopes convicted of violating state law for teaching Darwin's Theory of Evolution. (The conviction was later overturned on a technicality.)

On this date:

In 1773, Pope Clement XIV issued an order suppressing the Society of Jesus, or Jesuits. (The Society was restored by Pope Pius VII in 1814.)

In 1796, Scottish poet Robert Burns died in Dumfries at age 37.

In 1861, during the Civil War, the first Battle of Bull Run was fought at Manassas, Va., resulting in a Confederate victory.

In 1930, President Herbert Hoover signed an executive order establishing the Veterans Administration (later the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs).

In 1944, American forces landed on Guam during World War II.

In 1949, the U.S. Senate ratified the North Atlantic Treaty.

In 1952, the Democratic National Convention, which would nominate Adlai Stevenson for president, opened in Chicago.

In 1959, the NS Savannah, the first nuclear-powered merchant ship, was christened by first lady Mamie Eisenhower at Camden, N.J.

In 1961, Capt. Virgil "Gus" Grissom became the second American to rocket into a sub-orbital pattern around the Earth, flying aboard the Liberty Bell 7.

In 1969, Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin blasted off from the moon aboard the ascent stage of the lunar module for docking with the command module.

In 1972, the Irish Republican Army carried out 22 bombings in Belfast, Northern Ireland, killing nine people and injuring 130 in what became known as "Bloody Friday."

In 1980, draft registration began in the United States for 19- and 20-year-old men.

Ten years ago: Telecommunications giant WorldCom Inc. filed for bankruptcy protection about a month after disclosing it had inflated profits by nearly $4 billion through deceptive accounting. Ernie Els won the British Open in the first sudden-death finish in the 142-year history of the tournament.

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