Jamaica achieves full independence

On February 9, 1962, Jamaica left the Federation of the West Indies, becoming a fully-independent nation for the first time in its history. The country did, however, remain a member of the British Commonwealth of Nations.

Read the Constitution of Jamaica from the Georgetown University archives.

THIS DAY @ LAW

Standard Oil incorporated

On January 10, 1870, John Davison Rockefeller incorporated Standard Oil. Rockefeller's corporation would grow to achieve a virtual monopoly over oil production in the United States. Standard Oil's dominance lasted until the corporation was split into 34 separate companies in 1911 after the Supreme Court found the company in violation of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act. The rise of Standard Oil made Rockefeller America's first billionaire and eventually the richest man in the world. Read the text of Standard Oil Co. of New Jersey vs. United States, 221 U.S. 1 (1910).