This Day in History

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY July 17 1955 Disneyland opens Disneyland, Walt Disney's metropolis of nostalgia, fantasy and futurism, opens on July 17, 1955. The $17 million theme park was built on 160 acres of former orange groves in Anaheim, California, and soon brought in staggering profits. Today, Disneyland hosts more than 18 million visitors a year, who... read more 1990s 1996 TWA Flight 800 explodes midair 21st CENTURY 2014 Eric Garner dies in NYPD chokehold 2014 Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 shot down in Russian-controlled area of Ukraine Art, Literature and Film History 1967 Jimi Hendrix drops out as opening act for The Monkees BLACK HISTORY 2020 Congressman and civil rights leader John Lewis dies EARLY U.S. 1763 John Jacob Astor is born EUROPEAN HISTORY 1936 Spanish Civil War breaks out Exploration 1938 Douglas "Wrong Way" Corrigan crosses the Atlantic Inventions & Science 1920 Three-point seatbelt inventor Nils Bohlin born Space Exploration 1975 Superpowers meet in space Sports 1941 Joe DiMaggio ends 56-game hitting streak U.S. GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS 1984 Jesse Jackson delivers “Rainbow Coalition” speech at DNC U.S. Presidents 1945 President Harry Truman records his impressions of meeting Stalin WORLD WAR I 1917 Britain’s King George V changes royal surname World War II 1944 An ammunition ship explodes in the Port Chicago disaster 1945 Potsdam Conference begins

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY July 18 1940 FDR nominated for unprecedented third term On July 18, 1940, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who first took office in 1933 as America's 32nd president, is nominated for an unprecedented third term. Roosevelt, a Democrat, would eventually be elected to a record four terms in office, the only U.S. president to serve more than two terms... read more 1960s 1969 Senator Ted Kennedy drives car off bridge at Chappaquiddick Island American Revolution 1792 Naval hero John Paul Jones dies in Paris Art, Literature and Film History 1989 Sitcom actress murdered; death prompts anti-stalking legislation 1995 Barack Obama's "Dreams from My Father" is published Civil War 1863 Robert Gould Shaw leads Black infantry's doomed assault on Fort Wagner Crime 1984 Twenty-one people are shot to death at McDonald's EUROPEAN HISTORY 1925 Hitler's "Mein Kampf" is published Inventions & Science 1986 Video of Titanic wreckage released SPORTS 1976 Gymnast Nadia Comăneci scores first perfect “10” in Olympic history U.S. Presidents 1947 Harry S. Truman signs second Presidential Succession Act WOMEN'S HISTORY 1947 First female army officer is commissioned

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY July 19 1848 Seneca Falls Convention begins At the Wesleyan Chapel in Seneca Falls, New York, a woman’s rights convention—the first ever held in the United States—convenes with almost 200 women in attendance. The convention was organized by Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, two abolitionists who met at the 1840 World Anti-Slavery Convention in London... read more ANCIENT ROME 64 Nero’s Rome burns Cold War 1956 United States withdraws offer of aid for Aswan Dam Crime 1879 Doc Holliday kills for the first time EUROPEAN HISTORY 1553 Lady Jane Grey deposed as Queen of England Inventions & Science 1942 George Washington Carver begins experimental project with Henry Ford World War II 1943 America bombs Rome

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY July 20 1969 Neil Armstrong walks on moon At 10:56 p.m. EDT, American astronaut Neil Armstrong, 240,000 miles from Earth, speaks these words to more than a billion people listening at home: "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind." Stepping off the lunar landing module Eagle, Armstrong became the first human to walk on... read more 19th CENTURY 1889 Homesteaders murdered by Wyoming ranchers Art, Literature and Film History 1963 Jan and Dean's "Surf City" hits #1 1973 Actor and martial-arts expert Bruce Lee dies at age 32 1988 “Die Hard” debuts, makes Bruce Willis a movie star Cold War 1948 President Truman issues peacetime draft Crime 1984 A serial-killing couple is apprehended 2012 Aurora shooting leaves 12 dead, 70 wounded Native American History 1881 Sitting Bull surrenders Natural Disasters & Environment 1977 A flood hits Johnstown—again Space Exploration 1976 Viking 1 lands on Mars U.S. Presidents 1969 President Nixon watches first lunar landing World War II 1944 Assassination plot against Hitler fails

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY July 21 1861 The First Battle of Bull Run In the first major land battle of the Civil War, a large Union force under General Irvin McDowell is routed by a Confederate army under General Pierre G.T. Beauregard. Three months after the Civil War erupted at Fort Sumter, Union military command still believed that the Confederacy could be crushed... read more 19th CENTURY 1865 Wild Bill Hickok fights in first quick-draw western shootout African History 1970 Aswan High Dam completed Art, Literature and Film History 1899 Ernest Hemingway is born 2007 Final Harry Potter book released Cold War 1955 President Eisenhower presents his "Open Skies" plan Crime 1925 “Trial of the Century” reaches final day, draws unprecedented attention European history 2005 Bombers attempt to attack London transit system Inventions & Science 1960 Germany passes controversial "Volkswagen Law" Natural Disasters & Environment 365 Tsunami hits Alexandria, Egypt Space Exploration 2011 NASA's final space shuttle mission comes to an end World War II 1944 Hitler to Germany: “I am unhurt”

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY July 22 2003 Jessica Lynch gets hero's welcome On July 22, 2003, U.S. Army Private Jessica Lynch, a prisoner-of-war who was rescued from an Iraqi hospital, receives a hero's welcome when she returns to her hometown of Palestine, West Virginia. The story of the 19-year-old supply clerk, who was captured by Iraqi forces in March 2003, gripped America... read more 21st CENTURY 2003 Qusay and Uday Hussein killed Art, Literature and Film History 2005 "March of the Penguins" released widely in the U.S. Civil War 1864 Battle of Atlanta Cold War 1987 Gorbachev accepts ban on intermediate-range nuclear missiles Crime 1934 John Dillinger gunned down 1991 Cannibal and serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer is caught EUROPEAN HISTORY 2013 Prince George, first child of Prince William and Kate Middleton, is born Exploration 1933 Wiley Post flies solo around the world U.S. Presidents 1862 Lincoln tells his cabinet about Emancipation Proclamation World War I 1916 Preparedness Day bombing in San Francisco World War II 1942 Deportations from Warsaw ghetto to Treblinka begin

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY July 23 1885 Former president Ulysses S. Grant dies On July 23, 1885, just after completing his memoirs, Civil War hero and former president Ulysses S. Grant dies of throat cancer. The son of a tanner, Grant showed little enthusiasm for joining his father's business, so the elder Grant enrolled his son at West Point in 1839. Though Grant later admitted... read more 1960s 1967 Detroit Riots of 1967 begin 1980s 1984 Miss America resigns over nude photos AFRICAN HISTORY 1952 Military seizes power in Egypt Art, Literature and Film History 1982 Actor and two children killed on "Twilight Zone" set 1988 Guns N' Roses make popular breakthrough with "Sweet Child O' Mine" 1999 Woodstock ’99 begins Crime 1918 Nebraska serial killer poisons her first victim 1923 John Dillinger joins the Navy in an attempt to avoid prosecution Sports 1996 U.S. women take home gymnastics gold World War I 1914 Austria-Hungary issues ultimatum to Serbia

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY July 24 1911 American historian encounters Machu Picchu ruins On July 24, 1911, American history scholar Hiram Bingham gets his first look at the ruins of Machu Picchu, an ancient Inca settlement in Peru that is now one of the world's top tourist destinations. Tucked away in the rocky countryside northwest of Cuzco, Machu Picchu is believed to have been ... read more 19th CENTURY 1847 Religious pioneers settle Salt Lake Valley American Revolution 1776 John Hancock scolds Major General Philip Schuyler 1779 Massachusetts begins ill-fated Penobscot Expedition Art, Literature and Film History 1901 Short story writer O. Henry is released from prison 1982 "Eye Of The Tiger" from "Rocky III" tops the U.S. pop charts 1998 "Saving Private Ryan" opens in theaters Cold War 1959 Richard Nixon and Nikita Khrushchev have a "kitchen debate" EARLY 20th CENTURY U.S. 1915 Hundreds drown in Eastland disaster EUROPEAN HISTORY 1567 Mary Queen of Scots deposed Space Exploration 1969 Apollo 11 safely returns to Earth Sports 2005 Lance Armstrong wins seventh Tour de France World War II 1943 Operation Gomorrah is launched 1945 Truman hints to Stalin about a new weapon “of unusual destructive force”

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY July 25 1978 World's first "test tube" baby born On July 25, 1978, Louise Joy Brown, the world's first baby to be conceived via in-vitro fertilization (IVF) is born at Oldham and District General Hospital in Manchester, England, to parents Lesley and Peter Brown. The healthy baby was delivered shortly before midnight by caesarean section and weigh... read more 19th CENTURY 1832 The first railroad accident 1853 California Rangers kill Joaquin Murrieta 1950s 1956 Ocean liners collide off Nantucket Art, Literature and Film History 1897 Jack London sails for the Klondike gold rush 1965 Dylan goes electric at the Newport Folk Festival 1985 Rock Hudson announces he has AIDS Crime 1878 Black Bart strikes again 1984 A 9 year old’s murder puts an innocent man in jail EARLY 20th CENTURY U.S. 1941 Henry Ford writes fan letter to Mahatma Gandhi Natural Disasters & Environment 2000 Concorde jet crashes, killing everyone onboard Sports 1992 Opening of the XXV Olympiad in Barcelona U.S. STATES 1898 U.S. forces invade Puerto Rico Vietnam War 1969 The Nixon Doctrine is announced World War I 1917 Dancer and purported spy Mata Hari sentenced to die World War II 1943 Benito Mussolini falls from power

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY July 26 1775 U.S. postal system established On July 26, 1775, the U.S. postal system is established by the Second Continental Congress, with Benjamin Franklin as its first postmaster general. Franklin (1706-1790) put in place the foundation for many aspects of today's mail system. During early colonial times in the 1600s, few American... read more AFRICAN HISTORY 1847 Liberian independence proclaimed 1956 Egypt nationalizes the Suez Canal Art, Literature and Film History 1943 Rolling Stones front man Mick Jagger is born 1975 Van McCoy's "The Hustle" is the #1 song in America Black History 1948 President Truman ends segregation in the military Civil War 1863 Confederate leader John Hunt Morgan is captured Cold War 1947 President Truman signs the National Security Act Crime 1908 FBI founded 1984 Infamous serial killer Ed Gein dies EUROPEAN HISTORY 1945 Winston Churchill resigns Inventions & Science 1998 Three race fans killed at Michigan Speedway U.S. GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) signed into law World War II 1941 United States freezes Japanese assets

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY July 27 1974 House begins impeachment of Nixon On July 27, 1974, the House Judiciary Committee recommends that America's 37th president Richard M. Nixon, be impeached and removed from office. The impeachment proceedings resulted from a series of political scandals involving the Nixon administration that came to be collectively known as Watergate... read more   Find Out What Happened in 1974 The first-ever resignation of a U.S. president...Babe Ruth's home run record surpassed...a kidnapped heiress...disco fever...and much more. EXPLORE 1974 Cold War 1953 Armistice ends Korean War hostilities Crime 1981 Six-year-old Adam Walsh is abducted 1996 Bombing at Centennial Olympic Park EUROPEAN HISTORY 1794 Robespierre overthrown in France INVENTIONS & SCIENCE 1949 First commercial jet makes test flight

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY July 28 1868 14th Amendment adopted Following its ratification by the necessary three-quarters of U.S. states, the 14th Amendment granting citizenship to all persons born or naturalized in the United States—including formerly enslaved people—is officially adopted into the U.S. Constitution. Secretary of State William Seward... read more 1940s 1945 Plane crashes into Empire State Building 1970s 1975 Grizzly bear is classified as a “threatened” species Art, Literature and Film History 1978 "Animal House" released in theaters FIRST LADIES 1929 Future first lady Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy is born Great Depression 1932 Bonus Marchers evicted by U.S. Army NATIVE AMERICAN HISTORY 1968 American Indian Movement (AIM) is founded Natural Disasters & Environment 1976 One of the worst earthquakes in modern history destroys Chinese city Vietnam War 1965 President Johnson announces more troops to Vietnam Women's History 2016 Hillary Clinton accepts Democratic nomination for president, becoming first woman to lead a major U.S. political party World War I 1914 Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia World War II 1943 Stalin issues Order No. 227—outlawing cowards

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY July 29

1958 NASA created The U.S. Congress passes legislation establishing the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), a civilian agency responsible for coordinating America's activities in space, on July 29, 1958. NASA has since sponsored space expeditions, both human and mechanical, that have yielded vital... read more

Art, Literature and Film History 1967 The Doors score their first #1 hit with "Light My Fire" 2000 Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston wed

Civil War 1862 Confederate spy Belle Boyd is captured

Crime 1900 Italian American assassinates Italian king 1976 Son of Sam's first murder

EUROPEAN HISTORY 1981 Prince Charles marries Lady Diana

Inventions & Science 1909 General Motors buys Cadillac

Sports 1996 Carl Lewis wins fourth consecutive long jump at 35

Vietnam War 1965 101st Airborne Division arrives in Vietnam 1967 Rocket causes deadly fire on aircraft carrier

World War I 1914 Kaiser Wilhelm of Germany and Czar Nicholas of Russia exchange telegrams

World War II 1921 Adolf Hitler becomes the leader of the Nazi Party

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY July 30 1965 President Johnson signs Medicare into law On July 30, 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson signs Medicare, a health insurance program for elderly Americans, into law. At the bill-signing ceremony, which took place at the Truman Library in Independence, Missouri, former President Harry Truman was enrolled as Medicare's first beneficiary and received the first... read more 19th CENTURY 1866 The New Orleans Massacre AMERICAN REVOLUTION 1777 New York’s first elected governor takes office Art, Literature and Film History 1966 The Troggs take their signature hit, "Wild Thing," to #1 1999 "The Blair Witch Project" released in theaters Civil War 1864 Union forces stopped at the Battle of the Crater Inventions & Science 2003 Last classic VW Beetle rolls off the line Natural Disasters & Environment 1971 Fighter jet collides with passenger plane Sports 1976 Caitlyn Jenner wins Olympic decathlon U.S. Presidents 1956 President Eisenhower signs "In God We Trust" into law 1974 Under subpoena, Nixon surrenders Watergate tapes U.S. Government 1619 First legislative assembly in America convenes in Jamestown World War II 1945 USS Indianapolis torpedoed