This Day in History

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY August 10 1977 Son of Sam serial killer is arrested On August 10, 1977, 24-year-old postal employee David Berkowitz is arrested and charged with being the “Son of Sam,” the serial killer who terrorized New York City for more than a year, killing six young people and wounding seven others with a .44-caliber revolver. ... read more 19th CENTURY 1846 Smithsonian Institution created American Revolution 1776 London learns of American independence ANCIENT EGYPT 30 B.C. Cleopatra dies by suicide Art, Literature and Film History 1793 Louvre Museum opens 1912 Virginia and Leonard Woolf marry 1939 “The Wizard of Oz” movie premieres in Green Bay, Wisconsin 1984 "Red Dawn," first PG-13 movie, is released Inventions & Science 1937 First-ever electric guitar patent awarded to the Electro String Corporation 1978 Fatal Ford Pinto crash in Indiana Natural Disasters & Environment 2003 Temperatures in UK top 100 F for first time during European heat wave Sports 1981 Pete Rose sets National League hits record WOMEN'S HISTORY 1993 Ruth Bader Ginsburg sworn in as Supreme Court justice World War II 1945 Japan accepts Potsdam terms, agrees to unconditional surrender

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY August 11 1934 Federal prisoners land on Alcatraz On this day in 1934 Alcatraz opens its doors. A group of federal prisoners classified as “most dangerous” arrives at Alcatraz Island, a 22-acre rocky outcrop situated 1.5 miles offshore in San Francisco Bay. The convicts–the first civilian prisoners to be housed in the new high-security... read more 1960s 1965 Watts Rebellion begins   19th Century 1806 Meriwether Lewis is shot in the leg   Art, Literature and Film History 1973 Hip hop is born at a teen party in the Bronx 1973 “American Graffiti” opens 2014 Oscar-winning actor Robin Williams dies at 63   Civil War 1864 Confederate general Jubal Early abandons Winchester, Virginia   Cold War 1984 Reagan jokes about bombing Russia   Crime 1980 Carol Bundy confesses her connection to the “Sunset Slayer”   Middle Eastern History 1952 Hussein succeeds to Jordanian throne   U.S. Government and Politics This Day in History Video: What Happened on August 11   Vietnam War 1972 Last U.S. ground combat unit deactivated in South Vietnam   World War I 1919 Weimar Constitution adopted in Germany   World War II 1943 Germans begin to evacuate Sicily

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY August 12 1990 Skeleton of Tyrannosaurus rex discovered A full Tyrannosaurus Rex skeleton is discovered, Isaac Singer patents the first sewing machine, the space shuttle Enterprise launches, and MSDOS becomes the first operating system for PCs in This Day in History video. The date is August 12th. Susan Hendrickson, a paleontologist, discovers the T Rex... read more 1990s 1990 This Day in History Video: What Happened on August 12   19th Century 1898 Armistice ends the Spanish-American War   American Revolution 1776 General Washington anticipates British blockade of New York   Art, Literature and Film History 1964 James Bond creator Ian Fleming dies 2014 Hollywood icon Lauren Bacall dies   Colonial America 1676 King Philip’s War ends   Crime 1964 Great Train robber escapes from prison   Natural Disasters & Environment 1985 JAL flight 123 crashes into Mount Otsuka 2000 Russian sub, the “Kursk,” sinks with 118 onboard   Sports 1973 American golfer Jack Nicklaus sets title record   World War II 1941 FDR and Churchill meet on ship, map out Atlantic Charter

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY August 13 1961 Berlin is divided In a This Day in History video, host Russ Mitchell takes us through the history of August 13th. On this day in 1521, a Spanish force led by Cortes captured the Aztec capitol now known as Mexico City. Also, on this day in 1942, Walt Disney’s Bambi opened in Radio City Music Hall. On this […]... read more Ancient Americas 1521 Aztec capital falls to Cortés   Art, Literature and Film History 1952 “Hound Dog” is recorded for the first time by Big Mama Thornton 1982 “Fast Times at Ridgemont High” debuts   General This Day in History Video: What Happened on August 13   Inventions & Science 1878 First victim of Memphis yellow fever epidemic dies   Latin American History 1926 Fidel Castro born   Sports 1995 New York Yankees star Mickey Mantle dies   U.S. Presidents 1981 Reagan signs Economic Recovery Tax Act (ERTA)

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY August 14 2003 Blackout hits Northeast United States On August 14, 2003, a major outage knocks out power across the eastern United States and parts of Canada. Beginning at 4:10 p.m. ET, 21 power plants shut down in just three minutes. Fifty million people were affected, including residents of New York, Cleveland and Detroit, as well as Toronto and... read more Art, Literature and Film History 1985 Michael Jackson takes control of the Beatles’ publishing rights   Crime 1751 A daughter poisons her father 1994 The terrorist known as Carlos the Jackal is captured   Sports 1971 Pitching ace Bob Gibson throws first no-hitter   U.S. Presidents 1935 FDR signs Social Security Act   World War I 1917 China declares war on Germany   World War II 1945 Japan’s surrender made public

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY August 15 1969 Woodstock festival opens in Bethel, New York It didn’t begin as a grand vision to stage a generation-defining cultural event. It began as a minor item in a business plan to build a professional recording studio in the vicinity of Woodstock, New York. “Press Party,” was what the entry near the bottom of the project outline read, and it was... read more 21st Century 2021 Kabul falls to the Taliban after U.S. withdrawal   Art, Literature and Film History 1979 “Apocalypse Now” released in theaters   Crime 2006 Wife of slain minister released from jail   European History 1057 King Macbeth is killed by Malcolm Canmore   Inventions & Science 1899 Henry Ford leaves Edison to start automobile company   Landmarks 1914 Panama Canal open to traffic   Middle Eastern History 1947 India and Pakistan win independence   Vietnam War 1968 Heavy fighting erupts in and around the DMZ   World War I 1914 Japan gives ultimatum to Germany

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY August 16 1896 Gold discovered in the Yukon While salmon fishing near the Klondike River in Canada’s Yukon Territory on August 16, 1896, George Carmack reportedly spots nuggets of gold in a creek bed. His lucky discovery sparks the last great gold rush in the American West. Hoping to cash in on reported gold strikes in Alaska, Carmack had... read more 1980s 1987 Plane crashes into highway, killing 156   19th Century 1812 U.S. surrenders Fort Detroit to the British   Art, Literature and Film History 1977 Elvis Presley dies   Crime 1984 Los Angeles jury clears John Z. DeLorean of drug charges   Sports 1920 MLB player hit in head by pitch, dies next day 1948 Babe Ruth dies 1954 “Sports Illustrated” magazine debuts 2009 Usain Bolt sets 100-meter dash world record   Vietnam War 1967 Gulf of Tonkin Resolution is challenged in Senate

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY August 17 1969 Woodstock performers jam through a long final night On Sunday, August 17, 1969, one of the all-time grooviest events in music history—the Woodstock Music & Art Fair—approaches its end after more than three days of peace, love and rock ‘n’ roll in upstate New York. Rain and other delays push the festival, originally scheduled to finish before midnight, into a marathon night of music that continues past dawn... read more   19th Century 1877 Billy the Kid kills his first man   1980s 1987 Rudolf Hess, Hitler’s last living henchman, dies   Cold War 1962 East Germans kill man trying to cross Berlin Wall   Exploration 1978 Balloon crosses the Atlantic   Native American History 1862 U.S.-Dakota War begins in Minnesota   Sports 1957 Foul balls batter unlucky Philadelphia Phillies fan   U.S. Presidents 1841 President Tyler is burned in effigy outside White House 1998 President Clinton testifies before grand jury   World War II 1943 General George S. Patton wins race to Messina

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY August 18 1991 Soviet hard-liners launch coup against Gorbachev On August 18, 1991, Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev is placed under house arrest during a coup by high-ranking members of his own government, military and police forces... read more Ancient China 1227 Genghis Khan dies   Colonial America 1590 Roanoke Colony found deserted   Crime 1988 A Seattle judge involved in a sex scandal dies by suicide   Sports 1992 Boston Celtics forward Larry Bird hangs it up   Women’s History 1920 19th Amendment ratified thanks to one vote

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY August 19 1909 First race is held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway On August 19, 1909, the first race is held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, now the home of the world’s most famous motor racing competition, the Indianapolis 500... read more 19th Century 1812 Old Ironsides earns its name 1895 John Wesley Hardin killed in Texas   Art, Literature and Film History 1964 The Beatles kick off first U.S. tour at San Francisco’s Cow Palace 1993 Kim Basinger and Alec Baldwin marry   Cold War 1953 CIA-assisted coup overthrows government of Iran 1960 Captured U.S. spy pilot sentenced in Russia   Crime 1991 A Jewish youth is killed by a mob in Crown Heights, Brooklyn 2011 “West Memphis Three” released from prison after 18 years   Early U.S. 1791 Benjamin Banneker writes to Thomas Jefferson, urging justice for African Americans   European History 1934 Adolf Hitler cements his position of supreme power   U.S. Presidents 1946 Bill Clinton is born   World War I 1919 President Wilson appears before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY August 20 1619 First enslaved Africans arrive in Jamestown, setting the stage for slavery in North America On or about August 20, 1619, “20 and odd” Angolans, kidnapped by the Portuguese, arrive in the British colony of Virginia and are then bought by English colonists... read more 19th Century 1804 Corps of Discovery suffers its only death   Art, Literature and Film History 1918 “Valley of the Dolls” author Jacqueline Susann born   Civil War 1862 Horace Greeley’s “The Prayer of Twenty Millions” is published   Cold War 1968 Soviets invade Czechoslovakia   Crime 1989 The Menendez brothers murder their parents   Early U.S. 1794 Battle of Fallen Timbers   European History 1940 Russian revolutionary Leon Trotsky assassinated in Mexico   Inventions & Science 1911 Blazingly fast around-the-world telegram sent, 66 years before Voyager II launch   Space Exploration 1975 Viking 1 launched to Mars   Sports 1920 Early football leagues consolidate into precursor of the NFL 1945 17-year-old becomes youngest to hit MLB home run   U.S. Presidents 1833 Benjamin Harrison is born   Vietnam War 1954 U.S. decides to support noncommunist nations in Southeast Asia

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY August 21 1959 Hawaii becomes 50th state On this day in 1959, the modern United States receives its crowning star when President Dwight D. Eisenhower signs a proclamation admitting Hawaii into the Union as the 50th state.... read more 1980s 1980 People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is founded   African History 1961 Jomo Kenyatta, Kenyan independence leader, is freed   American Revolution 1754 Bloody Ban Tarleton born in Britain   Art, Literature and Film History 1920 Christopher Robin’s birthday   Civil War 1863 Guerrillas massacre residents of Lawrence, Kansas   Cold War 1991 Attempted coup against Gorbachev collapses   Inventions & Science 1897 Olds Motor Vehicle Company founded   Natural Disasters & Environment 1986 Gas cloud kills Cameroon villagers   Slavery 1831 Nat Turner launches massive insurrection in Virginia   Sports 1950 Althea Gibson becomes first African American on U.S. tennis tour 2004 Michael Phelps wins eighth medal   U.S. Government and Politics 1858 Lincoln-Douglas debates begin 1974 The Equal Educational Opportunities Act is enacted   Vietnam War 1971 Antiwar protestors raid draft offices   World War II 1944 The seeds of the United Nations are planted

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY August 22 1851 U.S. wins first America’s Cup On August 22, 1851, the U.S.-built schooner America bests a fleet of Britain’s finest ships in a race around England’s Isle of Wight. The ornate silver trophy won by the America was later donated to the New York Yacht Club on condition that it be forever placed in international competition... read more 19th Century 1864 First Geneva Convention establishes Red Cross aid for war wounded   American Revolution 1776 Redcoats land at Long Island   Art, Literature and Film History 1935 Pulitzer Prize-winning author Annie Proulx is born 1969 Zager and Evans end a six-week run at #1 with their smash-hit “In The Year 2525 (Exordium & Terminus)”   Civil War 1862 President Lincoln replies to Horace Greeley   Cold War 1968 Czechs protest against Soviet invasion   Crime 1911 Theft of “Mona Lisa” is discovered 1922 Michael Collins assassinated 1992 Shootings continue at Ruby Ridge   European History 1485 Battle of Bosworth Field   Inventions & Science 1962 Citroen helps de Gaulle survive assassination attempt   Sports 1965 Juan Marichal hits catcher with bat, instigating epic MLB brawl 1989 Nolan Ryan registers 5,000th strikeout   Vietnam War 1972 Demonstrators disrupt Republican National Convention in Miami Beach

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY August 23 1927 Sacco and Vanzetti executed Despite worldwide demonstrations in support of their innocence, Italian-born anarchists Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti are executed for murder on August 23, 1927... read more   Sign up for Video of the Day Get a FREE featured video sent right to your inbox, every weekday. Tune in to history with a mix of short videos and fascinating documentaries. Sign Up 1960s 1968 Black soldiers stage sit-in at Fort Hood   1990s 1999 New York City reports first cases of West Nile virus   21st Century 2021 FDA fully approves the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine   American Revolution 1784 North Carolina counties declare themselves breakaway state of Franklin   Art, Literature and Film History 1970 Lou Reed plays his last show with the Velvet Underground 2000 First “Survivor” finale airs   Civil War 1861 Confederate spy Rose O’Neal Greenhow is arrested   Crime 2006 Austrian teen escapes after eight years in captivity   Inventions & Science 1856 Eunice Foote’s research on global warming is presented publicly   Roaring Twenties 1926 Star of the silent screen Rudolph Valentino dies   Sports 1947 First Little League World Series champion crowned 1989 Pete Rose gets booted from baseball   World War I 1914 Battle of Mons   World War II 1939 Germany, Soviet Union sign nonaggression pact 1945 Marcario García becomes first Mexican national to receive U.S. Medal of Honor 1945 Senior U.S. POW is released

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY August 24 79 AD Mount Vesuvius erupts On August 24, after centuries of dormancy, Mount Vesuvius erupts in southern Italy, devastating the prosperous Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum and killing thousands. The cities, buried under a thick layer of volcanic material and mud, were never rebuilt and largely forgotten in the course of history... read more 19th Century 1814 British troops set fire to the White House 1873 Elusive Mount of the Holy Cross photographed   Cold War 1954 Congress passes Communist Control Act   Crime 1981 John Lennon’s killer sentenced 2012 Killer in Norway massacre is sentenced   European History 1572 Saint Bartholomew’s Day Massacre   Latin American History 1821 Spain accepts Mexican independence   Space Exploration 2006 Pluto is demoted   U.S. Presidents 1814 George Washington’s portrait saved from British looters   Vietnam War 1969 U.S. unit refuses commander’s order   World War I 1914 Poet Alan Seeger volunteers in French army   World War II 1941 Hitler suspends euthanasia program

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY August 25 1944 Paris is liberated after four years of Nazi occupation After more than four years of Nazi occupation, Paris is liberated by the French 2nd Armored Division and the U.S. 4th Infantry Division. German resistance was light, and General Dietrich von Choltitz, commander of the German garrison, defied an order by Adolf Hitler to blow up Paris’ landmarks and... read more   Find Out What Happened in 1944 D-Day turned the tide of World War II...Paris was liberated from Nazi rule...Anne Frank wrote her last diary entry...and much more. EXPLORE 1944 19th Century 1835 “The Great Moon Hoax” is published in the “New York Sun” 1896 Outlaw Bill Doolin is killed   1980s 1985 Samantha Smith dies in plane crash 21st Century 2009 Ted Kennedy, “liberal lion of the Senate,” dies at 77   Art, Literature and Film History 1939 “The Wizard of Oz” opens in U.S. theaters 1962 Little Eva earns a #1 hit with “Loco-Motion”   Crime 1984 Truman Capote, author of “In Cold Blood,” dies   Exploration 1875 Englishman swims the Channel   Inventions & Science 1958 Momofuku Ando creates the first mass-market instant ramen   Middle Eastern History 1982 U.S. Marines deployed to Lebanon   Natural Disasters & Environment 1931 Yangtze River peaks in Gaoyou, China, killing more than 10,000 1979 Hurricane David is born   U.S. Presidents 1950 Truman orders army to seize control of railroads   World War I 1914 Germans burn Belgian town of Louvain   World War II 1945 John Birch, inspiration to conservatives, killed by Chinese communists

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY August 26 1939 First televised Major League baseball game On August 26, 1939, the first televised Major League baseball game is broadcast on station W2XBS, the station that was to become WNBC-TV. Announcer Red Barber called the game between the Cincinnati Reds and the Brooklyn Dodgers at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn, New York... read more Art, Literature and Film History 1978 “Grease” movie soundtrack earns its second #1 hit   Cold War 1957 Russia tests an intercontinental ballistic missile   Crime 1986 “Preppy Murder” stuns New York   European History 1346 Battle of Crecy   Sports 2016 Quarterback Colin Kaepernick sits during national anthem   U.S. Constitution 1920 19th Amendment adopted   U.S. Government and Politics 1964 Lyndon B. Johnson receives Democratic nomination for president 1968 Democratic convention besieged by protesters   U.S. Presidents 1794 President George Washington expresses his determination to subdue the Whiskey Rebellion   World War I 1914 Battle of Tannenberg begins

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY August 27 1883 Krakatoa explodes with massive force One of the most powerful volcanic eruptions in recorded history occurs on Krakatoa (also called Krakatau), a small, uninhabited volcanic island east of Sumatra and west of Java, on August 27, 1883. Heard 3,000 miles away, the explosions threw five cubic miles of earth 50 miles... read more 19th Century 1875 Tycoon William Ralston drowns   American Revolution 1776 British forces defeat Patriots in the Battle of Brooklyn   Art, Literature and Film History 1967 Beatles manager Brian Epstein dies   Crime 1979 Lord Mountbatten killed by IRA 2007 NFL star Michael Vick pleads guilty in dogfighting case   Sports 1976 Transgender athlete Renée Richards barred from U.S. Open   U.S. Presidents 1908 Lyndon B. Johnson is born   World War I 1916 Romania enters World War I

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY August 28 1955 Emmett Till is murdered On August 28, 1955, while visiting family in Money, Mississippi, 14-year-old Emmett Till, an African American boy from Chicago, is brutally murdered for allegedly flirting with a white woman four days earlier. His assailants—the white woman’s husband and his brother—made Emmett carry a 75-pound cotton... read more 19th Century 1869 Three leave Powell’s Grand Canyon expedition   1980s 1987 HIV‑positive Ray brothers’ home burned down   African History 1879 Zulu king captured   Art, Literature and Film History 1963 Mahalia Jackson prompts Martin Luther King Jr. to improvise “I Have a Dream” speech 2003 Britney Spears and Madonna kiss at the VMAs   Black History 1963 Martin Luther King Jr. delivers “I Have a Dream” speech at the March on Washington   Cold War 1952 “Red Scare” dominates American political news   Crime 1990 Murdered students are discovered at the University of Florida   European History 1988 Air show accident burns spectators 1996 Charles and Diana divorce   Religion 1774 St. Elizabeth born in New York City   U.S. Government and Politics 1968 Protests at Democratic National Convention in Chicago   U.S. Presidents 1917 President Woodrow Wilson picketed by women suffragists   World War II 1941 Mass slaughter in Ukraine

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY August 29 2005 Hurricane Katrina slams into Gulf Coast On this day in 2005, Hurricane Katrina makes landfall near New Orleans, Louisiana, as a Category 4 hurricane. Despite being only the third most powerful storm of the 2005 hurricane season, Katrina was the worst natural disaster in the history of the United States. After briefly coming ashore in... read more Art, Literature and Film History 1958 Michael Jackson is born 1982 Actress Ingrid Bergman dies on her birthday   Civil War 1862 North and South clash at the Second Battle of Bull Run   Cold War 1949 Soviets explode atomic bomb   Crime 2007 Richard Jewell, hero security guard wrongly accused as Olympic bombing suspect, dies   Hispanic History 1970 Thousands of Mexican American antiwar activists march in Chicano Moratorium   Inventions & Science 1876 Charles F. Kettering, inventor of electric self-starter, is born   Native American History 1911 Ishi discovered in California 1970 Native American group occupies Mount Rushmore to protest broken Treaty of Fort Laramie   Sports 2004 Brazilian marathoner assaulted at Olympics   U.S. Government and Politics 2008 Republican John McCain selects Sarah Palin as his running mate   World War I 1914 Women join British war effort

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY August 30 1967 Thurgood Marshall confirmed as Supreme Court justice On August 30, 1967, Thurgood Marshall becomes the first African American to be confirmed as a Supreme Court justice. He would remain on the Supreme Court for 24 years before retiring for health reasons, leaving a legacy of upholding the rights of the individual... read more American Revolution 1776 Washington refuses British general’s letter of reconciliation   Art, Literature and Film History 1980 Christopher Cross has his first of two #1 hits with “Sailing” 2003 Movie tough guy Charles Bronson dies   Black History 1983 Guion S. Bluford becomes the first African American to travel to space   Crime 1989 A murdering couple is sentenced to death   European History 1918 Vladimir Lenin shot   Inventions & Science 2006 California Senate passes Global Warming Solutions Act   U.S. Presidents 1963 Hotline established between Washington and Moscow   Vietnam War 1969 Ho Chi Minh responds to Nixon letter

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY August 31 1980 Polish government signs accord with Gdansk shipyard workers Representatives of the communist government of Poland agree to the demands of striking shipyard workers in the city of Gdansk.... read more 21st Century 2015 Angela Merkel says “Wir schaffen das” on accepting refugees   Art, Literature and Film History 1928 Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill’s “The Threepenny Opera” premieres in Berlin   Crime 1888 Jack the Ripper’s first victim murdered 1985 Los Angeles mob attacks “Night Stalker” serial killer   European History 1997 Princess Diana dies in a car crash   Inventions & Science 1897 Thomas Edison patents the Kinetograph 1955 General Motors demonstrates first solar-powered car   Natural Disasters & Environment 1886 Earthquake shakes Charleston, South Carolina   U.S. Presidents 1935 FDR signs Neutrality Act   World War I 1916 American soldier Harry Butters killed in the Battle of the Somme

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY September 01 1972 Bobby Fischer becomes the first American to win the World Chess Championship On September 1, 1972, in what’s billed as the “Match of the Century,” American chess grandmaster Bobby Fischer defeats Russian Boris Spassky during the World Chess Championship in Reykjavik, Iceland. In the world’s most publicized title match ever played, Fischer, a 29-year-old Brooklynite, became... read more 1980s 1985 Wreck of the Titanic found   21st Century 2004 Chechen separatists storm Russian school   African History 1969 Qaddafi leads coup in Libya   American Revolution 1775 King George refuses Olive Branch Petition 1777 Sam Mason survives attack on Fort Henry   Art, Literature and Film History 1850 P.T. Barnum brings European opera star Jenny Lind to New York   Civil War 1864 Confederate forces abandon Atlanta   Cold War 1983 Korean Airlines flight shot down by Soviet Union   Crime 1981 A teenage boy murders his father   Early U.S. 1807 Aaron Burr acquitted of treason   Holidays 2001 First Muslim holiday U.S. postage stamp is issued   Inventions & Science 1998 Federal legislation makes airbags mandatory   Natural Disasters & Environment 1923 Japan’s Great Kanto Earthquake kills over 140,000   Sports 1964 First Japanese player makes MLB debut 1971 Pittsburgh Pirates field MLB’s first all-Black lineup   Vietnam War 1966 French president Charles de Gaulle urges the United States to get out of Vietnam   World War I 1917 Soldier recounts brush with poison gas   World War II 1939 Germany invades Poland

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY September 02 1945 Japan surrenders, bringing an end to WWII Aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay, Japan formally surrenders to the Allies, bringing an end to World War II. By the summer of 1945, the defeat of Japan was a foregone conclusion. The Japanese navy and air force were destroyed. The Allied naval blockade of Japan and intensive bombing of Japanese... read more   Find Out What Happened in 1945 World War II ended...the Atomic Age began...the United Nations formed...FDR died...and much more. EXPLORE 1945 19th Century 1885 Chinese miners are massacred in Wyoming Territory   American Revolution 1789 Congress founds U.S. Treasury   Ancient Middle East 31 B.C. The Battle of Actium   Art, Literature and Film History 1995 Michael Jackson earns his 12th and final solo #1 with “You Are Not Alone”   Civil War 1862 Union general George B. McClellan is restored to full command   European History 1666 Great Fire of London begins   Inventions & Science 1969 First U.S. ATM opens for business   Sports 2013 Diana Nyad, 64, makes record swim from Cuba to Florida   U.S. Presidents 1944 Navy aviator George H.W. Bush and his squadron attacked   Vietnam War 1969 Vietnamese president and communist icon Ho Chi Minh dies   World War II 1945 Vietnam declares its independence from France

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THIS DAY IN HISTORY September 03 1783 Treaty of Paris signed The American Revolution officially comes to an end when representatives of the United States, Great Britain, Spain and France sign the Treaty of Paris on September 3, 1783. The signing signified America’s status as a free nation, as Britain formally recognized the independence of its 13 former American colonies, and the boundaries of the new republic... read more American Revolution 1777 The Stars and Stripes flies in battle for the first time   Crime 2004 Russian school siege ends in bloodbath   Religion 1914 Pope Benedict XV named to papacy   U.S. Presidents 1919 Wilson embarks on tour to promote League of Nations   World War II 1939 Britain and France declare war on Germany 1943 Allies invade Italian mainland