- 1024 Duke Conrad II chosen as German king and crowned at Mainz Cathedral
- 1141 -9] Battle of Samarkand: Yelutashi defeats Islams
- 1156 Henry II, Duke of Austria leaves Bavaria
- 1264 The Statute of Kalisz, guaranteeing Jews safety and personal liberties and giving battei din jurisdiction over Jewish matters, is promulgated by Boleslaus the Pious, Duke of Greater Poland.
- 1276 John XXI [Peter Juliani] elected Pope, only Portuguese Pope
The Statue of David
1504 Michelangelo's statue of David is unveiled in Florence
- 1514 Battle of Orsha: Polish Lithuania army defeat the Russian army
Historic Expedition
1522 Spanish navigator Juan de Elcano returns to Spain, completing 1st circumnavigation of the globe (expedition began under Ferdinand Magellan)
- 1536 Earl of Nassau disbands siege of Peronne
- 1545 English Earl of Hertford leads retaliatory mission against Scotland
- 1563 Maximilian chosen king of Hungary
- 1565 1st permanent European settlement in the US founded at St. Augustine, Florida
- 1565 Turkish siege of Malta broken by Maltese & Knights of St John
- 1664 Dutch surrender colony of New Netherlands (including New York) to 300 English soldiers
- 1689 China & Russia sign Treaty of Nertsjinsk (Nierchul), checked Russian expansion but opened trade further between the two countries
- 1713 Pope Clemens XI publishes decree "Unigenitus" against Jansenism
- 1727 A barn fire during a puppet show in the village of Burwell in Cambridgeshire, England kills 78 people, many of whom are children.
- 1755 Battle of Lake George in the Province of New York: British army beats French
- 1756 Kittanning Expedition:s 30-40 Lenape Indians killed by Pennsylvania Provincial troops during French and Indian War
- 1760 French army surrenders Montreal to General Jeffrey Amherst
- 1771 Mission San Gabriel Archangel forms in California
- 1831 William IV is crowned King of Great Britain, then aged 64 the oldest person to assume the British throne
- 1847 US under General Scott defeat Mexicans at Battle of Molino del Rey
- 1855 British and French troops capture Sevastopol from the Russians, effectively ending the Crimean War
- 1855 French forces successfully assault the Malakoff Line during the Crimean War
Historic Event
1858 Abraham Lincoln supposedly says in a speech "You may fool all the people some of the time; you can even fool some of the people all the time; but you can’t fool all of the people all the time"
- 1860 Excursion steamer "Lady Elgin" sinks after being rammed in a storm on Lake Michigan drowning about 300. Largest loss of life on the Great Lakes.
- 1863 -10] Federal troops reconquer the Cumperland Gap, Tennessee
- 1863 Battle of Sabine Pass Texas: 47 Texas volunteers repel Federal forces
- 1863 Battle of Telford's Depot, Tennessee
- 1868 New York Athletic Club forms
- 1870 Netherlands and Britain sign "Koelietraktaat" an agreement to allow Indian contract workers from Calcutta to work in sugar plantations in Suriname
- 1883 New York Gothams score 13 runs in an inning in a 16-6 win over Philadelphia Quakers at Recreation Park, Philadelphia; MLB record (18) set 2 days earlier
- 1883 Northern Pacific RR's last spike driven at Independence Creek, Montana
- 1888 In England the first six Football League matches ever are played
- 1892 1st appearance of "Pledge of Allegiance" (Youth's Companion)
Sports History
1894 Employed by Thomas Edison, William K.L. Dickson films first boxing match at West Orange, New Jersey, an exhibition between world heavyweight champion James J. Corbett and Peter Courtney
- 1899 British government sends an additional 10,000 troops to Natal, South Africa
- 1900 6,000 killed when a hurricane & tidal wave strikes Galveston, Texas
- 1905 Pittsburgh Pirates strand NL record 18 men on base in 8-3 defeat to Cincinnati Reds at Exposition Park, Pittsburgh
- 1907 Pope Pius X publishes encyclical Pasceni dominici gregis (anti-modernism)
- 1914 HMS (formerly RMS) Oceanic, two weeks into its service with the Royal Navy, runs aground off, Foula, Shetland, Scotland in good weather and eventually sinks
- 1914 Private Thomas Highgate becomes the first British soldier to be executed for desertion during WW1
- 1915 Association of Negro Life & History founded in the US (now the Association for the Study of African American Life and History)
- 1915 US National Championship Men's Tennis, Forest Hills, NY: William Johnston beats Maurice McLoughlin 1-6, 6-0, 7-5, 10-8 in first US event held at West Side Tennis Club, Forest Hills, New York
Historic Event
1916 US President Woodrow Wilson signs the Emergency Revenue Act, doubling the rate of income tax and adding inheritance and munitions profits tax
- 1920 US Air Mail service begins (NYC to San Francisco)
- 1921 1st Miss America crowned in Atlantic City - Margaret Gorman (16) of Washington, D.C.
- 1923 Honda Point Disaster: nine US Navy destroyers run aground off the California coast. Seven are lost.
- 1924 Alexandra Kollontai of Russia becomes 1st woman ambassador
- 1926 League of Nations Assembly votex unanimously to admit Germany
- 1930 1st appearance of comic strip "Blondie"
- 1930 American inventor Richard Gurley Drew creates Scotch tape
- 1930 NYC public schools begin teaching Hebrew
Historic Event
1933 Second Spanish government of Manuel Azaña forms
- 1934 Luxury passenger ship Morro Castle bound for New Jersey catches fire, 133 die
- 1935 Willy de Supervise swims runs world record 200 m freestyle (2:25.2)
- 1936 Princess Juliana of The Netherlands & German prince Bernard Lippe-Biesterfeld become engaged
- 1937 Pan Arab conference about Palestine opens
- 1939 General Von Reichenau's panzer division reaches suburbs of Warsaw
Sports History
1939 Indians Bob Feller, 20, is youngest pitcher to win 20 games
- 1939 Yanks beat Red Sox 4-1 in 7, game called because of lightning
- 1941 Blockade of Leningrad (St Petersburg) by German forces begins
- 1941 Entire Jewish community of Meretsch, Lithuania, is exterminated
Siege of Leningrad
1941 WWII: Siege of Leningrad by German, Finnish, and eventually Spanish troops begins; battle lasted over 28 months, as Russia repels the invasion; well over a million lives
- 1943 Italy surrenders to Allies in WWII
Historic Event
1943 Lieutenant-General Omar Bradley flies to Carthago/Algiers from Sicily
- 1943 NY Giants' pitcher Ace Adams sets record by working in his 62nd game
- 1944 1st V-2 rockets land in London & Antwerp
- 1944 Russians march into Bulgaria; Bulgaria declares war on Germany
- 1945 US invades Japanese-held Korea
- 1946 Bill Kennedy of Rocky Mount (CPL) strikes out minors record 456
- 1946 Bulgaria ends its monarchy
- 1946 San Francisco 49ers play 1st AAFC game, lose to NY Yankees 21-7
US Men's Tennis Open
1946 US National Championship Men's Tennis, Forest Hills, NY: Jack Kramer beats fellow American Tom Brown Jr. 9-7, 6-3, 6-0 for his first of 2 straight US singles crowns
- 1946 US National Championship Women's Tennis, Forest Hills, NY: In an all-American final Pauline Betz Addie beats Patricia Canning Todd 11-9, 6-3 for her 4th and last US singles title
- 1948 British De Havilland DH108-fighter flies faster than sound
- 1951 Japan signs peace treaty with 48 countries in San Francisco
Historic Publication
1952 Ernest Hemingway's novel "The Old Man & the Sea" published
- 1952 US National Championship Men's Tennis, Forest Hills, NY: Australian Frank Sedgman wins his second straight US title; beats American Gardnar Mulloy 6-1, 6-2, 6-3; last amateur major before turning pro in 1953
US Open Women's Tennis
1952 US National Championship Women's Tennis, Forest Hills, NY: Defending champion Maureen Connolly beats fellow American Doris Hart 6-3, 7-5
- 1953 "Carnival in Flanders" opens at New Century Theater NY for 6 performances
- 1953 Pope Pius XII publishes encyclical Fulgeno corona
- 1954 SE Asia Treaty Org (SEATO) forms to stop communist spread in SE Asia
- 1954 WINS radio station in NYC begins playing rock and roll music with Alan Freed's "Rock-n-Roll Party" program
Sports History
1954 With a 3-2 count, Phillies Richie Ashburn fouls next 14, then walks
- 1955 Earliest clinching of an NL pennant (Brooklyn Dodgers)
#1 in the Charts
1956 Harry Belafonte's album "Calypso" goes #1 & stays #1 for 31 weeks
- 1957 Jackie Wilson, releases his 1st solo single "Reet Petite"
Sports History
1957 Juan Manuel Fangio confirms his F1 World Drivers Championship, finishing 2nd in the season ending Italian GP at Monza; takes record 5th title by 15 points from Stirling Moss
- 1957 Pope Pius XII publishes encyclical on motion pictures, radio and television
US Men's Tennis Open
1957 US National Championship Men's Tennis, Forest Hills, NY: In an all-Australian final Mal Anderson wins his only Grand Slam event; beats Ashley Cooper 10-8, 7-5, 6-4
US Open Women's Tennis
1957 US National Championship Women's Tennis, Forest Hills, NY: Althea Gibson beats Louise Brough Clapp 6-3, 6-2 for the first of her 2 home singles crowns
- 1958 Oman turns over Gwadur (on Baluchistan coast) to Pakistan
- 1958 Paul Anka opens Asian tour in Tokyo
Baseball Record
1958 Pirate Roberto Clemente ties modern record of 3 triples in a game
- 1959 The Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) is established.
- 1960 American sprinter Wilma Rudolph wins her third gold medal of the Rome Olympics anchoring the US 4 x 100m relay team; earlier won 100/200m double
- 1960 German 4 x 100m relay team equal world record 39.5 to win the gold medal at the Rome Olympics; Bernd Cullmann, Armin Hary, Walter Mahlendorf & Martin Lauer
- 1960 German Democratic Republic limits access to East-Berlin for West Berliners
Film Release
1960 Nationwide release (US) of Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho" starring Anthony Perkins and Janet Leigh
- 1960 US 4 x 400m relay team of Jack Yerman, Earl Young, Glenn Davis & Otis Davis run a world record 3:02.2 to win the gold medal at the Rome Olympics
- 1961 Nashville-based guitar wizard Hank Garland sustains career-ending injuries in a single vehicle accident near Springfield, Tennessee
- 1962 Chinese troops exceed Mac-Mahon-line (Tibet-India boundary)
- 1962 Last run of the famous Pines Express over the Somerset and Dorset Railway line (UK) fittingly using the last steam locomotive built by British Railways, 9F locomotive 92220 'Evening Star'
- 1962 USSR performs nuclear test at Novaya Zemlya USSR
- 1963 Algerian population accepts constitution
- 1963 Ines Cuervo de Priete, 34, gives birth to quintuplets, all boys in Venezuela
Sports History
1963 Milwaukee Braves future Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Warren Spahn ties Christy Mathewson with 13 x 20-win seasons
- 1963 Scottish Lotus driver Jim Clark wins the Italian Grand Prix at Monza to clinch his first F1 World Drivers Championship; Clark's 5th GP win of the season
- 1963 US National Championship Men's Tennis, Forest Hills, NY: Rafael Osuna of Mexico beats Frank Froehling 7-5, 6-4, 6-2 for his lone major singles title
US Open Women's Tennis
1963 US National Championship Women's Tennis, Forest Hills, NY: Maria Bueno of Brazil wins second of 4 US singles crowns; beats defending champion Margaret Smith of Australia 7-5, 6-4
- 1965 Hurricane Betsy kills 75 in Louisiana & Florida
Sports History
1965 Kansas City A's Bert Campaneris plays all 9 positions in a game
Hey, Hey – We're The Monkees
1965 Small ads in Daily Variety and Hollywood Reporter attract 437 young men interested in forming the world’s first manufactured boy band, "The Monkees" - 3 are chosen with British actor-singer Davy Jones already having been cast
Television Premiere
1966 "Star Trek" premieres on NBC-TV starring William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy
- 1966 "That Girl" starring Marlo Thomas premieres on ABC-TV
Historic Event
1966 The Severn Bridge between England and Wales is officially opened by Queen Elizabeth II
- 1967 Surveyor 5 launched; makes soft landing on Moon Sept 10
- 1967 The formal end of steam traction in the North East of England by British Railways.
- 1967 Uganda abolishes traditional tribal kingdoms, becomes a republic
- 1968 France performs nuclear test at Mururoa atoll
- 1968 Saundra Williams wins 1st Miss Black America pageant
US Men's Tennis Open
1968 US Open Men's Tennis, Forest Hills, NY: Arthur Ashe wins first Open era US title; beats Dutchman Tom Okker 14-12, 5-7, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3
- 1969 Suleiman Maghrabi appointed premier of Libya
Sports History
1969 US amateur Men's Tennis: Stan Smith beats Bob Lutz (97 63 61)
US Open Women's Tennis
1969 US Open Women's Tennis, Forest Hills, NY: Australian Margaret Court wins her third US singles title & 16th Grand Slam singles event; beats Nancy Richey 6-2, 6-2
- 1970 Black September hijackings begin, three airliners hijacked and blown up by Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine
- 1971 John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts opens in Washington, D.C.
- 1972 Chic Cub Ferguson Jenkins wins his 20th game for 6th straight year
- 1972 East German Annelie Ehrhardt with a world record 12.59 takes the 100m hurdles gold medal at the Munich Olympics; beats Romanian Valeria Bufanu by just 0.25
- 1972 Jim Ryan (US) & Billy Fordjour (Ghana) collide & fall in qualifying competitions for 1,500m finals, ending Ryan's chances for gold
- 1972 Mykola Avilov representing the Soviet Union scores a world record 8454 points to win the decathlon gold medal at the Munich Olympics; beats teammate Leonid Lytvynenko by 419 points
- 1973 "Star Trek - Animated Series" premieres on TV
Sports History
1973 Billy Martin named manager of the Texas Rangers
Baseball Record
1973 Hank Aaron sets record of most HRs in 1 league (709)
- 1973 Rebecca Ann King (23), Miss Colorado, crowned 46th Miss America
US Open Women's Tennis
1973 US Open Women's Tennis, Forest Hills, NY: Margaret Court wins her 24th and final Grand Slam singles title; beats fellow Australian Evonne Goolagong Cawley 7-6, 5-7, 6-2
Historic Event
1974 American motorcycle daredevil Evel Knievel attempts to jump the Snake River Canyon in Idaho but fails, escaping with minor injuries
- 1974 England's Ian Thompson wins European Championship marathon in 2:13:18.8 in Rome, Italy
US Men's Tennis Open
1974 US Open Men's Tennis, Forest Hills, NY: Jimmy Connors wins his first of 5 US singles titles; outclasses veteran Australian Ken Rosewall 6-1, 6-0, 6-1 in last event played on grass
Historic Event
1974 US President Gerald Ford pardons former President Richard Nixon of all federal crimes
- 1975 Boston begins court-ordered bussing of public schools
- 1975 Guinee-Bissau declares independence from Portugal
- 1976 Fons Rademakers' film "Max Havelaar" premieres in Amsterdam
- 1977 Interpol sends a resolution concerning video piracy
- 1977 Jimmy McCulloch quits Wings
- 1978 2nd game of Boston Massacre; NY Yankees beat Red Sox, 13-2
- 1979 Cheryl Prewitt (Miss), 22, crowned 52nd Miss America 1980
US Open Women's Tennis
1979 US Open Women's Tennis: Tracy Austin becomes youngest US champion (16 years, 9 months); beats Chris Evert 6-4, 6-3
- 1979 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
Sports History
1980 Bowie Kuhn suspends Ferguson Jenkins indefinitely due to drug arrest
- 1981 British TV comedy "Only Fools and Horses" created by John Sullivan, starring David Jason, Nicholas Lyndhurst and Lennard Pearce premieres on BBC One
- 1982 Dutch social democratic party wins elections, fascist enters Dutch parliament
- 1983 NASA launches RCA-6
- 1984 Challenger moves to Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center (Florida) for mating of STS 41G mission
US Open Women's Tennis
1984 US Open Women's Tennis: Martina Navratilova retains her title; beats Chris Evert-Lloyd 4-6, 6-4, 6-4
- 1985 "USA Weekend's" 1st issue, appears in 255 newspapers
- 1985 7 die in a car & train crash in San Jose, California
- 1985 Alayson Gibbons sets 24 hr women swim record of 42.05 mi in 25 m pool
- 1985 Shuttle Discovery flies back to Kennedy Space Center via Kelly AFB
US Men's Tennis Open
1985 US Open Men's Tennis: Czech star Ivan Lendl wins his first US title; beats NYC home town favourite John McEnroe 7-6, 6-3, 6-4
Film & TV History
1986 "The Oprah Winfrey Show" is first broadcast nationally
- 1986 Westinghouse sells background music company Muzak to the Fields Company of Chicago
- 1988 Javier Sotomayer of Cuba high jumps world record 2.43m
- 1988 NL president A. Bartlett Giamatti is unanimously elected Major League Baseball's 7th Commissioner
Baseball Record
1989 George Brett gets his 2,500th hit
- 1989 Mausoleum of Beatrice of Brabant (1288) discovered in Kortrijk, Belgium
- 1989 Norwegian Convair 580 crashes at Jutland in sea (55 murder)
- 1990 Ellis Island Historical Site opens on Ellis Island NYC
US Open Women's Tennis
1990 US Open Women's Tennis: Gabriela Sabatini becomes only Argentine woman to win a Grand Slam singles event; beats Steffi Graf 6-2, 7-6
- 1991 Macedonia votes for independence from Yugoslavia
- 1991 NFL Buffalo Bill QB Jim Kelly passes for 6 touchdowns vs Pittsburgh Steelers (52-34)
US Men's Tennis Open
1991 US Open Men's Tennis: Stefan Edberg of Sweden wins his first US title; beats American Jim Courier 6-2, 6-4, 6-0
- 1992 Danny Tartabull has 9 RBIs as Yanks beat Orioles 16-4
- 1992 Howard Stern Radio Show begins broadcasting in Dallas (KGEL-FM 97.1)
- 1993 Baseball's proposed switch to a three-division format OKed in AL
- 1993 Houston's Darryl Kile throws 3rd no-hitter of season in Astros' 7-1 win over NY Mets
- 1993 Wang Junxia creates a women's world record 10,000m (29:31.78) at the Chinese National Games
- 1994 "Philadelphia, Here I Come" opens at Criterion NYC for 52 performances
Video Music Awards
1994 11th MTV Video Music Awards: Aerosmith wins with newlyweds Michael Jackson & Lisa Marie Presley opening the show
- 1994 Last US, British & French troops leave West Berlin
- 1994 Man shoots another man on IRT #4 train at Grand Central Station
- 1994 Sri Lanka defeat Australia to win Singer World Series at Colombo
- 1994 USAir Boeing 737 crashes at Pitts Airport, killing all 132 on board
- 1995 Cleveland Indians clinch 1st AL Central Division title
- 1996 48th Emmy Awards: ER, Dennis Franz & Kathy Baker win
- 1996 American children's program "Blue's Clues" debuts on Nickelodeon cable channel
Theatrical Finale
1996 August Wilson's drama "Seven Guitars" closes at Walter Kerr Theater, NYC, after 188 performances
US Men's Tennis Open
1996 US Open Men's Tennis: Pete Sampras retains his title; beats fellow American Michael Chang 6-1, 6-4, 7-6