This Day in History

Amaury · Jun 23, 2012

6/23/1992: Teflon Don Sentenced to Life

Mafia boss John Gotti, who was nicknamed the "Teflon Don" after escaping unscathed from several trials during the 1980s, is sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty on 14 accounts of conspiracy to commit murder and racketeering. Moments after his sentence was read in a federal courthouse in Brooklyn, hundreds of Gotti's supporters stormed the building and overturned and smashed cars before being forced back by police reinforcements.

Gotti, born and educated on the mean streets of New York City, became head of the powerful Gambino family after boss Paul Castellano was murdered outside a steakhouse in Manhattan in December 1985. The gang assassination, the first in three decades in New York, was organized by Gotti and his colleague Sammy "the Bull" Gravano. The Gambino family was known for its illegal narcotics operations, gambling activities, and car theft. During the next five years, Gotti rapidly expanded his criminal empire, and his family grew into the nation's most powerful Mafia family. Despite wide publicity of his criminal activities, Gotti managed to avoid conviction several times, usually through witness intimidation. In 1990, however, he was indicted for conspiracy to commit murder in the death of Paul Castellano, and Gravano agreed to testify against him in a federal district court in exchange for a reduced prison sentence.

On April 2, 1992, John Gotti was found guilty on all counts and on June 23 was sentenced to multiple life terms without the possibility of parole.

While still imprisoned, Gotti died of throat cancer on June 10, 2002.
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American Revolution

Commodore Parker prepares for a naval strike on Charleston, 1776

Automotive

"Mercedes" registered as a brand name, 1902

Civil War

Lee confers with his generals before the Seven Days' Battles, 1862

Cold War

Lyndon B. Johnson meets with Aleksei Kosygin, 1967

Crime

Even without the corpse, a murderer is uncovered, 1934

Disaster

Tornadoes hit West Virginia and Pennsylvania, 1944

General Interest

Nasser elected president, 1956

Klaus Fuchs released, 1959

Hollywood

Batman released, 1989

Literary

Michael Shaara, author of The Killer Angels, is born, 1929

Music

Tiffany visits the mall on her way to stardom, 1987

Old West

Frontiersman Martin Sweeny is murdered, 1878

Presidential

Newspaper reveals Coolidge will be adopted into Sioux tribe, 1927

Nixon signs Higher Education Act, 1972

Haldeman encourages Nixon to ward off FBI, 1973

Sports

Title IX enacted, 1972

Vietnam War

Johnson announces new ambassador to South Vietnam, 1964

North Vietnamese encircle Ben Het, 1969

World War I

First Battle of the Isonzo, 1915

World War II

Hitler takes a tour of Paris, 1940

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Amaury · Jun 24, 2012

6/24/1997: U.S. Air Force Reports on Roswell

On this day in 1997, U.S. Air Force officials release a 231-page report dismissing long-standing claims of an alien spacecraft crash in Roswell, New Mexico, almost exactly 50 years earlier.

Public interest in Unidentified Flying Objects, or UFOs, began to flourish in the 1940s, when developments in space travel and the dawn of the atomic age caused many Americans to turn their attention to the skies. The town of Roswell, located near the Pecos River in southeastern New Mexico, became a magnet for UFO believers due to the strange events of early July 1947, when ranch foreman W.W. Brazel found a strange, shiny material scattered over some of his land. He turned the material over to the sheriff, who passed it on to authorities at the nearby Air Force base. On July 8, Air Force officials announced they had recovered the wreckage of a "flying disk." A local newspaper put the story on its front page, launching Roswell into the spotlight of the public's UFO fascination.

The Air Force soon took back their story, however, saying the debris had been merely a downed weather balloon. Aside from die-hard UFO believers, or "ufologists," public interest in the so-called "Roswell Incident" faded until the late 1970s, when claims surfaced that the military had invented the weather balloon story as a cover-up. Believers in this theory argued that officials had in fact retrieved several alien bodies from the crashed spacecraft, which were now stored in the mysterious Area 51 installation in Nevada. Seeking to dispel these suspicions, the Air Force issued a 1,000-page report in 1994 stating that the crashed object was actually a high-altitude weather balloon launched from a nearby missile test-site as part of a classified experiment aimed at monitoring the atmosphere in order to detect Soviet nuclear tests.

On July 24, 1997, barely a week before the extravagant 50th anniversary celebration of the incident, the Air Force released yet another report on the controversial subject. Titled "The Roswell Report, Case Closed," the document stated definitively that there was no Pentagon evidence that any kind of life form was found in the Roswell area in connection with the reported UFO sightings, and that the "bodies" recovered were not aliens but dummies used in parachute tests conducted in the region. Any hopes that this would put an end to the cover-up debate were in vain, as furious ufologists rushed to point out the report's inconsistencies. With conspiracy theories still alive and well on the Internet, Roswell continues to thrive as a tourist destination for UFO enthusiasts far and wide, hosting the annual UFO Encounter Festival each July and welcoming visitors year-round to its International UFO Museum and Research Center.
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American Revolution

New Hampshire Patriot Matthew Thornton dies, 1803

Automotive

Senate passes landmark auto safety bill, 1966

Civil War

Lincoln consults Winfield Scott, 1862

Cold War

Soviets blockade West Berlin, 1948

Crime

Mail bomb injures Yale professor, 1993

Disaster

Eastern Flight 66 crashes at J.F.K., 1975

General Interest

King Philip's War begins, 1675

Napoleon's Grande Armee invades Russia, 1812

Picasso exhibited in Paris, 1901

Eamon de Valera resigns, 1973

Hollywood

Tom Cruise raises eyebrows, 2005

Literary

Pete Hamill is born, 1935

Music

Disney pulls album on release day, 1997

Old West

Colorado Governor orders Indians to Sand Creek, 1864

Presidential

Woodrow Wilson marries Ellen Axson in Savannah, Georgia, 1885

Jacqueline Bouvier and Senator John F. Kennedy announce engagement, 1953

Sports

Mandela cheers on South African rugby team, 1995

Vietnam War

Senate repeals Tonkin Gulf Resolution, 1970

Martin becomes the U.S. ambassador in Saigon, 1973

World War I

First operational flight of new German fighter plane, 1915

World War II

Russians enjoy a victory parade, 1945

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Amaury · Jun 25, 2012

6/25/1876: Battle of Little Bighorn

On this day in 1876, Native American forces led by Chiefs Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull defeat the U.S. Army troops of Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer in a bloody battle near southern Montana's Little Bighorn River.

Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull, leaders of the Sioux tribe on the Great Plains, strongly resisted the mid-19th-century efforts of the U.S. government to confine their people to reservations. In 1875, after gold was discovered in South Dakota's Black Hills, the U.S. Army ignored previous treaty agreements and invaded the region. This betrayal led many Sioux and Cheyenne tribesmen to leave their reservations and join Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse in Montana. By the late spring of 1876, more than 10,000 Native Americans had gathered in a camp along the Little Bighorn River--which they called the Greasy Grass--in defiance of a U.S. War Department order to return to their reservations or risk being attacked.

In mid-June, three columns of U.S. soldiers lined up against the camp and prepared to march. A force of 1,200 Native Americans turned back the first column on June 17. Five days later, General Alfred Terry ordered Custer's 7th Cavalry to scout ahead for enemy troops. On the morning of June 25, Custer drew near the camp and decided to press on ahead rather than wait for reinforcements.

At mid-day, Custer's 600 men entered the Little Bighorn Valley. Among the Native Americans, word quickly spread of the impending attack. The older Sitting Bull rallied the warriors and saw to the safety of the women and children, while Crazy Horse set off with a large force to meet the attackers head on. Despite Custer's desperate attempts to regroup his men, they were quickly overwhelmed. Custer and some 200 men in his battalion were attacked by as many as 3,000 Native Americans; within an hour, Custer and every last one of his soldier were dead.

The Battle of Little Bighorn--also called Custer's Last Stand--marked the most decisive Native American victory and the worst U.S. Army defeat in the long Plains Indian War. The gruesome fate of Custer and his men outraged many white Americans and confirmed their image of the Indians as wild and bloodthirsty. Meanwhile, the U.S. government increased its efforts to subdue the tribes. Within five years, almost all of the Sioux and Cheyenne would be confined to reservations.
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American Revolution

South Carolina Patriot Thomas Tudor Tucker born in Bermuda, 1745

Automotive

Last Packard produced, 1956

Civil War

Union begins tunneling toward Rebels at Petersburg, 1864

Cold War

Korean War begins, 1950

Crime

Congress passes Mann Act, 1910

Disaster

Hurricane Audrey hits Gulf Coast, 1957

General Interest

Eisenhower takes command, 1942

Kim Campbell takes office, 1993

Hollywood

â€œKing of Popâ€ Michael Jackson dies at age 50, 2009

Literary

Baudelaire's Les Fleurs du Mal is published, 1857

Music

Teenager Debbie Gibson earns a #1 hit with "Foolish Beat", 1988

Old West

Indians defeat Custer at Little Big Horn, 1876

Presidential

Eisenhower assumes command of U.S. troops in Europe, 1942

Sports

Joe Louis defeats Jersey Joe Walcott, 1948

U.S. World Cup team wins unlikely victory over England, 1950

Vietnam War

Viet Cong blow up a floating restaurant, 1965

U.S. Navy turns boats over to South Vietnamese Navy, 1969

World War I

Germans release statement on use of poison gas at Ypres, 1915

World War II

Lord Louis Mountbatten is born, 1900

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Amaury · Jun 26, 2012

6/26/1948: U.S Begins Berlin Airlift

On this day in 1948, U.S. and British pilots begin delivering food and supplies by airplane to Berlin after the city is isolated by a Soviet Union blockade.

When World War II ended in 1945, defeated Germany was divided into Soviet, American, British and French zones of occupation. The city of Berlin, though located within the Soviet zone of occupation, was also split into four sectors, with the Allies taking the western part of the city and the Soviets the eastern. In June 1948, Josef Stalin's government attempted to consolidate control of the city by cutting off all land and sea routes to West Berlin in order to pressure the Allies to evacuate. As a result, beginning on June 24 the western section of Berlin and its 2 million people were deprived of food, heating fuel and other crucial supplies.

Though some in U.S. President Harry S. Truman's administration called for a direct military response to this aggressive Soviet move, Truman worried such a response would trigger another world war. Instead, he authorized a massive airlift operation under the control of General Lucius D. Clay, the American-appointed military governor of Germany. The first planes took off from England and western Germany on June 26, loaded with food, clothing, water, medicine and fuel.

By July 15, an average of 2,500 tons of supplies was being flown into the city every day. The massive scale of the airlift made it a huge logistical challenge and at times a great risk. With planes landing at Tempelhof Airport every four minutes, round the clock, pilots were being asked to fly two or more round-trip flights every day, in World War II planes that were sometimes in need of repair.

The Soviets lifted the blockade in May 1949, having earned the scorn of the international community for subjecting innocent men, women and children to hardship and starvation. The airlift--called die Luftbrucke or "the air bridge" in German--continued until September 1949, for a total delivery of more than 1.5 million tons of supplies and a total cost of over $224 million. When it ended, the eastern section of Berlin was absorbed into Soviet East Germany, while West Berlin remained a separate territory with its own government and close ties to West Germany. The Berlin Wall, built in 1961, formed a dividing line between East and West Berlin. Its destruction in 1989 presaged the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union and marked the end of an era and the reemergence of Berlin as the capital of a new, unified German nation.
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American Revolution

Delaware Patriot Caesar Rodney dies, 1784

Automotive

Congress approves Federal Highway Act, 1956

Civil War

Rebels strike Union at the Battle of Mechanicsville, 1862

Cold War

Berlin Airlift begins, 1948

Crime

A serial killer preys upon a woman out for a drive, 1957

Disaster

Lightning strikes in Luxembourg, 1807

General Interest

Conqueror of the Incas assassinated, 1541

U.N. Charter signed, 1945

St. Lawrence Seaway opened, 1959

Clinton punishes Iraq for plot to kill Bush, 1993

Former U.S. Senator Strom Thurmond dies, 2003

Hollywood

Gone with the Wind re-released in United States, 1998

Literary

Pearl Buck's birthday, 1892

Music

Sonny and Cher's divorce becomes final, 1975

Old West

Reno takes command of 7th Cavalry, 1876

Presidential

President John Tyler weds his second wife, 1844

Kennedy claims solidarity with the people of Berlin, 1963

Sports

Babe Didrikson born, 1911

Vietnam War

Westmoreland given authority to commit U.S. forces, 1965

U.S. aircraft shifted to Thailand, 1972

World War I

First U.S. troops arrive in France, 1917

World War II

Turkey declares nonbelligerency, 1940

U.N. Charter is signed, 1945

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Amaury · Jun 27, 2012

6/27/1950: Truman Orders U.S. Forces to Korea

On June 27, 1950, President Harry S. Truman announces that he is ordering U.S. air and naval forces to South Korea to aid the democratic nation in repulsing an invasion by communist North Korea. The United States was undertaking the major military operation, he explained, to enforce a United Nations resolution calling for an end to hostilities, and to stem the spread of communism in Asia. In addition to ordering U.S. forces to Korea, Truman also deployed the U.S. 7th Fleet to Formosa (Taiwan) to guard against invasion by communist China and ordered an acceleration of military aid to French forces fighting communist guerrillas in Vietnam.

At the Yalta Conference towards the end of World War II, the United States, the USSR, and Great Britain agreed to divide Korea into two separate occupation zones. The country was split along the 38th parallel, with Soviet forces occupying the northern zone and Americans stationed in the south. In 1947, the United States and Great Britain called for free elections throughout Korea, but the Soviets refused to comply. In May 1948 the Korean Democratic People's Republic--a communist state--was proclaimed in North Korea. In August, the democratic Republic of Korea was established in South Korea. By 1949, both the United States and the USSR had withdrawn the majority of their troops from the Korean Peninsula.

At dawn on June 25, 1950 (June 24 in the United States and Europe), 90,000 communist troops of the North Korean People's Army invaded South Korea across the 38th parallel, catching the Republic of Korea's forces completely off guard and throwing them into a hasty southern retreat. On the afternoon of June 25, the U.N. Security Council met in an emergency session and approved a U.S. resolution calling for an "immediate cessation of hostilities" and the withdrawal of North Korean forces to the 38th parallel. At the time, the USSR was boycotting the Security Council over the U.N.'s refusal to admit the People's Republic of China and so missed its chance to veto this and other crucial U.N. resolutions.

On June 27, President Truman announced to the nation and the world that America would intervene in the Korean conflict in order to prevent the conquest of an independent nation by communism. Truman was suggesting that the USSR was behind the North Korean invasion, and in fact the Soviets had given tacit approval to the invasion, which was carried out with Soviet-made tanks and weapons. Despite the fear that U.S. intervention in Korea might lead to open warfare between the United States and Russia after years of "cold war," Truman's decision was met with overwhelming approval from Congress and the U.S. public. Truman did not ask for a declaration of war, but Congress voted to extend the draft and authorized Truman to call up reservists.

On June 28, the Security Council met again and in the continued absence of the Soviet Union passed a U.S. resolution approving the use of force against North Korea. On June 30, Truman agreed to send U.S. ground forces to Korea, and on July 7 the Security Council recommended that all U.N. forces sent to Korea be put under U.S. command. The next day, General Douglas MacArthur was named commander of all U.N. forces in Korea.

In the opening months of the war, the U.S.-led U.N. forces rapidly advanced against the North Koreans, but Chinese communist troops entered the fray in October, throwing the Allies into a hasty retreat. In April 1951, Truman relieved MacArthur of his command after he publicly threatened to bomb China in defiance of Truman's stated war policy. Truman feared that an escalation of fighting with China would draw the Soviet Union into the Korean War.

By May 1951, the communists were pushed back to the 38th parallel, and the battle line remained in that vicinity for the remainder of the war. On July 27, 1953, after two years of negotiation, an armistice was signed, ending the war and reestablishing the 1945 division of Korea that still exists today. Approximately 150,000 troops from South Korea, the United States, and participating U.N. nations were killed in the Korean War, and as many as one million South Korean civilians perished. An estimated 800,000 communist soldiers were killed, and more than 200,000 North Korean civilians died.

The original figure of American troops lost--54,246 killed--became controversial when the Pentagon acknowledged in 2000 that all U.S. troops killed around the world during the period of the Korean War were incorporated into that number. For example, any American soldier killed in a car accident anywhere in the world from June 1950 to July 1953 was considered a casualty of the Korean War. If these deaths are subtracted from the 54,000 total, leaving just the Americans who died (from whatever cause) in the Korean theater of operations, the total U.S. dead in the Korean War numbers 36,516.
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American Revolution

Schuyler dispatched to Ticonderoga and Crown Point, 1775

Automotive

Route 66 decertified, 1985

Civil War

Confederate and Union forces clash at the Battle of Kennesaw Mountain, 1864

Cold War

U.N. approves armed force to repel North Korea, 1950

Crime

Four-time thief escapes Baumes law, 1921

Disaster

Ebola breaks out in Sudan, 1976

General Interest

Smithson's curious bequest, 1829

Mormon leader killed by mob, 1844

First Newbery Medal for children's literature, 1922

Hollywood

â€œFrankly, My Dearâ€¦â€, 1939

Literary

Alice McDermott's birthday, 1953

Music

Elvis Presley tapes his famous TV "comeback special", 1968

Old West

Buffalo hunters and Indians clash at Adobe Walls, 1874

Presidential

JFK visits Ireland, 1963

Sports

Tyson knocks out Spinks, 1988

Vietnam War

Kennedy appoints Lodge as ambassador, 1963

U.S. forces begin to evacuate Khe Sanh, 1968

World War I

Colonel House meets with British foreign secretary in London, 1914

World War II

Germans get Enigma, 1940

U.S. troops liberate Cherbourg, France, 1944

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Amaury · Jun 28, 2012

6/28/1953: Workers Assemble First Corvette in Flint, Michigan

On this day in 1953, workers at a Chevrolet plant in Flint, Michigan, assemble the first Corvette, a two-seater sports car that would become an American icon. The first completed production car rolled off the assembly line two days later, one of just 300 Corvettes made that year.

The idea for the Corvette originated with General Motors' pioneering designer Harley J. Earl, who in 1951 began developing plans for a low-cost American sports car that could compete with Europe's MGs, Jaguars and Ferraris. The project was eventually code-named "Opel." In January 1953, GM debuted the Corvette concept car at its Motorama auto show at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City. It featured a fiberglass body and a six-cylinder engine and according to GM, was named for the "trim, fleet naval vessel that performed heroic escort and patrol duties during World War II." The Corvette was a big hit with the public at Motorama and GM soon put the roadster into production.

On June 30, 1953, the first Corvette came off the production line in Flint. It was hand-assembled and featured a Polo White exterior and red interior, two-speed Powerglide automatic transmission, a wraparound windshield, whitewall tires and detachable plastic curtains instead of side windows. The earliest Corvettes were designed to be opened from the inside and lacked exterior door handles. Other components included a clock, cigarette lighter and red warning light that activated when the parking brake was applied--a new feature at the time. The car carried an initial price tag of $3,490 and could go from zero to 60 miles per hour in 11 or 12 seconds, then considered a fairly average speed.

In 1954, the Corvette went into mass production at a Chevy plant in St. Louis, Missouri. Sales were lackluster in the beginning and GM considered discontinuing the line. However, rival company Ford had introduced the two-seater Thunderbird around the same time and GM did not want to be seen bowing to the competition. Another critical development in the Corvette's survival came in 1955, when it was equipped with the more powerful V-8 engine. Its performance and appeal steadily improved after that and it went on to earn the nickname "America's sports car" and become ingrained in pop culture through multiple references in movies, television and music.
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American Revolution

Former President James Madison dies, 1836

Automotive

Daimler Chrysler announces Smart's arrival in United States, 2006

Civil War

Confederates capture commercial ship, 1862

Cold War

Yugoslavia expelled from COMINFORM, 1948

Crime

A teenage girl's boyfriend murders her parents, 1975

A serial rapist strikes in Allentown, 1993

Disaster

Two big quakes rock California, 1992

General Interest

Charles elected Holy Roman emperor, 1519

Archduke Ferdinand assassinated, 1914

Keynes predicts economic chaos, 1919

The Stonewall Riot, 1969

Hollywood

Lasky Company merges with Famous Players, later to become Paramount, 1916

Literary

Robert Louis Stevenson sets sail for the South Seas, 1888

Music

Louis Armstrong records "West End Blues", 1928

Old West

Western writer Emerson Hough is born, 1857

Presidential

Harry S. Truman marries Bess Wallace, 1919

Sports

Mike Tyson bites ear, 1997

Vietnam War

U.S. forces launch first offensive, 1965

Nixon announces draftees will not go to Vietnam, 1972

World War I

Archduke Franz Ferdinand assassinated, 1914

World War II

Britain recognizes General Charles de Gaulle as the leader of the Free French, 1940

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Amaury · Jun 29, 2012

6/29/1995: U.S. Space Shuttle Docks with Russian Space Station

On this day in 1995, the American space shuttle Atlantis docks with the Russian space station Mir to form the largest man-made satellite ever to orbit the Earth.

This historic moment of cooperation between former rival space programs was also the 100th human space mission in American history. At the time, Daniel Goldin, chief of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), called it the beginning of "a new era of friendship and cooperation" between the U.S. and Russia. With millions of viewers watching on television, Atlantis blasted off from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in eastern Florida on June 27, 1995.

Just after 6 a.m. on June 29, Atlantis and its seven crew members approached Mir as both crafts orbited the Earth some 245 miles above Central Asia, near the Russian-Mongolian border. When they spotted the shuttle, the three cosmonauts on Mir broadcast Russian folk songs to Atlantis to welcome them. Over the next two hours, the shuttle's commander, Robert "Hoot" Gibson expertly maneuvered his craft towards the space station. To make the docking, Gibson had to steer the 100-ton shuttle to within three inches of Mir at a closing rate of no more than one foot every 10 seconds.

The docking went perfectly and was completed at 8 a.m., just two seconds off the targeted arrival time and using 200 pounds less fuel than had been anticipated. Combined, Atlantis and the 123-ton Mir formed the largest spacecraft ever in orbit. It was only the second time ships from two countries had linked up in space; the first was in June 1975, when an American Apollo capsule and a Soviet Soyuz spacecraft briefly joined in orbit.

Once the docking was completed, Gibson and Mir's commander, Vladimir Dezhurov, greeted each other by clasping hands in a victorious celebration of the historic moment. A formal exchange of gifts followed, with the Atlantis crew bringing chocolate, fruit and flowers and the Mir cosmonauts offering traditional Russian welcoming gifts of bread and salt. Atlantis remained docked with Mir for five days before returning to Earth, leaving two fresh Russian cosmonauts on the space station. The three veteran Mir crew members returned with the shuttle, including two Russians and Norman Thagard, a U.S. astronaut who rode a Russian rocket to the space station in mid-March 1995 and spent over 100 days in space, a U.S. endurance record. NASA's Shuttle-Mir program continued for 11 missions and was a crucial step towards the construction of the International Space Station now in orbit.
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American Revolution

South Carolina's Edward Rutledge opposes independence, 1776

Automotive

Actress Jayne Mansfield dies in car crash, 1967

Civil War

Rebels inflict attack Yankees at the Battle of Savage's Station, 1862

Cold War

Congress votes new sanctions against China, 1989

Crime

Boston doctor found guilty of killing wife, 2001

Disaster

Seoul department store collapses, 1995

General Interest

Germans advance in USSR, 1941

Vietnam air war escalates, 1966

Supreme Court strikes down death penalty, 1972

Isabela Peron takes office as Argentine president, 1974

Hollywood

Katharine Hepburn dies at age 96, 2003

Literary

The Globe Theater burns down, 1613

Music

The Stones fight the law, and the law wins, 1967

Old West

Texan William Travis prepares for war with Mexico, 1835

Presidential

FDR writes to Manhattan Project physicist Dr. Robert Oppenheimer, 1943

Sports

Pele helps Brazil to World Cup title, 1958

Vietnam War

First New Zealand troops arrive, 1964

U.S. ground troops return from Cambodia, 1970

World War I

Austria-Hungary protests shipment of U.S. munitions to Britain, 1915

World War II

Germans capture Lvov-and slaughter ensues, 1941

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Amaury · Jun 30, 2012

6/30/1936: Gone with the Wind Published

Margaret Mitchell's Gone with the Wind, one of the best-selling novels of all time and the basis for a blockbuster 1939 movie, is published on this day in 1936.

In 1926, Mitchell was forced to quit her job as a reporter at the Atlanta Journal to recover from a series of physical injuries. With too much time on her hands, Mitchell soon grew restless. Working on a Remington typewriter, a gift from her second husband, John R. Marsh, in their cramped one-bedroom apartment, Mitchell began telling the story of an Atlanta belle named Pansy O'Hara.

In tracing Pansy's tumultuous life from the antebellum South through the Civil War and into the Reconstruction era, Mitchell drew on the tales she had heard from her parents and other relatives, as well as from Confederate war veterans she had met as a young girl. While she was extremely secretive about her work, Mitchell eventually gave the manuscript to Harold Latham, an editor from New York's MacMillan Publishing. Latham encouraged Mitchell to complete the novel, with one important change: the heroine's name. Mitchell agreed to change it to Scarlett, now one of the most memorable names in the history of literature.

Published in 1936, Gone with the Wind caused a sensation in Atlanta and went on to sell millions of copies in the United States and throughout the world. While the book drew some criticism for its romanticized view of the Old South and its slaveholding elite, its epic tale of war, passion and loss captivated readers far and wide. By the time Mitchell won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1937, a movie project was already in the works. The film was produced by Hollywood giant David O. Selznick, who paid Mitchell a record-high $50,000 for the film rights to her book.

After testing hundreds of unknowns and big-name stars to play Scarlett, Selznick hired British actress Vivien Leigh days after filming began. Clark Gable was also on board as Rhett Butler, Scarlett's dashing love interest. Plagued with problems on set, Gone with the Wind nonetheless became one of the highest-grossing and most acclaimed movies of all time, breaking box office records and winning nine Academy Awards out of 13 nominations.

Though she didn't take part in the film adaptation of her book, Mitchell did attend its star-studded premiere in December 1939 in Atlanta. Tragically, she died just 10 years later, after she was struck by a speeding car while crossing Atlanta's Peachtree Street. Scarlett, a relatively unmemorable sequel to Gone with the Wind written by Alexandra Ripley, was published in 1992.
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American Revolution

Congress impugns Parliament and adopts Articles of War, 1775

Automotive

First Corvette built, 1953

Civil War

Fighting continues in the Seven Days' Battles, 1862

Cold War

Truman orders U.S. forces to Korea, 1950

Crime

A first-time offender ends up on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted List, 1981

Disaster

Fire breaks out at New Jersey pier, 1900

General Interest

Spanish retreat from Aztec capital, 1520

Daredevil crosses Niagara Falls on tightrope, 1859

Night of the Long Knives, 1934

Soviet cosmonauts perish in reentry disaster, 1971

Hollywood

Do the Right Thing released, 1989

Literary

Make Way for Ducklings author Robert McCloskey dies, 2003

Music

Cher marries Greg Allman, 1975

Old West

Soldiers are evacuated from the Little Big Horn by steamboat, 1876

Presidential

Madison makes urgent call to commission more officers to fight the British, 1812

Sports

Sandy Koufax pitches first no-hitter, 1962

Vietnam War

Thieu becomes president, 1967

Cooper-Church Amendment passes in Senate, 1970

World War I

European powers maintain focus despite killings in Sarajevo, 1914

World War II

Operation Cartwheel is launched, 1943

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Llave · Jul 1, 2012

This Day in History- July 1st

Tis July, guys. Also, we are getting close to a full year of TDiH! Has it really been that long? D:

Lead Story:
Jul 1, 1997: Hong Kong returned to China

At midnight on July 1, 1997, Hong Kong reverts back to Chinese rule in a ceremony attended by British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Prince Charles of Wales, Chinese President Jiang Zemin, and U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright. A few thousand Hong Kongers protested the turnover, which was otherwise celebratory and peaceful.

In 1839, Britain invaded China to crush opposition to its interference in the country's economic, social, and political affairs. One of Britain's first acts of the war was to occupy Hong Kong, a sparsely inhabited island off the coast of southeast China. In 1841, China ceded the island to the British with the signing of the Convention of Chuenpi, and in 1842 the Treaty of Nanking was signed, formally ending the First Opium War.

Britain's new colony flourished as an East-West trading center and as the commercial gateway and distribution center for southern China. In 1898, Britain was granted an additional 99 years of rule over Hong Kong under the Second Convention of Peking. In September 1984, after years of negotiations, the British and the Chinese signed a formal agreement approving the 1997 turnover of the island in exchange for a Chinese pledge to preserve Hong Kong's capitalist system. On July 1, 1997, Hong Kong was peaceably handed over to China in a ceremony attended by numerous Chinese, British, and international dignitaries. The chief executive under the new Hong Kong government, Tung Chee Hwa, formulated a policy based on the concept of "one country, two systems," thus preserving Hong Kong's role as a principal capitalist center in Asia. (source)
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Also on This Day

AMERICAN REVOLUTION
Congress resolves to forge Indian alliances, 1775

AUTOMOTIVE
Last Ford Thunderbird produced, 2005

CIVIL WAR
The Battle of Gettysburg begins, 1863

COLD WAR
"Mr. X" article appears in Foreign Affairs, 1947

CRIME
Kobe Bryant accuser goes to police, 2003

DISASTER
Two planes collide over Germany, 2002

GENERAL INTEREST
Canadian Independence Day, 1867
The Battle of San Juan Hill, 1898
Battle of the Somme begins, 1916

HOLLYWOOD
PG-13 rating debuts, 1984

LITERARY
George Sand is born, 1804

MUSIC
The first Sony Walkman goes on sale, 1979

OLD WEST
Gunfighter Clay Allison killed, 1887

PRESIDENTIAL
Dwight D. Eisenhower marries "his Mamie", 1916

SPORTS
Feller hurls third no-hitter, 1951

VIETNAM WAR
Ball recommends compromise in Vietnam, 1965
Bombing of North Vietnam continues, 1966

WORLD WAR II
The Battle of El Alamein begins, 1942

source- History.com

EDIT: I would just like to personally thank Amaury from the bottom of my heart for being a co-caretaker of this thread and staying on top of things when I neglect/forget/unable to post the history for a given day.

THANKS BRO YOU'RE THE BEST!

Amaury · Jul 2, 2012

7/2/1964: Johnson Signs Civil Rights Act

On this day in 1964, U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson signs into law the historic Civil Rights Act in a nationally televised ceremony at the White House.

In the landmark 1954 case Brown v. Board of Education, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that racial segregation in schools was unconstitutional. The 10 years that followed saw great strides for the African-American civil rights movement, as non-violent demonstrations won thousands of supporters to the cause. Memorable landmarks in the struggle included the Montgomery bus boycott in 1955--sparked by the refusal of Alabama resident Rosa Parks to give up her seat on a city bus to a white woman--and Martin Luther King, Jr.'s famous "I have a dream" speech at a rally of hundreds of thousands in Washington, D.C., in 1963.

As the strength of the civil rights movement grew, John F. Kennedy made passage of a new civil rights bill one of the platforms of his successful 1960 presidential campaign. As Kennedy's vice president, Johnson served as chairman of the President's Committee on Equal Employment Opportunities. After Kennedy was assassinated in November 1963, Johnson vowed to carry out his proposals for civil rights reform.

The Civil Rights Act fought tough opposition in the House and a lengthy, heated debate in the Senate before being approved in July 1964. For the signing of the historic legislation, Johnson invited hundreds of guests to a televised ceremony in the White House's East Room. After using more than 75 pens to sign the bill, he gave them away as mementoes of the historic occasion, according to tradition. One of the first pens went to King, leader of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), who called it one of his most cherished possessions. Johnson gave two more to Senators Hubert Humphrey and Everett McKinley Dirksen, the Democratic and Republican managers of the bill in the Senate.

The most sweeping civil rights legislation passed by Congress since the post-Civil War Reconstruction era, the Civil Rights Act prohibited racial discrimination in employment and education and outlawed racial segregation in public places such as schools, buses, parks and swimming pools. In addition, the bill laid important groundwork for a number of other pieces of legislation--including the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which set strict rules for protecting the right of African Americans to vote--that have since been used to enforce equal rights for women as well as all minorities.
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American Revolution

Congress votes for independence, 1776

Automotive

Chevrolet builds 1 millionth Corvette, 1992

Civil War

Fighting continues at the Battle of Gettysburg, 1863

Cold War

Soviet Union rejects Marshall Plan assistance, 1947

Crime

President Garfield shot, 1881

Disaster

Pilgrim stampede kills 1,400, 1990

General Interest

Mutiny on the Amistad slave ship, 1839

Zeppelin demonstrates airship, 1900

Amelia Earhart disappears, 1937

Hollywood

Men in Black premieres, 1997

Literary

Stephen Hawking breaks British bestseller records, 1992

Music

"Gonna Fly Now (Theme From 'Rocky')" is the #1 song on the U.S. pop charts, 1977

Old West

Chief Tecumseh urges Indians to unite against whites, 1809

Presidential

President Garfield is shot, 1881

Sports

Helen Wills Moody wins final Wimbledon, 1938

Vietnam War

Republican Congressional leaders attack Johnson's policy, 1964

World War I

Greece declares war on Central Powers, 1917

World War II

American bombers deluge Budapest, in more ways than one, 1944

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Amaury · Jul 3, 2012

7/3/1863: Battle of Gettysburg Ends

On the third day of the Battle of Gettysburg, Confederate General Robert E. Lee's last attempt at breaking the Union line ends in disastrous failure, bringing the most decisive battle of the American Civil War to an end.

In June 1863, following his masterful victory at the Battle of Chancellorsville, General Lee launched his second invasion of the Union in less than a year. He led his 75,000-man Army of Northern Virginia across the Potomac River, through Maryland, and into Pennsylvania, seeking to win a major battle on Northern soil that would further dispirit the Union war effort and induce Britain or France to intervene on the Confederacy's behalf. The 90,000-strong Army of the Potomac pursued the Confederates into Maryland, but its commander, General Joseph Hooker, was still stinging from his defeat at Chancellorsville and seemed reluctant to chase Lee further. Meanwhile, the Confederates divided their forces and investigated various targets, such as Harrisburg, the Pennsylvania capital.

On June 28, President Abraham Lincoln replaced Hooker with General George Meade, and Lee learned of the presence of the Army of the Potomac in Maryland. Lee ordered his army to concentrate in the vicinity of the crossroads town of Gettysburg and prepare to meet the Federal army. At the same time, Meade sent ahead part of his force into Pennsylvania but intended to make a stand at Pipe Creek in Maryland.

On July 1, a Confederate division under General Henry Heth marched into Gettysburg hoping to seize supplies but finding instead three brigades of Union cavalry. Thus began the Battle of Gettysburg, and Lee and Meade ordered their massive armies to converge on the impromptu battle site. The Union cavalrymen defiantly held the field against overwhelming numbers until the arrival of Federal reinforcements. Later, the Confederates were reinforced, and by mid-afternoon some 19,000 Federals faced 24,000 Confederates. Lee arrived to the battlefield soon afterward and ordered a general advance that forced the Union line back to Cemetery Hill, just south of the town.

During the night, the rest of Meade's force arrived, and by the morning Union General Winfield Hancock had formed a strong Union line. On July 2, against the Union left, General James Longstreet led the main Confederate attack, but it was not carried out until about 4 p.m., and the Federals had time to consolidate their positions. Thus began some of the heaviest fighting of the battle, and Union forces retained control of their strategic positions at heavy cost. After three hours, the battle ended, and the total number of dead at Gettysburg stood at 35,000.

On July 3, Lee, having failed on the right and the left, planned an assault on Meade's center. A 15,000-man strong column under General George Pickett was organized, and Lee ordered a massive bombardment of the Union positions. The 10,000 Federals answered the Confederate artillery onslaught, and for more than an hour the guns raged in the heaviest cannonade of the Civil War. At 3 p.m., Pickett led his force into no-man's-land and found that Lee's bombardment had failed. As Pickett's force attempted to cross the mile distance to Cemetery Ridge, Union artillery blew great holes in their lines. Meanwhile, Yankee infantry flanked the main body of "Pickett's charge" and began cutting down the Confederates. Only a few hundred Virginians reached the Union line, and within minutes they all were dead, dying, or captured. In less than an hour, more than 7,000 Confederate troops had been killed or wounded.

Both armies, exhausted, held their positions until the night of July 4, when Lee withdrew. The Army of the Potomac was too weak to pursue the Confederates, and Lee led his army out of the North, never to invade it again. The Battle of Gettysburg was the turning point in the Civil War, costing the Union 23,000 killed, wounded, or missing in action. The Confederates suffered some 25,000 casualties. On November 19, 1863, President Lincoln delivered his famous Gettysburg Address during the dedication of a new national cemetery at the site of the Battle of Gettysburg. The Civil War effectively ended with the surrender of General Lee's Army of Northern Virginia in April 1865.
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American Revolution

Washington takes command of Continental Army, 1775

Automotive

"Back to the Future" released, features 1981 DeLorean DMC-12, 1985

Civil War

Pickett leads his infamous charge at Gettysburg, 1863

Cold War

Khrushchev consolidates his power, 1957

Crime

A mother is arrested and accused of killing her four children, 1989

Disaster

Charter jet crashes mysteriously, 1970

General Interest

Washington assumes command, 1775

U.S. warship downs Iranian passenger jet, 1988

Hollywood

Tom Cruise born, 1962

Literary

M.F.K. Fisher is born, 1908

Music

Brian Jones and Jim Morrison die, two years apart to the day, 1969

Old West

Idaho becomes 43rd state, 1890

Presidential

Eisenhower initiates federal flood-control program, 1958

Sports

Mike Marshall relieves Tommy John to pitch in 13th consecutive game, 1974

Vietnam War

U.S. command announces new high in casualties, 1968

World War I

Mohammed V, sultan of Turkey, dies, 1918

World War II

Operation Catapult is launched, 1940

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Amaury · Jul 4, 2012

7/4/1776: U.S. Declared Independence

In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the Continental Congress adopts the Declaration of Independence, which proclaims the independence of the United States of America from Great Britain and its king. The declaration came 442 days after the first volleys of the American Revolution were fired at Lexington and Concord in Massachusetts and marked an ideological expansion of the conflict that would eventually encourage France's intervention on behalf of the Patriots.

The first major American opposition to British policy came in 1765 after Parliament passed the Stamp Act, a taxation measure to raise revenues for a standing British army in America. Under the banner of "no taxation without representation," colonists convened the Stamp Act Congress in October 1765 to vocalize their opposition to the tax. With its enactment in November, most colonists called for a boycott of British goods, and some organized attacks on the customhouses and homes of tax collectors. After months of protest in the colonies, Parliament voted to repeal the Stamp Act in March 1766.

Most colonists continued to quietly accept British rule until Parliament's enactment of the Tea Act in 1773, a bill designed to save the faltering East India Company by greatly lowering its tea tax and granting it a monopoly on the American tea trade. The low tax allowed the East India Company to undercut even tea smuggled into America by Dutch traders, and many colonists viewed the act as another example of taxation tyranny. In response, militant Patriots in Massachusetts organized the "Boston Tea Party," which saw British tea valued at some 18,000 pounds dumped into Boston Harbor.

Parliament, outraged by the Boston Tea Party and other blatant acts of destruction of British property, enacted the Coercive Acts, also known as the Intolerable Acts, in 1774. The Coercive Acts closed Boston to merchant shipping, established formal British military rule in Massachusetts, made British officials immune to criminal prosecution in America, and required colonists to quarter British troops. The colonists subsequently called the first Continental Congress to consider a united American resistance to the British.

With the other colonies watching intently, Massachusetts led the resistance to the British, forming a shadow revolutionary government and establishing militias to resist the increasing British military presence across the colony. In April 1775, Thomas Gage, the British governor of Massachusetts, ordered British troops to march to Concord, Massachusetts, where a Patriot arsenal was known to be located. On April 19, 1775, the British regulars encountered a group of American militiamen at Lexington, and the first shots of the American Revolution were fired.

Initially, both the Americans and the British saw the conflict as a kind of civil war within the British Empire: To King George III it was a colonial rebellion, and to the Americans it was a struggle for their rights as British citizens. However, Parliament remained unwilling to negotiate with the American rebels and instead purchased German mercenaries to help the British army crush the rebellion. In response to Britain's continued opposition to reform, the Continental Congress began to pass measures abolishing British authority in the colonies.

In January 1776, Thomas Paine published Common Sense, an influential political pamphlet that convincingly argued for American independence and sold more than 500,000 copies in a few months. In the spring of 1776, support for independence swept the colonies, the Continental Congress called for states to form their own governments, and a five-man committee was assigned to draft a declaration.

The Declaration of Independence was largely the work of Virginian Thomas Jefferson. In justifying American independence, Jefferson drew generously from the political philosophy of John Locke, an advocate of natural rights, and from the work of other English theorists. The first section features the famous lines, "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." The second part presents a long list of grievances that provided the rationale for rebellion.

On July 2, 1776, the Continental Congress voted to approve a Virginia motion calling for separation from Britain. The dramatic words of this resolution were added to the closing of the Declaration of Independence. Two days later, on July 4, the declaration was formally adopted by 12 colonies after minor revision. New York approved it on July 19. On August 2, the declaration was signed.

The American War for Independence would last for five more years. Yet to come were the Patriot triumphs at Saratoga, the bitter winter at Valley Forge, the intervention of the French, and the final victory at Yorktown in 1781. In 1783, with the signing of the Treaty of Paris with Britain, the United States formally became a free and independent nation.
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American Revolution

American colonies declare independence, 1776

Automotive

Fiat unveils the "Nuova Cinquecento", 1957

Civil War

Confederates surrender Vicksburg, 1863

Cold War

Soviets rock for peace, 1987

Crime

A sensationalized murder trial inspires The Fugitive, 1954

Disaster

Heat wave strikes Northeast, 1911

General Interest

Death of the founding fathers, 1826

Pathfinder lands on Mars, 1997

Hollywood

Playwright and screenwriter Neil Simon born, 1927

Literary

First edition of Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass is published, 1855

Music

The Clash play their first live gig, 1976

Old West

Lewis and Clark celebrate July 4, 1804

Presidential

Thomas Jefferson and John Adams die, 1826

Sports

Dempsey defeats Willard, 1919

Vietnam War

South Vietnamese officers plot coup, 1963

Thieu vows to wipe out corruption, 1968

World War I

U.S. troops march through Paris to Lafayette's tomb, 1917

World War II

Polish general fighting for justice dies tragically, 1943

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Amaury · Jul 5, 2012

7/5/1946: Bikini Introduced

On July 5, 1946, French designer Louis Reard unveils a daring two-piece swimsuit at the Piscine Molitor, a popular swimming pool in Paris. Parisian showgirl Micheline Bernardini modeled the new fashion, which Reard dubbed "bikini," inspired by a news-making U.S. atomic test that took place off the Bikini Atoll in the Pacific Ocean earlier that week.

European women first began wearing two-piece bathing suits that consisted of a halter top and shorts in the 1930s, but only a sliver of the midriff was revealed and the navel was vigilantly covered. In the United States, the modest two-piece made its appearance during World War II, when wartime rationing of fabric saw the removal of the skirt panel and other superfluous material. Meanwhile, in Europe, fortified coastlines and Allied invasions curtailed beach life during the war, and swimsuit development, like everything else non-military, came to a standstill.

In 1946, Western Europeans joyously greeted the first war-free summer in years, and French designers came up with fashions to match the liberated mood of the people. Two French designers, Jacques Heim and Louis Reard, developed competing prototypes of the bikini. Heim called his the "atom" and advertised it as "the world's smallest bathing suit." Reard's swimsuit, which was basically a bra top and two inverted triangles of cloth connected by string, was in fact significantly smaller. Made out of a scant 30 inches of fabric, Reard promoted his creation as "smaller than the world's smallest bathing suit." Reard called his creation the bikini, named after the Bikini Atoll.

In planning the debut of his new swimsuit, Reard had trouble finding a professional model who would deign to wear the scandalously skimpy two-piece. So he turned to Micheline Bernardini, an exotic dancer at the Casino de Paris, who had no qualms about appearing nearly nude in public. As an allusion to the headlines that he knew his swimsuit would generate, he printed newspaper type across the suit that Bernardini modeled on July 5 at the Piscine Molitor. The bikini was a hit, especially among men, and Bernardini received some 50,000 fan letters.

Before long, bold young women in bikinis were causing a sensation along the Mediterranean coast. Spain and Italy passed measures prohibiting bikinis on public beaches but later capitulated to the changing times when the swimsuit grew into a mainstay of European beaches in the 1950s. Reard's business soared, and in advertisements he kept the bikini mystique alive by declaring that a two-piece suit wasn't a genuine bikini "unless it could be pulled through a wedding ring."

In prudish America, the bikini was successfully resisted until the early 1960s, when a new emphasis on youthful liberation brought the swimsuit en masse to U.S. beaches. It was immortalized by the pop singer Brian Hyland, who sang "Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka-Dot Bikini" in 1960, by the teenage "beach blanket" movies of Annette Funicello and Frankie Avalon, and by the California surfing culture celebrated by rock groups like the Beach Boys. Since then, the popularity of the bikini has only continued to grow.
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American Revolution

Congress adopts Olive Branch Petition, 1775

Automotive

Automotive safety expert Amos Neyhart dies at age 91, 1990

Civil War

Union and Rebel forces clash at Carthage, Missouri, 1861

Cold War

U.S. visitors to Soviet exhibition in New York express their feelings, 1959

Crime

Sox accused of throwing World Series, 1921

Disaster

Pilot error causes crash in Toronto, 1970

General Interest

Salvation Army founded, 1865

First U.S. fatality in the Korean War, 1950

First successful cloning of a mammal, 1996

World Health Organization declares SARS contained worldwide, 2003

Hollywood

Edie Falco born, 1963

Literary

George Bernard Shaw quits his job, 1880

Music

Elvis Presley records "That's All Right (Mama)", 1954

Old West

Bill Doolin escapes from jail, 1896

Presidential

Conspirators court-martialed for plotting to kill Lincoln, Grant and Andrew Johnson, 1865

Sports

Ashe becomes first black man to win Wimbledon, 1975

Vietnam War

Governors express support for U.S. global commitments, 1966

World War I

Germany gives Austria-Hungary blank check assurance, 1914

World War II

United States passes Export Control Act, 1940

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Amaury · Jul 6, 2012

7/6/1957: Althea Gibson Is First African American to Win Wimbledon

On this day in 1957, Althea Gibson claims the women's singles tennis title at Wimbledon and becomes the first African American to win a championship at London's All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club.

Gibson was born on August 25, 1927, in Silver, South Carolina, and raised in the Harlem section of New York City. She began playing tennis as a teenager and went on to win the national black women's championship twice. At a time when tennis was largely segregated, four-time U.S. Nationals winner Alice Marble advocated on Gibson's behalf and the 5'11" player was invited to make her U.S. Open debut in 1950. In 1956, Gibson's tennis career took off and she won the singles title at the French Open--the first African American to do so--as well as the doubles' title there. In July 1957, Gibson won Wimbledon, defeating Darlene Hard, 6-3, 6-2. (In 1975, Arthur Ashe became the first African-American man to win the men's singles title at Wimbledon, when he defeated Jimmy Connors.) In September 1957, she won the U.S. Open, and the Associated Press named her Female Athlete of the Year in 1957 and 1958. During the 1950s, Gibson won 56 singles and doubles titles, including 11 major titles.

After winning Wimbledon and the U.S. Open again in 1958, Gibson retired from amateur tennis. In 1960, she toured with the Harlem Globetrotters basketball team, playing exhibition tennis matches before their games. In 1964, Gibson joined the Ladies Professional Golf Association Tour, the first black woman to do so. The trailblazing athlete played pro golf until 1971, the same year in which she was voted into the National Lawn Tennis Association Hall of Fame.

After serving as New Jersey's commissioner of athletics from 1975 to 1985, Althea Gibson died at age 76 from respiratory failure on September 28, 2003, at a hospital in East Orange, New Jersey.
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American Revolution

Congress issues a "Declaration on the Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Arms" , 1775

Automotive

Juan Manuel Fangio bids goodbye to Grand Prix racing in France, 1958

Civil War

Confederate General Jubal Early occupies Hagerstown, 1864

Cold War

U.S. policymakers express optimism, 1963

Crime

George "Bugs" Moran is arrested, 1946

Disaster

Explosion on North Sea oil rig, 1988

General Interest

Frank family takes refuge, 1942

The Hartford Circus Fire, 1944

Civil war in Nigeria, 1967

Satchmo dies, 1971

Women inducted into U.S. Naval Academy, 1976

Hollywood

Forrest Gump opens, wins Hanks a second Oscar, 1994

Literary

Dalai Lama, leader of Tibet and bestselling author, is born, 1935

Music

John meets Paul for the first time, 1957

Old West

Mark Twain begins reporting in Virginia City, 1862

Presidential

George Walker Bush is born, 1946

Sports

Major League Baseball's first All-Star Game is held, 1933

Althea Gibson wins Wimbledon, 1957

Vietnam War

Diem says South Vietnam not bound by Geneva Agreements, 1955

Viet Cong attack Special Forces at Nam Dong, 1964

World War I

Czech troops take Russian port of Vladivostok for Allies, 1918

World War II

Georges Mandel, French patriot, is executed, 1944

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Amaury · Jul 7, 2012

7/7/1930: Building of Hoover Dam Begins

On this day in 1930, construction of the Hoover Dam begins. Over the next five years, a total of 21,000 men would work ceaselessly to produce what would be the largest dam of its time, as well as one of the largest manmade structures in the world.

Although the dam would take only five years to build, its construction was nearly 30 years in the making. Arthur Powell Davis, an engineer from the Bureau of Reclamation, originally had his vision for the Hoover Dam back in 1902, and his engineering report on the topic became the guiding document when plans were finally made to begin the dam in 1922.

Herbert Hoover, the 31st president of the United States and a committed conservationist, played a crucial role in making Davisâ€™ vision a reality. As secretary of commerce in 1921, Hoover devoted himself to the erection of a high dam in Boulder Canyon, Colorado. The dam would provide essential flood control, which would prevent damage to downstream farming communities that suffered each year when snow from the Rocky Mountains melted and joined the Colorado River. Further, the dam would allow the expansion of irrigated farming in the desert, and would provide a dependable supply of water for Los Angeles and other southern California communities.

Even with Hoover's exuberant backing and a regional consensus around the need to build the dam, Congressional approval and individual state cooperation were slow in coming. For many years, water rights had been a source of contention among the western states that had claims on the Colorado River. To address this issue, Hoover negotiated the Colorado River Compact, which broke the river basin into two regions with the water divided between them. Hoover then had to introduce and re-introduce the bill to build the dam several times over the next few years before the House and Senate finally approved the bill in 1928.

In 1929, Hoover, now president, signed the Colorado River Compact into law, claiming it was "the most extensive action ever taken by a group of states under the provisions of the Constitution permitting compacts between states."

Once preparations were made, the Hoover Dam's construction sprinted forward: The contractors finished their work two years ahead of schedule and millions of dollars under budget. Today, the Hoover Dam is the second highest dam in the country and the 18th highest in the world. It generates enough energy each year to serve over a million people, and stands, in Hoover Dam artist Oskar Hansen's words, as "a monument to collective genius exerting itself in community efforts around a common need or ideal."
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American Revolution

Battle of Hubbardton, 1777

Automotive

Stock car driver Kenny Irwin Jr. dies in crash, 2000

Civil War

Kit Carson's campaign against the Indians, 1863

Cold War

Samantha Smith leaves for visit to the USSR, 1983

Crime

Mary Surratt is first woman executed by U.S. federal government, 1865

Disaster

Tanker accident causes deadly fire, 1987

General Interest

The impeachment of Senator Blount, 1797

U.S. occupies Iceland, 1941

Female cadets enrolled at West Point, 1976

O'Connor nominated to Supreme Court, 1981

Terrorists attack London transit system at rush hour, 2005

Hollywood

Johnny Depp stars in second Pirates of the Caribbean movie, 2006

Literary

Birthday of Sherlock Holmes' sidekick, Dr. Watson, 1852

Music

"The Stripper," by David Rose, becomes the #1 pop hit in America, 1962

Old West

Warren Earp killed in Arizona, 1900

Presidential

Future President Jimmy Carter marries, 1946

Sports

Jim Thorpe begins Olympic triathlon, 1912

Vietnam War

China announces it will provide aid to Hanoi, 1955

New ambassador arrives in Saigon, 1964

First U.S. troops withdrawn from South Vietnam, 1969

World War I

British Women's Auxiliary Army Corps is officially established, 1917

World War II

Himmler decides to begin medical experiments on Auschwitz prisoners, 1942

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Amaury · Jul 8, 2012

7/8/1951: Paris Celebrates 2,000th Birthday

On this day in 1951, Paris, the capital city of France, celebrates turning 2,000 years old. In fact, a few more candles would've technically been required on the birthday cake, as the City of Lights was most likely founded around 250 B.C.

The history of Paris can be traced back to a Gallic tribe known as the Parisii, who sometime around 250 B.C. settled an island (known today as Ile de la Cite) in the Seine River, which runs through present-day Paris. By 52 B.C., Julius Caesar and the Romans had taken over the area, which eventually became Christianized and known as Lutetia, Latin for "midwater dwelling." The settlement later spread to both the left and right banks of the Seine and the name Lutetia was replaced with "Paris." In 987 A.D., Paris became the capital of France. As the city grew, the Left Bank earned a reputation as the intellectual district while the Right Bank became known for business.

During the French Renaissance period, from the late 15th century to the early 17th century, Paris became a center of art, architecture and science. In the mid-1800s, Napoleon III hired civic planner Georges-Eugene Hausmann to modernize Paris. Hausmann's designs gave the city wide, tree-lined boulevards, large public parks, a new sewer system and other public works projects. The city continued to develop as an important hub for the arts and culture. In the 1860s, an artistic movement known as French Impression emerged, featuring the work of a group of Paris-based artists that included Claude Monet and Pierre-Auguste Renoir.

Today, Paris is home to some 2 million residents, with an additional 10 million people living in the surrounding metropolitan area. The city retains its reputation as a center for food, fashion, commerce and culture. Paris also continues to be one of the world's most popular tourist destinations, renowned for such sights as the Eiffel Tower (built in 1889 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the French Revolution), the Arc de Triomphe, the Champs-Elysees, Notre Dame Cathedral (built in 1163), Luxembourg Gardens and the Louvre Museum, home to Leonardo da Vinci's painting "Mona Lisa."
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American Revolution

Liberty Bell tolls to announce Declaration of Independence, 1776

Automotive

Suzuki settles Consumer Reports lawsuit after eight-year legal battle, 2004

Civil War

Confederates surrender Port Hudson, Louisiana, 1863

Cold War

Colonel Castillo Armas takes power in Guatemala, 1954

Crime

A spiteful son kills four in a fit of rage, 1928

Disaster

Torrential rains cause flooding in Europe, 1997

General Interest

The Liberty Bell rings, 1776

Commodore Perry sails into Tokyo Bay, 1853

MacArthur named Korean commander, 1950

Pilot Francis Gary Powers charged with espionage, 1960

North Korea's "Great Leader" dies, 1994

Hollywood

Official Oscars chef Wolfgang Puck born, 1949

Literary

Hemingway is wounded, 1918

Music

"Lean On Me" begins its first stay at #1, 1972

Old West

Soapy Smith killed in Skagway, Alaska, 1898

Presidential

Warren Harding marries Florence Mabel Kling DeWolfe, 1891

Sports

Splendid Splinter homers to win All-Star Game, 1941

Vietnam War

First Americans killed in South Vietnam, 1959

Taylor resigns Saigon post, 1965

World War I

Ernest Hemingway wounded on the Italian front, 1918

World War II

German general's diary reveals Hitler's plans for Russia, 1941

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Amaury · Jul 9, 2012

7/9/1877: Wimbledon Tournament Begins

On July 9, 1877, the All England Croquet and Lawn Tennis Club begins its first lawn tennis tournament at Wimbledon, then an outer-suburb of London. Twenty-one amateurs showed up to compete in the Gentlemen's Singles tournament, the only event at the first Wimbledon. The winner was to take home a 25-guinea trophy.

Tennis has its origins in a 13th-century French handball game called jeu de paume, or "game of the palm," from which developed an indoor racket-and-ball game called real, or "royal," tennis. Real tennis grew into lawn tennis, which was played outside on grass and enjoyed a surge of popularity in the late 19th century.

In 1868, the All England Club was established on four acres of meadowland outside London. The club was originally founded to promote croquet, another lawn sport, but the growing popularity of tennis led it to incorporate tennis lawns into its facilities. In 1877, the All England Club published an announcement in the weekly sporting magazine The Field that read: "The All England Croquet and Lawn Tennis Club, Wimbledon, propose [sic] to hold a lawn tennis meeting open to all amateurs, on Monday, July 9, and following days. Entrance fee, one pound, one shilling."

The All English Club purchased a 25-guinea trophy and drew up formal rules for tennis. It decided on a rectangular court 78 feet long by 27 feet wide; adapted the real tennis method of scoring based on a clock faceâ€”i.e., 15, 30, 40, game; established that the first to win six games wins a set; and allowed the server one fault. These decisions, largely the work of club member Dr. Henry Jones, remain part of the modern rules.

Twenty-two men registered for the tournament, but only 21 showed up on July 9 for its first day. The 11 survivors were reduced to six the next day, and then to three. Semifinals were held on July 12, but then the tournament was suspended to leave the London sporting scene free for the Eton vs. Harrow cricket match played on Friday and Saturday. The final was scheduled for Monday, July 16, but, in what would become a common occurrence in future Wimbledon tournaments, the match was rained out.

It was rescheduled for July 19, and on that day some 200 spectators paid a shilling each to see William Marshall, a Cambridge tennis "Blue," battle W. Spencer Gore, an Old Harrovian racket player. In a final that lasted only 48 minutes, the 27-year-old Gore dominated with his strong volleying game, crushing Marshall, 6-1, 6-2, 6-4. At the second Wimbledon in 1878, however, Gore lost his title when his net-heavy game fell prey to a innovative stroke developed by challenger Frank Hadow: the lob.

In 1884, the Lady's Singles was introduced at Wimbledon, and Maud Watson won the first championship. That year, the national men's doubles championship was also played at Wimbledon for the first time after several years at Oxford. Mixed doubles and women's doubles were inaugurated in 1913. By the early 1900s, Wimbledon had graduated from all-England to all-world status, and in 1922 the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, as it was then known, moved to a large stadium on Church Road. In the 1950s, many tennis stars turned professional while Wimbledon struggled to remain an amateur tournament. However, in 1968 Wimbledon welcomed the pros and quickly regained its status as the world's top tennis tournament.

The Wimbledon Championships, the only major tennis event still played on grass, is held annually in late June and early July.
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American Revolution

New York elects its first governor, 1777

Automotive

World's largest parade of Fiat cars, 2006

Civil War

Rebels strike Yankees at the Battle of Monocacy, 1864

Cold War

Khrushchev and Eisenhower trade threats over Cuba, 1960

Crime

A family is brutally attacked on a walk in England, 1996

Disaster

Trains collide outside Nashville, 1918

General Interest

President Taylor dies of cholera, 1850

First female army officer, 1947

Romanov remains identified, 1993

Hollywood

MTVâ€™s The Real World leaves Hollywood, 2008

Literary

Faulkner joins the Royal Air Force, 1918

Music

Bob Dylan records "Blowin' In The Wind", 1962

Old West

U.S. takes San Francisco, 1846

Presidential

President Zachary Taylor dies unexpectedly, 1850

Sports

Satchel Paige makes debut with Cleveland Indians, 1948

Vietnam War

Soviets protest U.S. bombing of Haiphong, 1966

United States turns over responsibility for the DMZ, 1971

World War I

Germans surrender Southwest Africa to Union of South Africa, 1915

World War II

Enigma key broken, 1941

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Amaury · Jul 10, 2012

7/10/1925: Monkey Trial Begins

In Dayton, Tennessee, the so-called "Monkey Trial" begins with John Thomas Scopes, a young high school science teacher, accused of teaching evolution in violation of a Tennessee state law.

The law, which had been passed in March, made it a misdemeanor punishable by fine to "teach any theory that denies the story of the Divine Creation of man as taught in the Bible, and to teach instead that man has descended from a lower order of animals." With local businessman George Rappalyea, Scopes had conspired to get charged with this violation, and after his arrest the pair enlisted the aid of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) to organize a defense. Hearing of this coordinated attack on Christian fundamentalism, William Jennings Bryan, the three-time Democratic presidential candidate and a fundamentalist hero, volunteered to assist the prosecution. Soon after, the great attorney Clarence Darrow agreed to join the ACLU in the defense, and the stage was set for one of the most famous trials in U.S. history.

On July 10, the Monkey Trial got underway, and within a few days hordes of spectators and reporters had descended on Dayton as preachers set up revival tents along the city's main street to keep the faithful stirred up. Inside the Rhea County Courthouse, the defense suffered early setbacks when Judge John Raulston ruled against their attempt to prove the law unconstitutional and then refused to end his practice of opening each day's proceeding with prayer.

Outside, Dayton took on a carnival-like atmosphere as an exhibit featuring two chimpanzees and a supposed "missing link" opened in town, and vendors sold Bibles, toy monkeys, hot dogs, and lemonade. The missing link was in fact Jo Viens of Burlington, Vermont, a 51-year-old man who was of short stature and possessed a receding forehead and a protruding jaw. One of the chimpanzees--named Joe Mendi--wore a plaid suit, a brown fedora, and white spats, and entertained Dayton's citizens by monkeying around on the courthouse lawn.

In the courtroom, Judge Raulston destroyed the defense's strategy by ruling that expert scientific testimony on evolution was inadmissible--on the grounds that it was Scopes who was on trial, not the law he had violated. The next day, Raulston ordered the trial moved to the courthouse lawn, fearing that the weight of the crowd inside was in danger of collapsing the floor.

In front of several thousand spectators in the open air, Darrow changed his tactics and as his sole witness called Bryan in an attempt to discredit his literal interpretation of the Bible. In a searching examination, Bryan was subjected to severe ridicule and forced to make ignorant and contradictory statements to the amusement of the crowd. On July 21, in his closing speech, Darrow asked the jury to return a verdict of guilty in order that the case might be appealed. Under Tennessee law, Bryan was thereby denied the opportunity to deliver the closing speech he had been preparing for weeks. After eight minutes of deliberation, the jury returned with a guilty verdict, and Raulston ordered Scopes to pay a fine of $100, the minimum the law allowed. Although Bryan had won the case, he had been publicly humiliated and his fundamentalist beliefs had been disgraced. Five days later, on July 26, he lay down for a Sunday afternoon nap and never woke up.

In 1927, the Tennessee Supreme Court overturned the Monkey Trial verdict on a technicality but left the constitutional issues unresolved until 1968, when the U.S. Supreme Court overturned a similar Arkansas law on the grounds that it violated the First Amendment.
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American Revolution

British General Richard Prescott captured in Rhode Island, 1777

Automotive

U.S. Patent issued for three-point seatbelt, 1962

Civil War

Siege on Battery Wagner begins, 1863

Cold War

Gorbachev re-elected as head of Communist Party, 1990

Crime

The Exxon Valdez captain's conviction is overturned, 1992

Disaster

Dam collapses in Switzerland, kills 70, 1887

General Interest

Allies land on Sicily, 1943

The sinking of the Rainbow Warrior, 1985

Hollywood

Hugh Grant appears on Tonight Show after Hollywood arrest, 1995

Literary

Alice Munro is born, 1931

Music

Jazz great Jelly Roll Morton dies, 1941

Old West

"Buckskin" Frank Leslie murders a prostitute, 1889

Presidential

Millard Fillmore sworn in as president, 1850

Sports

U.S. women win World Cup, 1999

Vietnam War

MiGs shot down as bombing of North Vietnam continues, 1965

Heavy fighting continues near An Loc and the Central Highlands, 1967

World War I

German Chancellor Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg resigns, 1917

World War II

The Battle of Britain begins, 1940

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Amaury · Jul 11, 2012

7/11/1804: Burr Slays Hamilton in Duel

In a duel held in Weehawken, New Jersey, Vice President Aaron Burr fatally shoots his long-time political antagonist Alexander Hamilton. Hamilton, a leading Federalist and the chief architect of America's political economy, died the following day.

Alexander Hamilton, born on the Caribbean island of Nevis, came to the American colonies in 1773 as a poor immigrant. (There is some controversy as to the year of his birth, but it was either 1755 or 1757.) In 1776, he joined the Continental Army in the American Revolution, and his relentless energy and remarkable intelligence brought him to the attention of General George Washington, who took him on as an aid. Ten years later, Hamilton served as a delegate to the Constitutional Convention, and he led the fight to win ratification of the final document, which created the kind of strong, centralized government that he favored. In 1789, he was appointed the first secretary of the treasury by President Washington, and during the next six years he crafted a sophisticated monetary policy that saved the young U.S. government from collapse. With the emergence of political parties, Hamilton was regarded as a leader of the Federalists.

Aaron Burr, born into a prestigious New Jersey family in 1756, was also intellectually gifted, and he graduated from the College of New Jersey (later Princeton) at the age of 17. He joined the Continental Army in 1775 and distinguished himself during the Patriot attack on Quebec. A masterful politician, he was elected to the New State Assembly in 1783 and later served as state attorney. In 1790, he defeated Alexander Hamilton's father-in-law in a race for the U.S. Senate.

Hamilton came to detest Burr, whom he regarded as a dangerous opportunist, and he often spoke ill of him. When Burr ran for the vice presidency in 1796 on Thomas Jefferson's Democratic-Republican ticket (the forerunner of the Democratic Party), Hamilton launched a series of public attacks against Burr, stating, "I feel it is a religious duty to oppose his career." John Adams won the presidency, and in 1797 Burr left the Senate and returned to the New York Assembly.

In 1800, Jefferson chose Burr again as his running mate. Burr aided the Democratic-Republican ticket by publishing a confidential document that Hamilton had written criticizing his fellow Federalist President John Adams. This caused a rift in the Federalists and helped Jefferson and Burr win the election with 73 electoral votes each.

Under the electoral procedure then prevailing, president and vice president were not voted for separately; the candidate who received the most votes was elected president, and the second in line, vice president. The vote then went to the House of Representatives. What at first seemed but an electoral technicality--handing Jefferson victory over his running mate--developed into a major constitutional crisis when Federalists in the lame-duck Congress threw their support behind Burr. After a remarkable 35 tie votes, a small group of Federalists changed sides and voted in Jefferson's favor. Alexander Hamilton, who had supported Jefferson as the lesser of two evils, was instrumental in breaking the deadlock.

Burr became vice president, but Jefferson grew apart from him, and he did not support Burr's renomination to a second term in 1804. That year, a faction of New York Federalists, who had found their fortunes drastically diminished after the ascendance of Jefferson, sought to enlist the disgruntled Burr into their party and elect him governor. Hamilton campaigned against Burr with great fervor, and Burr lost the Federalist nomination and then, running as an independent for governor, the election. In the campaign, Burr's character was savagely attacked by Hamilton and others, and after the election he resolved to restore his reputation by challenging Hamilton to a duel, or an "affair of honor," as they were known.

Affairs of honor were commonplace in America at the time, and the complex rules governing them usually led to an honorable resolution before any actual firing of weapons. In fact, the outspoken Hamilton had been involved in several affairs of honor in his life, and he had resolved most of them peaceably. No such recourse was found with Burr, however, and on July 11, 1804, the enemies met at 7 a.m. at the dueling grounds near Weehawken, New Jersey. It was the same spot where Hamilton's son had died defending his father's honor two years before.

There are conflicting accounts of what happened next. According to Hamilton's "second"--his assistant and witness in the duel--Hamilton decided the duel was morally wrong and deliberately fired into the air. Burr's second claimed that Hamilton fired at Burr and missed. What happened next is agreed upon: Burr shot Hamilton in the stomach, and the bullet lodged next to his spine. Hamilton was taken back to New York, and he died the next afternoon.

Few affairs of honor actually resulted in deaths, and the nation was outraged by the killing of a man as eminent as Alexander Hamilton. Charged with murder in New York and New Jersey, Burr, still vice president, returned to Washington, D.C., where he finished his term immune from prosecution.

In 1805, Burr, thoroughly discredited, concocted a plot with James Wilkinson, commander-in-chief of the U.S. Army, to seize the Louisiana Territory and establish an independent empire, which Burr, presumably, would lead. He contacted the British government and unsuccessfully pleaded for assistance in the scheme. Later, when border trouble with Spanish Mexico heated up, Burr and Wilkinson conspired to seize territory in Spanish America for the same purpose.

In the fall of 1806, Burr led a group of well-armed colonists toward New Orleans, prompting an immediate U.S. investigation. General Wilkinson, in an effort to save himself, turned against Burr and sent dispatches to Washington accusing Burr of treason. In February 1807, Burr was arrested in Louisiana for treason and sent to Virginia to be tried in a U.S. court. In September, he was acquitted on a technicality. Nevertheless, public opinion condemned him as a traitor, and he fled to Europe. He later returned to private life in New York, the murder charges against him forgotten. He died in 1836.
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American Revolution

British evacuate Savannah, Georgia, 1782

Automotive

President Woodrow Wilson signs Federal Aid Road Act, 1916

Civil War

Union notches a victory at the Battle of Rich Mountain, 1861

Cold War

Soviets agree to hand over power in West Berlin, 1945

Crime

Barefoot Bandit is captured in the Bahamas, 2010

Disaster

Gas fire incinerates crowded campsite, 1978

General Interest

First Quaker colonists land at Boston, 1656

Skylab crashes to Earth, 1979

U.S. establishes diplomatic relations with Vietnam, 1995

Hollywood

Hollywood Bowl opens, 1922

Literary

"Charlotte's Web" author E.B. White born, 1899

Music

The Hollwood Argyles' "Alley Oop" leads a novelty-song outbreak, 1960

Old West

Tall Bull dies, 1869

Presidential

John Quincy Adams is born, 1767

Sports

Babe Ruth makes MLB debut, 1914

Vietnam War

Public opinion approves bombing of North Vietnam, 1966

Senators debate U.S. policy in Vietnam, 1967

Thieu challenges NLF to participate in free elections, 1969

World War I

German command makes final plans for renewed offensive on the Western Front, 1918

World War II

Hitler is paid a visit by his would-be assassin, 1944

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Amaury · Jul 12, 2012

7/12/1984: Ferraro Named Vice Presidential Candidate

Walter Mondale, the leading Democratic presidential candidate, announces that he has chosen Representative Geraldine Ferraro of New York as his running mate. Ferraro, a daughter of Italian immigrants, had previously gained notoriety as a vocal advocate of women's rights in Congress.

Four days after Ferraro was named vice presidential candidate, Governor Mario Cuomo of New York opened the Democratic National Convention in San Francisco with an impassioned retort to Republican President Ronald Reagan's contention that the United States was a "shining city on a hill." Citing widespread poverty and racial strife, Cuomo derided President Reagan as oblivious to the needs and problems of many of America's citizens. His enthusiastic keynote address inaugurated a convention that saw Ferraro become the first woman nominated by a major party for the vice presidency. However, Mondale, the former U.S. vice president under Jimmy Carter, proved a lackluster choice for the Democratic presidential nominee.

On November 6, President Reagan and Vice President George Bush defeated the Mondale-Ferraro ticket in the greatest Republican landslide in U.S. history. The Republicans carried every state but Minnesota--Mondale's home state.

Ferraro left Congress in 1985. In 1992 and 1998, she made unsuccessful bids for a U.S. Senate seat. During President Bill Clinton's administration, she was a permanent member on the United Nations Commission on Human Rights.
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American Revolution

The Battle of Huck's Defeat, 1780

Automotive

First Dymaxion car produced, 1933

Civil War

Confederacy signs treaties with Native Americans, 1861

Cold War

Yeltsin resigns from Communist Party, 1990

Crime

The Moors Murderers begin their killing spree, 1963

Disaster

Heat wave hits Chicagoland, 1995

General Interest

Medal of Honor created, 1862

A new Aga Khan, 1957

Hollywood

Angelina Jolie gives birth to twins, 2008

Literary

Geoffrey Chaucer is named chief clerk by Richard II, 1389

Music

Disco is dealt death blow by fans of the Chicago White Sox, 1979

Old West

Wild Bill Hickok's first gunfight, 1861

Presidential

Eisenhower takes first presidential ride in a helicopter, 1957

Sports

France beats Brazil to win FIFA World Cup, 1998

Vietnam War

First Marine wins Medal of Honor, 1965

North Vietnam urged to treat U.S. POWs better, 1966

World War I

Allied attack on Achi Baba, 1915

World War II

Russians halt German advance in a decisive battle at Kursk, 1943

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