This Day In History

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1777 – During the American Revolutionary War skirmish at Cooch’s Bridge, the flag of the United States is flown in battle for the first time (More info) 1838 – Future abolitionist Frederick Douglass escapes from slavery (More info)

1666 – The Great Fire of London breaks out and burns for three days, destroying St. Paul’s Cathedral and 10,000 other buildings (More info) 1789 – The United States Department of the Treasury is founded (More info)

1864 – Atlanta falls to Union forces during the Civil War (More info) 1897 – The Boston subway opens, becoming the first underground rapid transit system in North America (More info)

1803 – Lewis and Clark start their expedition to the west (More info) 1888 – Mary Ann Nichols, the first of Jack the Ripper’s confirmed victims, is murdered (More info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 30 BC – Cleopatra commits suicide (More info) 1963 – The “hotline” between the leaders of the US and the Soviet Union goes into operation (More info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1831 – Michael Faraday discovers electromagnetic induction (More info) 1898 – The Goodyear tire company is founded (More info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1867 – During World War II, the United States takes possession of the then-unoccupied Midway Atoll (More info) 1963 – At the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, Martin Luther King, Jr. gives his ‘I Have a Dream’ speech (More info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1812 – The American frigate USS Constitution earns the nickname “Old Ironsides” after defeating the British frigate HMS Guerriere off the coast of Nova Scotia, Canada (More info) 1909 – The first race is held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the home of the Indianapolis 500 (More info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1929 – Babe Ruth becomes the first baseball player to hit 500 home runs in his career with a home run at League Park in Cleveland, Ohio (More info) 1934 – The first civilian prisoners arrive at the Federal prison on Alcatraz Island (More info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1892 – The parents of Lizzie Borden are found murdered in their Fall River, Massachusetts home (More info) 1944 – A tip from a Dutch informer leads Nazis to a sealed-off area in an Amsterdam warehouse where they find and arrest Jewish diarist Anne Frank, her family, and four others (More info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1775 – Congress establishes the United States Post Office and names Benjamin Franklin the first US Postmaster General (More info) 1908 – The Office of the Chief Examiner, which later becomes the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), is created (More info)

Here’s a look at some interesting events that took place on this day in history: 1946 – Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis stage their first show as a comedy team at Club 500 in Atlantic City, New Jersey (More info) 1965 – Bob Dylan goes electric as he plugs in at the Newport Folk Festival, signaling a major change in folk and rock music (More info)