This Day In History

On August 15, 1824, Gilbert du Motier, the Marquis de Lafayette, returned to the United States for the first time in nearly forty years. Now sixty-seven years old, Lafayette was the last surviving major general of the Revolutionary War.

After nearly six years of a world at war, the Japanese surrendered on August 14, 1945, effectively ending World War II.

On August 13, 1918, Opha May Johnson became the first woman to enlist in the US Marine Corps Reserve. By war’s end, a total of 305 women had enrolled and served in the Marines.

On August 12, 1955, the Presidential Libraries Act was passed, providing for the organized transfer of presidential papers and other items to the federal government.

Nikola Tesla was born on July 10, 1856, in Smiljan, Austrian Empire (present-day Croatia). A brilliant inventor, engineer, and physicist, his experiments and research changed the world.

On June 29, 1995, the US Space Shuttle Atlantis docked the Russian space station Mir for the first time. The mission, STS-71, was the third in the US/Russian Shuttle-Mir program. It began on June 27, 1995, when the Atlantis launched from Kennedy Space Center in Florida. This was the 100th US human space launch from Cape Canaveral.

On June 21, 1893, the Ferris wheel debuted at the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago. One of the fair’s most popular attractions, it had over one million riders over the course of the fair.

On May 30, 1911, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway held its first 200-lap, 500-mile race, dubbed the Indianapolis (or Indy) 500. Today, the speedway is the world’s largest sports facility, hosting “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.”

On August 16, 1896, gold was discovered in the Klondike region of the Yukon in northwestern Canada. Lasting three years, the Klondike Gold Rush was the largest and most dramatic discovery of gold in American history.

On August 16, 1916, the US and Canada signed the first Migratory Bird Treaty to protect the birds that live in both nations. Several programs came out of this agreement that has helped to save hundreds of species of migratory birds.

William George Meany was born on August 16, 1894, in Harlem, New York City. One of the most influential labor leaders in US history, Meany is credited with successfully merging the American Federation of Labor, or AFL, and the Congress of Industrial Labor, or CIO.

On August 16, 1939, the world’s first undersea post office opened in the Bahamas. It was developed by an undersea photographer and garnered significant interest from around the world. Decades later, more underwater post offices and post boxes were established in other countries, many of which are still in operation today…