EVENTS
- 1785 – The Dollar becomes the monetary unit for the USA.
- 1885 – A vaccine against rabies is proven by Louis Pasteur.
- 1912 – King Gustaf V officially opens the fifth Summer Olympics in Stockholm, Sweden. The international multi-event sports meet was the first such event in history to introduce the photo finish and automatic timing devices for track competitions. 28 countries, including Japan, participated in the games, making it the first time representatives from all 6 continents were present at an Olympics.
- 1917 – Lawrence of Arabia captures Aqaba from the Turks.
- 1964 – Malawi gains its independence from Britain. Between 1953 and 1963, the Southeast African country was part of a British controlled federation called Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland. After dissolution of the federation and independence, Nyasaland changed its name to Malawi.
- 1975 – Comoros becomes independent. The Comoros Islands gained independence after about 137 years of French rule. Their official name is the Union of the Comoros.
- 2006 – Nathula Pass, a trading post between India and China opens for business. The trading post had been closed since the Sino-Indian war of 1962. Part of the Silk Road, the pass connects Tibet with the Indian state of Sikkim.
- 2013 – Asiana Airlines Flight 214 crash lands in San Francisco International Airport. The plane was en route to San Francisco from Incheon International Airport, South Korea. The crash, which killed 3 people and injured at least 190 others, was the first fatal incident involving a Boeing 777 since it came on the market in 1995.
BIRTHDAYS
- 1747 – John Paul Jones (American revolutionary)
- 1781 – Stamford Raffles (British statesman)
- 1907 – Frida Kahlo (Mexican painter)
- 1921 – Nancy Reagan (Former First Lady)
- 1925 – Merv Griffin (created Wheel of Fortune)
- 1935 – Dalai Lama (Religious leader)
- 1946 – George W. Bush (43rd US President)
- 1946 – Sylvester Stallone (Actor)
- 1951 – Geoffrey Rush (Actor)
- 1975 – 50 Cent (Rapper)
DEATHS
- 1553 – Edward VI of England
- 1835 – John Marshall (American jurist, 4th Chief Justice of the United States)
- 1893 – Guy de Maupassant (French writer)
- 1962 – William Faulkner (American author, Nobel Prize laureate)
- 1971 – Louis Armstrong (American trumpeter, singer)