Today:
1223 – Louis VIII becomes King of France upon the death of his father, Philip II.
1789 – Storming of the Bastille in Paris, marking the beginning of the French Revolution.
1790 – Fête de la Fédération held in Paris to celebrate the unity of the French people.
1853 – Opening of the first major U.S. world’s fair, the Exhibition of the Industry of All Nations in New York City.
1881 – Billy the Kid is shot and killed by Pat Garrett in Fort Sumner, New Mexico.
1902 – The Campanile in St. Mark’s Square, Venice, collapses.
1916 – Start of the Battle of Delville Wood, part of the larger Battle of the Somme during World War I.
1933 – All political parties except the Nazi Party are banned in Germany.
1958 – A military coup in Iraq leads to the overthrow of the Hashemite monarchy.
1965 – NASA’s Mariner 4 spacecraft successfully flies by Mars, capturing the first close-up images of the planet.
30 American Heritage Events: #14
Transcontinental Railroad Completed (1869)
The first railroad to connect the east and west coasts of the U.S.