Today:
1320 – The Declaration of Arbroath was signed by Scottish nobles, asserting Scotland’s independence from England.
1652 – The Dutch establish Cape Colony in South Africa, which later becomes Cape Town.
1830 – The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) was formally organized by Joseph Smith in Fayette, New York.
1862 – The Battle of Shiloh began during the American Civil War in southwestern Tennessee, resulting in one of the war’s bloodiest battles.
1896 – The first modern Olympic Games opened in Athens, Greece, with athletes from 13 nations participating.
1909 – Robert Peary claimed to have reached the North Pole, though his claim remains disputed.
1917 – The United States entered World War I, declaring war on Germany.
1930 – Hostess Twinkies were invented by James Dewar, a bakery manager in Illinois.
1994 – The Rwandan Genocide began following the assassination of President Juvénal Habyarimana.
2018 – A tragic truck-bus crash in Saskatchewan, Canada, killed 16 members of the Humboldt Broncos junior hockey team.