Today:
1776 – British forces defeated George Washington’s Continental Army at the Battle of Long Island (also called the Battle of Brooklyn), one of the largest battles of the American Revolutionary War.
1783 – Jacques Charles and the Robert brothers launched the world’s first hydrogen-filled balloon from Paris. An estimated 400,000 spectators watched the unmanned balloon take flight.
1859 – Edwin Drake successfully struck oil near Titusville, Pennsylvania. His well is widely credited with launching the modern American petroleum industry.
1883 – The volcanic island of Krakatoa reached the catastrophic climax of its eruption in present-day Indonesia. Enormous explosions and tsunamis killed more than 36,000 people, and the eruption was heard thousands of miles away.
1896 – The Anglo-Zanzibar War was fought between the United Kingdom and the Sultanate of Zanzibar. Lasting roughly 40 minutes, it is generally regarded as the shortest recorded war in history.
1928 – Fifteen nations signed the Kellogg-Briand Pact in Paris, agreeing to renounce war as an instrument of national policy. Eventually more than 60 nations became parties to the agreement.
1939 – The world’s first jet-powered aircraft, the Heinkel He 178, made its first flight in Germany, demonstrating the potential of jet propulsion several years before jet fighters entered combat.
1962 – NASA launched the Mariner 2 spacecraft toward Venus. Later that year it became the first spacecraft to successfully fly past another planet, returning important information about Venus’s extremely hot atmosphere.
1967 – Beatles manager Brian Epstein died in London at age 32. Epstein had discovered the Beatles performing at Liverpool’s Cavern Club and played a major role in transforming them into international stars.
1990 – American blues guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan died at age 35 when a helicopter crashed shortly after taking off following a concert in Wisconsin. Vaughan became one of the most influential blues-rock guitarists of his generation.
2016 – Snake and the love of his life Running Mouth were married on this day. Today marks their 10th anniversary.