Today:
14 – Augustus, the first Roman emperor, died at Nola in Italy at age 75. His adopted son Tiberius succeeded him as emperor.
1692 – Five people accused of witchcraft were executed by hanging in Salem, Massachusetts, during the Salem witch trials. Among them was former minister George Burroughs.
1812 – The USS Constitution defeated the British frigate HMS Guerriere during the War of 1812. American sailors reportedly saw British cannonballs bouncing off the Constitution’s thick oak hull, helping inspire its famous nickname, “Old Ironsides.”
1848 – The New York Herald reported the discovery of gold in California, helping spread news of the discovery throughout the eastern United States. The California Gold Rush soon brought hundreds of thousands of people west.
1909 – The first automobile race was held at the newly constructed Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The facility would later become famous as the home of the Indianapolis 500.
1934 – German voters approved merging the offices of president and chancellor, formally confirming Adolf Hitler as Führer and consolidating his dictatorial control over Germany.
1942 – Allied forces launched the Dieppe Raid on the German-occupied coast of France. More than 6,000 troops, mostly Canadians, participated; the raid resulted in extremely heavy Allied casualties but provided lessons later used in planning the D-Day invasion.
1960 – The Soviet Union launched Sputnik 5 carrying the dogs Belka and Strelka, along with other animals and plants. They returned safely to Earth the following day, becoming the first living animals to orbit Earth and survive.
1977 – Groucho Marx died in Los Angeles at age 86. As a member of the Marx Brothers, he became one of the most influential comedians of the 20th century.
1991 – Soviet hardliners placed President Mikhail Gorbachev under house arrest and announced that they had taken control of the government. The attempted coup collapsed within days and accelerated the eventual dissolution of the Soviet Union later that year.