Friday, August 8, 2025
Today: 1588: The English navy defeats the Spanish Armada off the coast of Gravelines, France, marking a significant turning point in naval power in Europe. 1876: Inventor Thomas Edison is granted a patent for his mimeograph, a machine that can make copies of documents, a precursor to modern copy machines. 1908: Five years after their […]
Thursday, August 7, 2025
Today: 1782: George Washington creates the Badge of Military Merit, which is the precursor to the Purple Heart, an award for U.S. service members wounded or killed in combat. 1789: The U.S. Congress establishes the War Department, the first agency created for the defense of the nation. 1888: Theophilus Van Kannel receives a patent for […]
Wednesday, August 6, 2025
Today: 1787: At the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, delegates began debating the first draft of the U.S. Constitution. 1806: The Holy Roman Empire was dissolved when Francis II abdicated his title as Holy Roman Emperor. 1890: William Kemmler became the first person to be executed by electric chair in the United States at Auburn Prison […]
Tuesday, August 5, 2025
Today: 1775: The Spanish ship ‘San Carlos’ entered what would become San Francisco Bay, a harbor that had gone unnoticed by previous European explorers. 1858: The first transatlantic telegraph cable, connecting Ireland and Newfoundland, was completed. However, it only operated for less than a month. 1861: President Abraham Lincoln signed the Revenue Act, which created […]
Monday, August 4, 2025
Today: 1704: During the War of the Spanish Succession, Gibraltar is captured by Britain after Spain surrenders. 1790: The Revenue Cutter Service, the predecessor to the U.S. Coast Guard, is established by Alexander Hamilton. 1821: The weekly newspaper, “The Saturday Evening Post,” is published for the first time. 1892: Andrew and Abby Borden are found […]
Sunday, August 3, 2025
Today: 1492: Christopher Columbus set sail from Palos, Spain, on his first voyage across the Atlantic, seeking a western route to the Far East. 1795: The Treaty of Greenville was signed, ending the Northwest Indian War and leading to Native American nations ceding large amounts of land in what is now Ohio. 1900: The Firestone […]
Saturday, August 2, 2025
Today: 338 BC: The Battle of Chaeronea takes place, where a Macedonian army led by Philip II defeats combined forces of Athens and Thebes, securing Macedonian hegemony in Greece. 216 BC: During the Second Punic War, the Carthaginian army led by Hannibal defeats a numerically superior Roman army at the Battle of Cannae. 1776: Most […]
Friday, August 1, 2025
Today: 217 BC: The Battle of Lake Trasimene occurred, a major engagement of the Second Punic War, where Hannibal’s Carthaginian forces ambushed and decisively defeated the Roman army. 527: Justinian I became the sole ruler of the Byzantine Empire upon the death of his uncle, Justin I. 1291: The three founding cantons of Uri, Schwyz, […]
Thursday, July 31, 2025
Today: 1498: Christopher Columbus, on his third voyage to the Western Hemisphere, arrived at the island of Trinidad. 1588: The Spanish Armada was spotted off the coast of England. 1776: During the American Revolution, Francis Salvador became the first Jew to die in the conflict. 1790: The U.S. Patent Office first opened its doors and […]
Wednesday, July 30, 2025
Today: 762: Baghdad is founded. 1419: The First Defenestration of Prague occurs, as radical Hussites kill seven members of the Prague city council. 1619: The first Colonial European representative assembly in the Americas, the Virginia General Assembly, convenes for the first time in Jamestown. 1729: The city of Baltimore, Maryland, is founded. 1864: During the […]