1905 – Two inches of rain falls in 10 minutes in Taylor, Texas.
1918 – Tris Speaker ties career outfield record of 4 unassisted double plays.
1927 – Construction of Spirit of St. Louis, the monoplane which Charles Lindbergh was to fly across the Atlantic, is completed.
1932 – First broadcast of “One Man’s Family” on NBC radio, longest running dramatic serial on US radio that ended in 1959.
1937 – Symbolic “Golden Rivet,” completing the Golden Gate Bridge connecting San Francisco and Marin County, is driven. It’s later replaced with a more structurally sound steel version.
1945 – Conscientious objector Desmond Doss saved 75 wounded soldiers in the Battle of Okinawa at Hacksaw Ridge. Later depicted in the Oscar-winning film “Hacksaw Ridge.”
1945 – US Army liberates 31,601 people from the Dachau Nazi concentration camp in Germany.
1953 – Milwaukee Braves’ Joe Adcock is the first to hit a home run into the Polo Grounds center field bleachers.
1957 – First military nuclear power plant dedicated at Fort Belvoir, Virginia.
1963 – LPGA Titleholders Championship Women’s Golf, Augusta Country Club: Marilynn Smith beats Mickey Wright by 1 shot in an 18 hole playoff.
1967 – Aretha Franklin releases her single “Respect,” which was written by Otis Redding. It is Billboard’s Song of the Year.
1971 – Boeing receives contract for Mariner 10, Mercury exploration.
1974 – President Richard Nixon said he will release edited tapes made in the White House.
1975 – Vietnam War: United States begins to evacuate its citizens from Saigon in Operation Frequent Wind in response to advancing North Vietnamese forces, bringing an end to America’s involvement in the war.
1985 – Harold Washington sworn in as Chicago’s first African American mayor.
1992 – Jury acquits Los Angeles Police Department officers on charges of excessive force in the beating of Rodney King. The decision sparks massive riots in the city.
2004 – Dick Cheney and George W. Bush testify before the 9/11 Commission in a closed, unrecorded hearing in the Oval Office.
2006 – NFL Draft: N. C. State defensive end Mario Williams is the first pick by the Houston Texans.
2017 – Three tornadoes hit southeast of Dallas, Texas, killing eight people.
2018 – Animated series “The Simpsons” surpasses 635-episode count of “Gunsmoke” in becoming the highest number of episodes of any series on television.
2023 – Country singer Willie Nelson hosts first of two-night 90th birthday concerts for himself at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, California. Guest performers include Lyle Lovett, Neil Young, Snoop Dogg, George Strait, Rosanne Cash, Kris Kristofferson, Norah Jones, Chris Stapleton, Edie Brickell, Tom Jones and Ziggy Marley, among others.
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