Portal:United States/On this day/August 8
On this day for the United States
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Events
- 1794 – Joseph Whidbey and George Vancouver lead an expedition to search for the Northwest Passage near Juneau, Alaska.
- 1839 – Beta Theta Pi is founded in Oxford, Ohio.
- 1844 – The Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, headed by Brigham Young, is reaffirmed as the leading body of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the LDS or Mormon Church).
- 1863 – American Civil War: Following his defeat in the Battle of Gettysburg, General Robert E. Lee sends a letter of resignation to Confederate President Jefferson Davis (which is refused upon receipt).
- 1863 – American Civil War: Tennessee's "military" Gov. Andrew Johnson freed his personal slaves. During the early 20th century, the day was celebrated by blacks in Tennessee as a holiday.
- 1876 – Thomas Edison receives a patent for his mimeograph.
- 1908 – Wilbur Wright makes his first flight at a racecourse at Le Mans, France. It's the Wright Brothers' first public flight and the French public goes wild.
- 1910 – The US Army installs the first tricycle landing gear on the Army's Wright Flyer.
- 1911 – The millionth patent is filed in the United States Patent Office by Francis Holton for a tubeless vehicle tire.
- 1911 – Public Law 62-5 sets the number of representatives in the United States House of Representatives at 435. The law would come into effect in 1913.
- 1931 – Workers go on strike at the Hoover Dam.
- 1942 – World War II: In Washington, DC, six German would-be saboteurs are executed.
- 1945 – The United Nations Charter is signed by the United States, which becomes the third nation to join.
- 1946 – First flight of the Convair B-36.
- 1973 – U.S. Vice President Spiro Agnew goes on television to denounce accusations he had taken kickbacks while governor of Maryland.
- 1974 – Watergate scandal: U.S. President Richard Nixon announces his resignation, effective the next day.
- 1988 – The lights are turned on at Wrigley Field for the first time, making it the last major league stadium to host night games. (The game, against the Philadelphia Phillies, is rained out after three-and-a-half innings.)
- 1989 – Space Shuttle program: STS-28 Mission - Space Shuttle Columbia takes off on a secret five-day military mission.
- 2000 – Confederate submarine H.L. Hunley is raised to the surface after 136 years on the ocean floor.
- 2007 – An EF2 tornado touches down in Kings County and Richmond County, New York, the most powerful tornado in New York to date and the first in Brooklyn since 1889.