| | 1054 - A supernova is observed by the Chinese, the Arabs and possibly Amerindians near the star ? Tauri. For several months it remains bright enough to be seen during the day. Its remnants form the Crab Nebula. |
| | 1712 - 11 slaves are executed in New York for starting an uprising that killed 9 whites |
| | 1802 - At West Point, New York the United States Military Academy opens. |
| | 1803 - The Louisiana Purchase is announced to the American people. |
| | 1817 - At Rome, New York, United States, construction on the Erie Canal begins. |
| | 1855 - In Brooklyn, New York, the first edition of Walt Whitman's book of poems titled Leaves of Grass is published. |
| | 1862 - Lewis Carroll tells Alice Liddell a story that would grow into Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and its sequels. |
| | 1865 - Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is published. |
| | 1881 - In Alabama, the Tuskegee Institute opens. |
| | 1910 - African-American boxer Jack Johnson knocks out white boxer Jim Jeffries in a heavyweight boxing match sparking race riots across the United States. |
| | 1934 - Joe Louis wins his first professional boxing match. |
| | 1934 - Leo Szilard patents the chain-reaction design for the atomic bomb. |
| | 1939 - Lou Gehrig, recently diagnosed with Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, tells a crowd at Yankee Stadium that he considered himself "The luckiest man on the face of the earth" as he announces his retirement from major league baseball. |
| | 1941 - Mass murder of Polish scientists and writers, committed by Nazi Germans in captured Polish city of Lwów. |
| | 1950 - First broadcast by Radio Free Europe. |
| | 1954 - "The miracle of Bern", Germany wins the FIFA World Cup in Switzerland against Hungary. |
| | 1959 - With the admission of Alaska as the 49th U.S. state earlier in the year, the 49-star flag of the United States debuts in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. |
| | 1960 - Due to the post-Independence Day admission of Hawaii as the 50th U.S. state on August 21, 1959, the 50-star flag of the United States debuts in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania almost ten and a half months later (see Flag Act). |
| | 1966 - President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Freedom of Information Act into United States law. The act goes into effect the next year. |
| | 1827 - Slavery is abolished in New York State. |
| | 1970 - Popular syndicated radio show, "American Top 40", hosted by "Casey Kasem, debuts. |
| | 1976 - Israeli commandos raid Entebbe airport in Uganda, rescuing all of the passengers and crew of an Air France jetliner seized by Palestinian terrorists. |
| | 1997 - NASA's Pathfinder space probe lands on the surface of Mars. |
| | 1999 - David Beckham marries Victoria Adams in Ireland |
| | 2004 - The cornerstone of the Freedom Tower is laid on the site of the World Trade Center in New York City. (This was largely a symbolic event; actual construction would not start for several weeks) |
| | 2005 - The Deep Impact collider hits the comet Tempel 1. |
| | 2006 - North Korea tests four short-range missiles one medium-range missile, and a long-range Taepodong-2. The latter reportedly fails in mid-air over the Sea of Japan. |