Today August 2nd 2009 this day in history Read more below to view events, deaths, births, Holidays observances and video clips. Last database updated: Jan 17th, 2009
Events
338 BC – A Macedonian army led by Philip II defeated the combined forces of Athens and Thebes in the Battle of Chaeronea, securing Macedonian hegemony in Greece and the Aegean.
216 BC – Second Punic War: Battle of Cannae – The Carthaginian army lead by Hannibal defeats a numerically superior Roman army under command of consuls Lucius Aemilius Paullus and Gaius Terentius Varro.
1610 – Henry Hudson sails into what it is now known as Hudson Bay, thinking he had made it through the Northwest Passage and reached the Pacific Ocean.
1776 – Delegates to the Continental Congress begin signing the United States Declaration of Independence.
1790 – The first US Census is conducted.
1798 – French Revolutionary Wars: Battle of the Nile (Battle of Aboukir Bay) concludes in a British victory
1869 – Japan s samurai, farmer, artisan, merchant class system (Shinokosho) is abolished as part of the Meiji Restoration reforms. (Traditional Japanese date: June 25, 1869).
1870 – Tower Subway, the world s first underground tube railway, opens in London.
1903 – Fall of the Ottoman Empire: Unsuccessful uprising led by the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization against Ottoman Turkey, also known as the Ilinden-Preobrazhenie Uprising.
1916 – World War I: Austrian sabotage causes the sinking of the Italian battleship Leonardo da Vinci in Taranto.
1918 – Japan announces that it is deploying troops to Siberia in the aftermath of World War I.
1932 – The positron (antiparticle of the electron) is discovered by Carl D. Anderson.
1934 – Gleichschaltung: Adolf Hitler becomes Führer of Germany.
1937 – The Marihuana Tax Act of 1937 is passed in America, essentially rendering marijuana and all its by-products illegal.
1939 – Albert Einstein and Leó Szilárd write a letter to Franklin D. Roosevelt urging him to begin the Manhattan project to develop a nuclear weapon.
1943 – Rebellion in the Nazi death camp of Treblinka.
1943 – World War II: PT-109 rammed by the Japanese destroyer Amagiri and sinks. Lt. John F. Kennedy, future US President, saves all but two of his crew.
1945 – World War II: Potsdam Conference, in which the Allied Powers discuss the future of defeated Germany, concludes.
1964 – Vietnam War: Gulf of Tonkin Incident – North Vietnamese gunboats allegedly fires on U.S. destroyers, USS Maddox and the USS Turner Joy.
1967 – The second Blackwall Tunnel opens in Greenwich, London.
1968 – The 1968 Casiguran Earthquake hits Casiguran, Aurora, Philippines killing more than 270 people and wounding 261.
1973 – A flash fire kills 51 at the Summerland amusement centre at Douglas, Isle of Man.
1980- The Pro Football Hall of Fame Game ended with 5:24 left in the game when it was cancelled due to severe lightning. The game ended in a 0-0 tie.
1980 – A bomb explodes at the railway station in Bologna, Italy, killing 85 people and wounding more than 200.
1985 – Delta Air Lines Flight 191, a Lockheed L-1011 TriStar crashes at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport killing 137.
1990 – Iraq invades Kuwait, eventually leading to conflict with coalition forces in the Gulf War.
Births
1533 – Theodor Zwinger, Swiss scholar (d. 1588)
1672 – Johann Jakob Scheuchzer, Swiss scholar (d. 1733)
1674 – Philip II, Duke of Orléans, Regent of France (d. 1723)
1696 – Mahmud I, Ottoman Sultan (d. 1754)
1703 – Lorenzo Ricci, Italian Jesuit leader (d. 1775)
1788 – Leopold Gmelin, German chemist (d. 1853)
1815 – Adolf Friedrich von Schack, German writer (d. 1894)
1828 – Manuel Pavía y Rodríguez de Alburquerque, Spanish general (d. 1895)
1834 – Frédéric Bartholdi, French sculptor (d. 1904)
1835 – Elisha Gray, American inventor and entrepreneur (d. 1901)
1858 – Emma of Waldeck and Pyrmont, queen of the Netherlands (d. 1934)
1865 – Irving Babbitt, American literary critic (d. 1933)
1865 – John Radecki, Australian stained glass artist (d. 1955)
1868 – King Constantine I of Greece (d. 1923)
1871 – John French Sloan, American artist (d. 1951)
1872 – George E. Stewart, American Medal of Honor recipient (d. 1946)
1875 – Mstislav Dobuzhinsky, Russian artist (d. 1957)
1878 – Aino Kallas, Finnish – Estonian author (d. 1956)
1882 – Red Ames, baseball player (d. 1936)
1884 – Rómulo Gallegos, President of Venezuela (d. 1969)
1886 – John Alexander Douglas McCurdy Canadian Aviator (d. 1961)
1887 – Tommy Ward, Former South African cricketer (d. 1936)
1890 – Marin Sais, American actress (d. 1971)
1891 – Viktor Maksimovich Zhirmunsky, Russian literary historian, linguist (d. 1971)
1892 – Jack Warner, Canadian film producer (d. 1978)
1895 – Matt Henderson, Former New Zealand cricketer (d. 1970)
1896 – Lorenzo Herrera, Venezuelan singer and composer (d. 1960)
1897 – Karl Otto Koch, German SS-officer (d. 1945)
1897 – Max Weber, Swiss Federal Councilor (d. 1974)
1899 – Charles Bennett, British screenwriter (d. 1995)
1902 – Helen Morgan, American actress (d. 1941)
1905 – Karl Amadeus Hartmann, German composer (d. 1963)
1905 – Myrna Loy, American actress (d. 1993)
1907 – Mary Hamman, American writer (d. 1984)
1910 – Roger MacDougall, writer (d. 1993)
1912 – Ann Dvorak, American actress (d. 1979)
1912 – Vladimir Zerjavic, Croatian statistician (d. 2001)
1914 – Félix Leclerc, Quebec singer, songwriter and writer (d. 1988)
1914 – Beatrice Straight, American actress (d. 2001)
1915 – Gary Merrill, American actor (d. 1990)
1920 – Louis Pauwels, French journalist and writer (d. 1997)
1923 – Shimon Peres, Israeli politician.
1924 – James Baldwin, American author (d. 1987)
1924 – Joe Harnell, American musician, composer and arranger (d. 2005)
1924 – Carroll O Connor, American actor (d. 2001)
1925 – John Dexter, English stage and film director (d. 1990)
1925 – John McCormack, Canadian ice hockey player
1925 – Jorge Rafael Videla, Argentinian dictator
1925 – Alan Whicker, British journalist and broadcaster
1926 – Betsy Bloomingdale, American socialite
1928 – Malcolm Hilton, Former England cricketer (d. 1990)
1930 – Vali Myers, Australian painter (d. 2003)
1931 – Pierre DuMaine, Catholic bishop
1931 – Viliam Schrojf, Slovak footballer (d. 2007)
1931 – Eddie Fuller, Former South African cricketer (d. 2008)
1932 – Lamar Hunt, American sports executive (d. 2006)
1932 – Peter O Toole, Irish-born actor
1934 – Valery Bykovsky, Soviet cosmonaut
1935 – Hank Cochran, American country music singer and songwriter
1937 – Billy Cannon, American football player
1937 – Garth Hudson, Canadian musician (The Band)
1938 – Dave Balon, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 2007)
1938 – Pierre de Bané, French Canadian politician
1938 – Terry Peck, Falkland Islander-born British soldier (d. 2006)
1939 – Benjamin Barber, American political theorist
1939 – Wes Craven, American film director
1939 – John W. Snow, American 73rd United States Secretary of the Treasury
1941 – Doris Coley, American singer (Shirelles) (d. 2000)
1942 – Isabel Allende, Chilean author
1943 – Tom Burgmeier, American baseball player
1943 – Max Wright, American actor
1944 – Jim Capaldi, British musician and songwriter (Traffic) (d. 2005)
1944 – Naná Vasconcelos, Brazilian jazz musician
1945 – Joanna Cassidy, American actress
1945 – Alex Jesaulenko, Australian rules footballer
1947 – Massiel, Spanish singer
1948 – Andy Fairweather Low, British guitarist
1948 – Dennis Prager, American radio talk show host and author
1949 – James Fallows, American journalist
1950 – Lance Ito, American judge
1950 – Sue Rodriguez, Canadian assisted suicide advocate (d. 1994)
1951 – Andrew Gold, American musician and songwriter
1951 – Joe Lynn Turner, American singer (Deep Purple, Rainbow)
1951 – Freddie Wadling, Swedish actor and musician (The Leather Nun, Fleshquartet)
1951 – Per Westerberg, Swedish politician
1953 – Marjo, Quebec singer
1953 – Butch Patrick, American actor
1954 – James Charles Kopp, American citizen who murdered Barnett Slepian
1954 – Sammy McIlroy, Northern Irish footballer and manager
1955 – Caleb Carr, American novelist and military historian
1955 – Tim Dunigan, American Actor
1956 – Fulvio Melia, Italian-American physicist/astrophysicist and author
1956 – Jim Neidhart, American professional wrestler
1956 – Isabel Pantoja, Spanish singer
1957 – Mojo Nixon, American musician and actor
1958 – Arshad Ayub, Former Indian cricketer
1959 – Victoria Jackson, American comedian
1959 – Apollonia Kotero, American singer and actress
1960 – Neal Morse, American musician (Spock s Beard, Transatlantic)
1960 – David Yow, American musician (Scratch Acid, The Jesus Lizard)
1961 – Graham Dye, English singer/songwriter and guitarist (Scarlet Party; The Alan Parsons Project)
1961 – Linda Fratianne, American figure skater
1961 – Cold 187um, American rapper (Above the Law)
1963 – Daniel Pelosi, American convicted murderer
1964 – Frank Biela, German race car driver
1964 – Mary-Louise Parker, American actress
1965 – Hisanobu Watanabe, Japanese baseball player and coach
1966 – Takayuki Iizuka, Japanese professional wrestler
1966 – Tim Wakefield, American baseball player
1966 – M.V. Sridhar, Indian cricketer
1967 – Aaron Krickstein, American tennis player
1967 – Aline Brosh McKenna, American screenwriter
1968 – Stefan Effenberg, German footballer
1968 – John Stanier, American musician Helmet
1969 – Cedric Ceballos, American basketball player
1969 – Fernando Couto, Portuguese footballer
1969 – Jan Axel Blomberg Norwegian musician (Dimmu Borgir, Winds, Mayhem)
1969 – Richard Hallebeek, Dutch guitarist
1970 – Tony Amonte, American ice hockey player
1970 – Kevin Smith, American director and screenwriter
1970 – Philo Wallace, West-Indian cricketer
1971 – Michael Hughes, Irish footballer
1972 – Mohamed Al-Deayea, Saudi Arabian footballer
1972 – Jacinda Barrett, Australian model and actress
1972 – Daniele Nardello, Italian professional road racing cyclist
1972 – Jimmy Pop, American musician (The Bloodhound Gang)
1972 – Justyna Steczkowska, Polish singer
1973 – Hiroyuki Goto, Japanese game designer
1973 – Danie Keulder, Former Namibian cricketer
1974 – Angie Cepeda, Colombian actress
1975 – Mineiro, Brazilian footballer
1975 – Xu Huaiwen, Chinese-born badminton player
1975 – Ingrid Rubio, Spanish actress
1976 – Reyes Estévez, Spanish athlete
1976 – Sam Worthington, Australian actor
1976 – Jay Heaps, American soccer player
1976 – Michael Weiss, Olympic figure skater
1976 – Mohammad Zahid, Former Pakistani cricketer
1977 – Edward Furlong, American actor
1978 – Goran Gavrancic, Serbian footballer
1978 – Matt Guerrier, American baseball player
1979 – Reuben Kosgei, Kenyan athlete
1980 – Ivica Banovic, Croatian footballer
1980 – Nadia Bjorlin, American actress
1982 – Hélder Postiga, Portuguese footballer
1982 – Grady Sizemore, American baseball player
1983 – Nick Diaz, American MMA fighter
1984 – Chiara Mastalli, Italian actress
1984 – Giampaolo Pazzini, Italian footballer
1985 – Harry Smith, Canadian professional wrestler
1986 – Mathieu Razanakolona, Malagasy skier
1988 – Brittany Hargest, American singer (Jump5)
1990 – Alice Connor, British actress
1992 – Hallie Kate Eisenberg, American actress
Deaths
686 – Pope John V
924 – Ælfweard of Wessex
1100 – King William II of England
1222 – Count Raymond VI of Toulouse (b. 1156)
1511 – Andrew Barton, Scottish naval leader
1589 – King Henry III of France (b. 1551)
1611 – Kato Kiyomasa, Japanese warlord and samurai (b. 1562)
1696 – Robert Campbell of Glenlyon, Scottish military commander (b. 1630)
1769 – Daniel Finch, 8th Earl of Winchilsea, English politician (b. 1689)
1776 – Louis François I, Prince of Conti, French military leader (b. 1717)
1788 – Thomas Gainsborough, English artist (b. 1727)
1799 – Jacques-Étienne Montgolfier, French inventor (b. 1745)
1815 – Guillaume Marie Anne Brune, French marshal (b. 1763)
1823 – Lazare Carnot, French general, politician, and mathematician (b. 1753)
1849 – Governor Muhammad Ali of Egypt (b. 1769)
1859 – Horace Mann, American educator and abolitionist (b. 1796)
1876 – James Butler Wild Bill Hickok, American gunfighter (b. 1837)
1889 – Eduardo Gutiérrez, Argentinian author (b. 1851)
1890 – Louise-Victorine Ackermann, French poet (b. 1813)
1903 – Edmond Nocard, French veterinarian (b. 1850)
1920 – Ormer Locklear, American stunt pilot (b. 1891)
1921 – Enrico Caruso, Italian tenor (b. 1873)
1922 – Alexander Graham Bell, Scottish-born inventor, invented the telephone(b. 1847)
1923 – Warren G. Harding, 29th President of the United States (b. 1865)
1929 – Mae Costello, American actress (b. 1882)
1934 – Paul von Hindenburg, German field marshal and President of Germany (b. 1847)
1936 – Louis Blériot, French aviation pioneer (b. 1872)
1939 – Harvey Spencer Lewis, American Rosicrucian mystic (b. 1883)
1945 – Pietro Mascagni, Italian composer (b. 1863)
1955 – Alfred Lépine, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1901)
1972 – Helen Hoyt, American poet (b. 1887)
1972 – Brian Cole, American bass player (The Association) (b. 1942)
1973 – Jean-Pierre Melville, French film director (b. 1917)
1974 – W. Douglas Hawkes, British racing driver (b. 1893)
1976 – Fritz Lang, Austrian film director (b. 1890)
1978 – Carlos Chávez, Mexican composer (b. 1899)
1979 – Thurman Munson, American baseball player (b. 1947)
1983 – James Jamerson, American musician (b. 1936)
1986 – Roy Cohn, American politician (b. 1927)
1988 – Raymond Carver, American writer (b. 1938)
1988 – Joe Carcione, American consumer advocate (b. 1914)
1990 – Norman Mclean, American writer (b. 1902)
1990 – Edwin Richfield, British actor (b. 1921)
1992 – Michel Berger, French singer and songwriter (b. 1947)
1996 – Michel Debré, French politician (b. 1912)
1996 – Mohamed Farrah Aidid, Somalian Warlord (b. 1934)
1997 – William S. Burroughs, American writer (b. 1914)
1997 – Fela Anikulapo Kuti, Nigerian musician (b. 1938)
1998 – Shari Lewis, American puppeteer (b. 1933)
2001 – Ron Townson, American singer (The Fifth Dimension) (b. 1933)
2003 – Don Estelle, British actor (b. 1933)
2003 – Mike Levey, American television personality (b. 1948)
2003 – Peter Safar, Austrian physician (b. 1924)
2004 – Don Tosti, American musician (b. 1923)
2004 – François Craenhals, Belgian comics artist (b. 1926)
2005 – Steven Vincent, American journalist and writer (b. 1955)
2007 – Chauncey Bailey, American journalist and editor (b. 1950)
2007 – Holden Roberto, Angolan founder and leader of the FNLA (b. 1923)
2007 – Kay Dotrice, English repertory actress (b. 1929)
2008 – Fujio Akatsuka, Japanese cartoonist (b. 1935)
Holidays and observances
Costa Rica – Our Lady of the Angels.
Republic of Macedonia – Ilinden (St. Ilya Day), a day of remembrance of the Ilinden-Preobrazhenie Uprising.
Day of Airborne Forces in Russia and Ukraine.
Day of Azerbaijani cinema
Basil Fool for Christ in the Russian Orthodox Church
Saint Abel in the Syrian church
