Today in 1816, New England saw 10" of snowfall as part of a "year without a summer," which followed the eruption of Mount Tambora in Indonesia.
Today in 1912, the eruption of Novarupta in Alaska began. It stands as the largest volcanic eruption of the 20th Novarupta released 30 times the volume of magma of the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens.
Today in 1932, the first federal tax on gasoline went into effect. It was a penny per gallon.
Today in 1944, 160,000 Allied troops landed along a 50-mile stretch of heavily-fortified French coastline to fight Nazi Germany on the beaches of Normandy, France. General Dwight D. Eisenhower called the operation a crusade in which “we will accept nothing less than full victory.” More than 5,000 Ships and 13,000 aircraft supported the D-Day invasion, and by day’s end, the Allies gained a foot- hold in Normandy. The D-Day cost was high -more than 9,000 Allied Soldiers were killed or wounded – but more than 100,000 Soldiers began the march across Europe and ultimately defeated Hitler.
Today in 1946, the Basketball Association of America was formed in New York City.
Today in 1966, black activist James Meredith was shot and wounded as he walked along a Mississippi highway to encourage black voter registration.
Today in 1968, Robert F. Kennedy died at Good Samaritan Hospital in Los Angeles…25-1/2 hours after he was shot by Sirhan Sirhan.
Today in 1985, authorities in Brazil exhumed a body later identified as the remains of Dr. Josef Mengele, the notorious "Angel of Death" of the Nazi Holocaust.
Today in 1992, Ben Vereen literally had the worst day ever when he suffered three accidents in one day: first, his car hit a tree causing him to hit his head on the roof of his car, then he suffered a stroke while he was walking on a Malibu highway, apparently veering into the road where he was struck by a car driven by record producer David Foster. His critical injuries (including a broken leg) required him to undergo intense physical rehabilitation in the following months. Fortunately, he fully recovered.
Today in 1994, President Bill Clinton joined leaders from America’s World War II allies to mark the 50th anniversary of the D-Day invasion of Normandy.
Today in2001, Senator Jim Jeffords officially left the Republican Party, an act that shifted control of the United States Senate from the Republicans to the Democratic Party.
Today in 2002, an asteroid exploded over the Mediterranean Sea between Greece and Libya, giving off a force slightly more powerful than the Nagasaki atomic bomb.
Today in 2005, United States Supreme Court ruled that federal authorities could prosecute sick people who smoke marijuana on doctor's orders. The ruling concluded that state medical marijuana laws did not protect uses from the federal ban on the drug.
Today in 2012, the Solar Impulse completed the world's first intercontinental flight powered by the sun.
Today in 2013, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper issued a rare public statement in an effort to tamp down a public uproar spurred by the disclosure of secret surveillance programs involving phone and Internet records, declassifying key details about one of the programs while insisting the efforts were legal, limited in scope and necessary to detect terrorist threats
Today in 2015, convicted killers Richard Matt and David Sweat broke out of Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora, New York – and remained on the run for three weeks. Matt was spotted and killed by searchers first, Sweat was shot and captured two days after that. The investigation later revealed that the men had been assisted in their escape by prison tailor Joyce Mitchell. Sentenced to 2 1/3 – 7 years in prison, she was last denied parole February 2017.
Today in 2017, Bill Cosby’s chief accuser, Andrea Constand, took the stand at his sexual assault trial to tell her story publicly for the first time, saying the comedian groped her after giving her three blue pills that left her paralyzed and helpless (The jury deadlocked, resulting in a mistrial, but Cosby was convicted in a second trial).
Today in 2019, on 50th anniversary of the Stonewall riots, New York City’s police commissioner James O’Neill apologized for his department's actions during the 1969 raid on the Stonewall Inn.