Today in 1782, George Washington created the Order of the Purple Heart, a decoration to recognize merit in enlisted men and non-commissioned officers.
Today in 1789, Congress established the U.S. War Department.
Today in 1930, a large mob estimated at two-thousand lynched two young black men Thomas Shipp and Abram Smith in Marion, Indiana.
Today in 1942, U.S. forces landed at Guadalcanal, marking the start of the first major allied offensive in the Pacific during World War II.
Today in 1946, the first American commemorative coin of an African American was minted – it was the half-dollar and featured Booker T. Washington.
Today in 1959, the very first pictures of Earth taken from space were transmitted from the Explorer 6
Today in 1963, Jacqueline Kennedy became the first wife of a President to give birth while he was in the White House since the days of Grover Cleveland. Sadly, the infant, named Patrick, died two days later.
Today in 1964, Congress passed the Gulf of Tonkin resolution, which gave President Johnson broad powers in dealing with reported North Vietnamese attacks on U.S. forces.
Today in 1972, Yogi Berra, Sandy Koufax, Lefty Gomez and Early Wynn were among the players inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Today in 1976, NASA announced that the Viking 1 spacecraft had found strong indications of possible life on Mars.
Today in 1984, the U.S. Women’s Basketball team won the Gold medal at the L.A. Olympics, defeating the South Korean team, 85-55.
Today in 1992, Jennifer Capriati won the gold medal in tennis at the Barcelona Olympics, beating Steffi Graf.
Today in 1999, Wade Boggs became the first player to homer for his three-thousandth hit.
Today in 2000, Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Al Gore tapped Connecticut Senator Joseph Lieberman as his running mate; Lieberman was the first Jewish person on a major party's presidential ticket.
Today in 2003, Arnold Schwarzenegger announced that he would run for the office of governor in California. He won, of course, and was the Governator of the Golden State from November 2003 until January 2011.
Today in 2010, Jerry Rice, Emmitt Smith, John Randle, Russ Grimm, Rickey Jackson, Floyd Little and Dick LeBeau were inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Today in 2016, American swimmer Katie Ledecky set a new world record with a time of 3:56.46 to win the gold medal in the women's 400m freestyle at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics. On the same day, United States men's 4 × 100m freestyle relay team won the final in 3:09.92. Michael Phelps' also scored a record 19th Olympic gold medal.
Today in 2016, Miami Marlins veteran Japanese outfielder Ichiro Suzuki became the 30th member of the 3,000 hit club in a 10 - 7 win v Rockies.
Today in 2018, the Mendocino Fire became the largest recorded fire in California's history - 290-thousand, 600-acres, overtaking 2017 Thomas Fire