July 31st
Today in 1876,the first US Coast Guard officers' training school was established in New Bedford, Massachusetts.
Today in 1971,thefirst men to ride in a vehicle on the moon did so on this day in the LRV – lunar rover vehicle. The sort of lunar dune buggy – the “moon buggy” – carried Apollo 15 astronauts, David R. Scott and James B. Irwin for five miles on the lunar surface.
Today in 1976,at the Olympics in Montreal,Gold medals were given to U.S. boxers: Light Heavyweight Leon Spinks, Middleweight Michael Spinks, Light Welterweight Sugar Ray Leonard and Lightweight Howard Davis.
Today in 1981,the seven-week old baseball players’ strike came to an end when the players and owners agreed on the issue of free agent compensation.
Today in 1984,the U.S. men’s gymnastic team – including Mitch Gaylord, Bart Conner and Tim Daggett – won the Gold medal. The victory was a surprise, as the Chinese team was favored to win.
Today in 1988,the last“Playboy” club closed in Lansing, Michigan.
Today in 1989,a pro-Iranian group in Lebanon released a grisly videotape purportedly showing the body of American hostage Col. William R. Higgins dangling from a rope, a day after his kidnappers threatened to kill him. While the exact date of his death is unknown, he was officially declared dead on July 6th, 1990. In February 1994, the U.S. Navy announced that a new destroyer would named for him. The vessel was officially commissioned April 24th, 1999.
Today in 1991,the Senate overturned a 43-year-old law and voted to allow women to fly military warplanes in combat.
Today in 1991,President Bush and Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev signed the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START I).
Today in 1992,Summer Sanders became the first American athlete to win four Gold medals at the Barcelona Olympics as she won the Gold in the women's 200-meter butterfly.
Today in 1997,police seized five bombs believed to be bound for terrorist attacks on subways in New York City.
Today in 1998,President Clintonsaid he would "completely and truthfully" answer prosecutors' questions about Monica Lewinsky in testimony that would be beamed by closed-circuit television to a grand jury. He didn’t.
Today in 1999,the spacecraft,Lunar Prospector, crashed into the moon. The craft, which had been launched on January 6, 1998, was on mission to detect frozen water on the moon's surface.
Today in 2013,President Barack Obama’s national security team acknowledged for the first time that, when investigating one suspected terrorist, it could read and store the phone records of millions of Americans.
Today in 2017,Retired Marine Gen. John Kelly was sworn in as White House chief of staff, replacing Reince Priebus. Hours later, White House communications director Anthony Scaramucci was let go, just 11 days after he was appointed to the job.
Today in 2017,former Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio was convicted of a criminal charge for refusing to stop traffic patrols that targeted immigrants. Arpaio was pardoned by President Donald Trump less than a month later.
Today in 2018,Rihanna became the first Black woman to appear on the cover of British “Vogue's” September issue.