1650
The English under Cromwell defeat a superior Scottish army under David Leslie at the Battle of Dunbar.
1777
The American flag (stars & stripes), approved by Congress on June 14th, is carried into battle for the first time by a force under General William Maxwell.
1783
The Treaty of Paris is signed by Great Britain and the new United States, formally bringing the American Revolution to an end.
1838
Frederick Douglass escapes slavery disguised as a sailor. He would later write The Narrative Life of Frederick Douglass, his memoirs about slave life.
1855
General William Harney defeats Little Thunder's Brule Sioux at the Battle of Blue Water in Nebraska.
1895
The first professional American football game is played in Latrobe, Pennsylvania between the Latrobe Young Men's Christian Association and the Jeannette Athletic Club. Latrobe wins 12-0.
1939
After Germany ignores Great Britain's ultimatum to stop the invasion of Poland, Great Britain declares war on Germany, marking the beginning of World War II in Europe.
1939
The British passenger ship Athenia is sunk by a German submarine in the Atlantic, with 30 Americans among those killed. American Secretary of State Cordell Hull warns Americans to avoid travel to Europe unless absolutely necessary.
1945
General Tomoyuki Yamashita, the Japanese commander of the Philippines, surrenders to Lieutenant General Jonathan Wainwright at Baguio.
1976
The unmanned US spacecraft Viking 2 lands on Mars, takes first close-up, color photos of the planet's surface.
1989
US begins shipping military aircraft and weapons to Columbia for use against that country's drug lords.
