July This Day in History, Historic Events
What Historic July Events Occurred on Your Birthday?
Our “This Day in History for July” section contains historical July events categorized by month and day. See what happened on your birthday, or any day of the year. Find out what happened on this day in July.
Major Historical July Events
July 1 Historical Events
U.S. postage stamps went on sale for the first time. (1847)
The first photographs appear in a newspaper. (1848)
The Bureau of Internal Revenue Service is established. (1862)
The Philadelphia Zoo opens, the first zoo in the U.S. (1874)
Theodore Roosevelt and his Rough Riders charge up San Juan Hill in Cuba during the Spanish American War. (1898)
The first Tour de France begins. (1903)
Albert Einstein introduces his Theory of Relativity. (1905)
Taxes begin to be withheld from paychecks. (1943)
ZIP codes go into use. (1963)
Medicare health insurance program goes into effect. (1968)
July 2 Historical Events
President Garfield is shot. His struggle to survive lasted 80 days until his death on September 19th. (1881)
Amelia Earhart and Fred Noonan disappear over the Pacific Ocean on their way to Howland Island. (1937)
The Lawrence Welk show premieres on television. (1955)
Sam Walton opens his first Walmart store in Rogers, Arkansas. (1962)
President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Civil Rights Act of 1964 into law. (1964)
July 3 Historical Events
Samuel de Champlain founds the city of Quebec. (1608)
George Washington takes command of the Continental Army. (1775)
Michael Kent displays the first cultivated strawberry. (1806)
July 4 Historical Events
U.S. Independence Day. The U.S. Congress declares independence from Britain, issuing the Declaration of Independence. (1776)
The first Independence Day celebration is held. (1796)
President Thomas Jefferson announces the Louisiana Purchase. The price tag: $15M, about 4 cents per acre. (1803)
In Paris, the French government presents the Statue of Liberty to the United States. (1884)
After being displayed for over a century, workers remove and replace the torch on the Statue of Liberty. (1984)
Hotmail internet email provider begins service. (1994)
July 5 Historical Events
Great Britain creates the world’s first automobile speed limit law. (1865)
Baseball great Joe DiMaggio hits his first grand slam. (1937)
Ian Fleming graduates from a training school for spies in Canada. (1942)
The bikini makes its debut at a Paris fashion show. See National Bikini Day (1946)
Jeff Bezos founds Amazon.com. (1994)
Volvo is the first car company to announce that by 2019 their automobiles will all be hybrid or battery-powered. (2017)
July 6 Historical Events
Upon the death of King Henry II, the King of England Richard the Lionheart becomes the King of England, (1189)
Louis Pasteur creates the anti-rabies shot. (1885)
The U.S. Senate votes to annex Hawaii. (1898)
In the very first All-Star Baseball game, the American League wins 5-2. (1933)
Pokémon Go is released. (2016)
July 7 Historical Events
In a retrial, a court acquits Joan of Arc of heresy 25 years after her death. (1456)
U.S. President William McKinley signs the Newland Resolution annexing the Hawaiian Islands. (1898)
The Chillicothe Baking Company creates and markets sliced bread. It is the greatest invention since…. well since sliced bread! (1928)
Sandra Day O’Connor is the first female nominated to the U.S. Supreme Court. (1981)
July 8 Historical Events
Colonel John Nixon gives the first reading of the Declaration of Independence to the citizens of Philadelphia, PA. (1776)
The U.S. State Department issues the first passport. (1796)
The Wall Street Journal is published for the first time. (18890
The space shuttle Atlantis launches for the first time. It is the last launch of the space shuttle program. (2011)
July 9 Historical Events
The U.S. debt is paid off. The total: $2,024,899. (1795)
The first natural gas well in the U.S. is discovered while drilling for salt in Charleston, SC. (1815)
Princess Elizabeth (later Queen Elizabeth) and Lt. Philip Mountbatten (later Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh) announce their engagement. (1947)
Dick Clark hosts American Bandstand for the very first time. (1956)
Starbucks announces it will stop using plastic straws by 2020, saving over 1 billion straws per year. (2018)
July 10 Historical Events
The city of Dublin is founded on the banks of the Liffey River. (988)
In an effort to force her husband, the Earl of Mercia, to lower taxes, Lady Godiva rides naked on a horse through the streets of Coventry. (1040)
Howard Hughes flies around the world in 91 hours. (1938)
After an unsuccessful attempt to change its formula, Coca-Cola brings back the ever-popular original formula as “Classic Coke”. (1985)
The Apple App Store premieres. It opens with about 500 apps. Today, it has over 1.96 million apps. See National App Day. (2008)
July Events: Celebrate National Bikini Day
July 11 Historical Events
Robert Bailey Thomas publishes the first issue of the Farmer’s Almanac. It is now called the “Old Farmer’s Almanac”. (1792)
An Act of Congress creates the U.S. Marine Corps. (1798)
Former Vice President Aaron Burr kills Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton in a duel. (1804)
During the War of 1812, the U.S. invades Canada, Detroit frontier. (1812)
Congress authorizes all U.S. currency to say “In God We Trust”. (1955)
Skylab space station re-enters the earth’s atmosphere. Pieces land in the Indian Ocean and in Australia. (1979)
July 12 Historical Events
The U.S. Congress authorizes the Medal of Honor. (1862)
The 16th Amendment, the power to tax income, is passed by Congress. (1909)
The first televised tennis match. (1922)
Congress passes the first minimum wage law. The minimum wage is set at 33 cents per hour. (1933)
Etch-a-Sketch goes on sale. (1960)
July 13 Historical Events
Swedish-American inventor John Ericsson files for a patent of his screw propeller design. (1835)
U.S. patent #1 is issued. It is for a locomotive wheel design. Note: Previously, the Patent Office issued 9,957 un-numbered patents. (1836)
P.T. Barnum’s Museum burns down. (1865)
Guglielmo Marconi patents the radio. (1898)
Gustav Robert Paalen receives a patent for the double-walled vessel required to make Nitrogen Ice Cream. See Nitrogen Ice Cream Day. (1909)
Police charge former NFL Superstar running back O.J. Simpson with the murder of his wife. Will the glove fit!? (1994)
July 14 Historical Events
Bastille Day. The French Revolution begins with the fall of Bastille prison. (1789)
Alfred Nobel demonstrates dynamite. (1867)
John T. Smith applies for a patent for corkboard. (1891)
Liquid rocket fuel is patented. (1914)
July 15 Historical Events
The city of Jerusalem is captured and plundered by Christian forces during the First Crusade. (1099)
Goodyear Company patents Vulcanized rubber. (1844)
Margarine is patented. (1858)
William Boeing founds Boeing Company in Seattle, WA. (1916)
German Hans Riegel Sr. creates gummi bears. (1920)
Trolli Company markets the “Yucky” gummi worms. (1981)
July 16 Historical Events
Congress declares the city of Washington and the District of Columbia the permanent capital of the United States. (1790)
The first x-ray photo of arterial circulation is taken in Rochester, NY. (1936)
The novel “Catcher in the Rye “by. J.D. Salinger is published. (1951)
Apollo 11 is launched, carrying the first men to step foot on the surface of the moon. (1969)
John F. Kennedy Jr. dies in a plane crash off Martha’s Vineyard. (1999)
Martha Stewart is sentenced to five months in prison plus five months of home confinement, after being convicted of lying to federal investigators. (2004)
July 17 Historical Events
The Harvard School of Dentistry becomes the first dental school in the U.S. (1867)
The air conditioner was invented. (1902)
Walt Disney’s Disneyland opens in Anaheim, Ca. (1955)
July 18 Historical Events
Adolph Hitler publishes Mein Kampf. (1925)
Nadia Comăneci becomes the first gymnast in Olympic Games history to score a perfect 10 score at the Montreal Games. (1925)
Comet Shoemaker-Levy’s largest collision with Jupiter leaves a black spot a phenomenal 12,000 km across! (1944)
Crayola begins to market scented crayons. (1994)
The city of Detroit, MI files for bankruptcy. (2013)
July 19 Historical Events
Samuel Colt invents the revolver. (1814)
American swimmer Johnny Weissmuller becomes the first to break the 1-minute barrier for 100m freestyle; swims 58.6 seconds at Alameda, CA. (1922)
Winston Churchill uses the two-finger “V” for victory sign. (1940)
Adolph Hitler orders Great Britain to surrender. (1940)
Cincinnati Red’s Pete Rose is sentenced to five years in jail for tax evasion. (1990)
July 20 Historical Events
The first fee is charged to watch a baseball game. Fans paid 50 cents to watch NY beat Brooklyn, 22-18. (1858)
Hank Aaron hits his 755th and last home run. (1976)
In “one small step for Man, one giant step for Mankind”, Astronaut Neil Armstrong becomes the first person to walk on the moon. (1969)
July Historic Events: Air Conditioners are Invented, What a Relief
July 21 Historical Events
The New York State legislature sets aside 750 acres on Manhattan Island for the creation of Central Park. (1853)
Jesse James and his gang rob their first train. (1873)
USSR’s Vostok Station in Antarctica, records the lowest record temperature ever at 128.6 degrees below zero Fahrenheit. (1983)
The fully restored USS Constitution (aka “Old Ironsides”) celebrates her 200th birthday, setting sail for the first time in 116 years. (1997)
NASA’s Space Shuttle program ends with the landing of Space Shuttle Atlantis on mission STS-135. (2011)
July 22 Historical Events
Bank robber John Dillon was shot dead. (1934)
An act of Congress restores Civil War Confederate General Robert E. Lee’s citizenship. (1975)
July 23 Historical Events
Charles E. Minches of St. Louis, Missouri fills a pastry cone with two scoops of ice cream, and the ice cream cone is invented. (1904)
Frank Sinatra’s song “Strangers in the Night” is #1 on the charts. (1966)
The International Whaling Commission votes for a total ban on commercial whaling, to begin in 1985. (1982)
Air Force Colonel Eileen M. Collins becomes the first woman to command a space shuttle. (1999)
July 24 Historical Events
Jacques Cartier lands in Canada and claims it for France. (1534)
Pres. Hoover announces the Kellogg-Briand Pact which renounces war. (A lot of good that did.) (1929)
Bob Dylan releases his hit song Like a Rolling Stone. (1965)
July 25 Historical Events
Constantine I is declared the Roman Emperor by his troops. (305)
American forces defeat the British at the Battle of Niagara Falls (Lundy’s Lane). (1814)
Gold is discovered in the Rogue River in Oregon. (1850)
The Carousel is patented by Wilhelm Schneider of Davenport, IA. See National Carousel Day. (1871)
The first fighter jet, a Messerschmitt 262, is used in combat. (1944)
Comedians Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin perform their first comedy act together, at Club 500 in Atlantic City, NJ. (1946)
Louise Joy Brown, the First “Test Tube” baby is born in Oldham General Hospital, UK. (1978)
July 26 Historical Events
Benjamin Franklin became the first Postmaster General. (1775)
The first German V-2 rocket hits Great Britain. (1944)
Mickey Mantle hits his first “Grand Slam”. (1952)
General Hospital records its 7,000th episode. 91990)
July 27 Historical Events
The U.S. Mint in Charlotte, NC opens. It will be destroyed by a fire on this day in 1844, just 7 years to the day after it opens. (1837)
The first use of fingerprints as a means of identification is used by Sir William James Herschel of the Indian Civil Service. (1858)
Bugs Bunny debuts in Warner Brothers animated cartoon “A Wild Hare”. (1940)
Walt Disney releases the animated film Alice in Wonderland. (1951)
Zsa Zsa Gabor begins a 3-day prison term for slapping an officer. (1990)
July 28 Historical Events
World War I began. (1914)
The U.S. Congress authorizes the National Aeronautics and Space Act, creating NASA. (1958)
July 29 Historical Events
The Arc de Triomphe in Paris is inaugurated. (1836)
Sir Lord Baden-Powell creates the Boy Scouts in England. (1909)
Walt Disney’s “Steamboat Willie” premieres. (1928)
President Dwight D. Eisenhower signs a bill creating the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). (1958)
Charles, Prince of Wales, and Lady Diana Spencer are married. (1981)
July 30 Historical Events
President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Medicare bill. (1965)
The last old-style Volkswagen Beetle rolled off the assembly line in Mexico. (2003)
July 31 Historical Events
The oldest recorded eruption of Mount Fuji in Japan. It has been dormant since 1707. (781)
Marquise de Lafayette, at the age of 19, is made a Major General of the Continental Army. (1777)
Mariner 6 flies past Mars. (1969)
American swimmer Michael Phelps becomes the greatest medal winner in Olympic history at nineteen total medals, including 15 gold medals. (2012)
Additional Resources
Famous Birthdays Who else was born on your Birthday? Find out!
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