- The first American walked in space. (1965) Major Edward H. White II stepped out from the Gemini 4 capsule and "walked" in space for about 20 minutes. He was the second person to enjoy a spacewalk — Soviet astronaut Aleksei A. Leonov was the first on March 18, 1965. (Neil Armstrong was the first person to walk on the moon — on July 20, 1969.)
- Santa Cruz, California, banned rock and roll music. (1956) The ban was imposed the day after Chuck Higgins and his Orchestra played for a dance party attended by about 200 teenagers. Santa Cruz city leaders declared the music "Detrimental to both the health and morals of our youth and community."
- Barack Obama secures the Democratic presidential nomination. (2008) He was the first black candidate to lead a U.S. political party. Ultimately, he became the first black U.S. president.
- The Ixtoc I oil well exploded in the Gulf of Mexico. (1979) Spilling over 150 million gallons (over 667 million liters) of oil into the water, it was the worst oil spill to date.
- President John Adams became the first U.S. president to reside in Washington D.C. (1800) President Adams, the 2nd U.S. president, took up temporary residence in Georgetown at Union Tavern. On November 1st of that year, construction of the White House was completed and he moved in.
- Pope John XXIII died. (1963) Known as "good Pope John" and "the most beloved Pope in history," the 261st pope died at the age of 81.
- The first long-distance electric power transmission line in the United States was completed. (1889) The 14-mile (about 22-kilometer) line connected a generator in Willamette Falls to downtown Portland, Oregon.
- The Canadian-Pacific railway was completed. (1889) Still in use today, its 14,000 miles (about 22,530 kilometers) of track connect Vancouver and Montreal, also serving some major U.S. cities such as New York City and Chicago.
- U.S. artist Andy Warhol was shot and wounded. (1968) Radical feminist writer Valerie Solanas shot at Warhol three times and hit him once. She was trying to kill him because, she claimed, Warhol was going to steal her work. Warhol wore a corset for the rest of his life to prevent his injuries from getting worse.
- Franz Kafka died. (1924) The Czech novelist was famous for his short story The Metamorphosis and several novels including The Trial and Amerika. Most of his work was published posthumously.
- U.S. President Woodrow Wilson signed National Defense Act. (1916) This act expanded the role of state militia groups and brought them together under the title National Guard. The act established the National Guard as the permanent U.S. reserve force.
- American actor Tony Curtis was born. (1925) Curtis has appeared in more than 100 films, including the comic gangster film Some Like It Hot. He also is the father to American actress Jamie Lee Curtis.