1411: One of the bloodiest battles on Scottish soil, the Battle of Harlaw takes place. Surprisingly, the English had nothing to do with it - it was all inter-clan rivalry.
1567: Mary Queen of Scots is deposed and replaced by her 1 year old son James VI.
1701: Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac founded trading post at Fort Pontchartrain, which later becomes the city of Detroit.
1802: Alexandre Dumas, author of The Count of Monte Cristo and The Three Musketeers is born.
1832: Benjamin Bonneville leads the first wagon train across the Rocky Mountains by using Wyoming's South Pass.
1847: After 17 months of travel, Brigham Young leads 148 Mormon pioneers into Salt Lake Valley, resulting in the establishment of Salt Lake City.1853: William Gillette is born in Hartford, CT. He is best known for his portrayals of Sherlock Holmes, but if you're ever in East Haddam, CT I highly recommend a stopover at his sweet pad Gillette Castle.
1864: At the Battle of Kernstown, Confederate General Jubal Early defeats Union army troops led by General George Crook in an effort to keep them out of the Shenandoah Valley.
Jubal Early
1866: Tennessee becomes the first U.S. state to be readmitted to the Union following the American Civil War.
1864: At the Battle of Kernstown, Confederate General Jubal Early defeats Union army troops led by General George Crook in an effort to keep them out of the Shenandoah Valley.
Jubal Early1897: Amelia Earhart is born.
1911: Hiram Bingham III re-discovers Machu Picchu "the Lost City of the Incas."
1935: The dust bowl heat wave reaches its peak, sending temperatures to 109°F (44°C) in Chicago and 104°F (40°C) in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.1940: Dan Hedaya is born. He is best known for playing Nick Tortelli on Cheers.
1942: Chris Sarandon is born. He played the wicked Prince Humperdinck in The Princess Bride and the vampire Jerry Dandridge in the 80's cult horror classic Fright Night.1947: Robert Hays is born. He is best known for playing the beleagured Ted Striker in Airplane!
1949: Michael Richards is born. He played Kramer on Seinfeld.
1950: A V-2 rocket makes the first launch from Kennedy Space Center
1951: Lynda Carter is born. Best Wonder Woman ever.
1956: At New York City's Copacabana Club, Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis perform their last comedy show together which started on July 25, 1946.
1959: At the opening of the American National Exhibition in Moscow, US vice president Richard Nixon and Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev have an impromptu "Kitchen Debate."
1969: Apollo 11 splashes down safely in the Pacific Ocean.1969: Jennifer Lopez is born.
1974: The United States Supreme Court unanimously rules that President Richard Nixon does not have the authority to withhold subpoenaed White House tapes and they order him to surrender the tapes to the Watergate special prosecutor.1981: Summer Glau is born.
1983: George Brett, batting for the Kansas City Royals against the New York Yankees, has a game-winning home run nullified in the "Pine Tar Incident."Today in History elements mostly cribbed from The History Channel, Wikipedia, The New York Times, The Jewish World Review, The Writer's Almanac and anything else I can dig up.
