History of 1 July
1905 – The USDA Forest Service was created within the Department of Agriculture. The agency was given the mission to sustain healthy, diverse, and productive forests and grasslands for present and future generations.
1909 – Thomas Edison began commercially manufacturing his new “A” type alkaline storage batteries.
1916 – The massive Allied offensive known as the Battle of the Somme began in France. The battle was the first to use tanks.
1934 – The Federal Communications Commission replaced the Federal Radio Commission as the regulator of broadcasting in the United States.
1940 – In Washington, the Tacoma Narrows Bridge was opened to traffic. The bridge collapsed during a wind storm on November 7, 1940.
1941 – Bulova Watch Company sponsored the first TV commercial in New York City, NY.
1942 – German troops captured Sevastopol, Crimea, in the Soviet Union.
1943 – The U.S. Government began automatically withholding federal income tax from paychecks.
1945 – New York established the New York State Commission Against Discrimination to prevent discrimination in employment because of race, creed or natural origin. It was the first such agency in the U.S.
1946 – U.S. President Harry Truman signed Public Law 476 that incorporated the Civil Air Patrol as a benevolent, nonprofit organization. The Civil Air Patrol was created on December 1, 1941.
1946 – The U.S. exploded a 20-kiloton atomic bomb near Bikini Atoll in the Pacific Ocean.
1948 – The price of a subway ride in New York City was increased from 5 cents to 10.
1950 – American ground troops arrived in South Korea to stem the tide of the advancing North Korean army.
1951 – Bob Feller set a major league baseball record as he pitched his third no-hitter for the Cleveland Indians.
1960 – Somalia gained its independence from Britain through the unification of Somaliland with Italian Somalia.
1961 – British troops landed in Kuwait to aid against Iraqi threats.
1961 – The first community air-raid shelter was built. The shelter in Boise, ID had a capacity of 1,000 people and family memberships sold for $100.
1963 – The U.S. postmaster introduced the five-digit ZIP (Zoning Improvement Plan) code.
1966 – The Medicare federal insurance program went into effect.
1968 – The Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty was signed by 60 countries. It limited the spreading of nuclear material for military purposes. On May 11, 1995, the treaty was extended indefinitely.
1969 – Britain’s Prince Charles was invested as the Prince of Wales.
1974 – Isabel Peron became the president of Argentina upon the death of her husband, Juan.
1979 – Susan B. Anthony was commemorated on a U.S. coin, the Susan B. Anthony dollar.
1979 – Sony introduced the Walkman.
1980 – “O Canada” was proclaimed the national anthem of Canada.
1980 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter signed legislation that provided for 2 acres of land near the Lincoln Memorial for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
1981 – The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that candidates for federal office had an “affirmative right” to go on national television.
1985 – Robin Yount (Milwaukee Brewers) got the 1,800th hit of his career.
1987 – John Kevin Hill, at age 11, became the youngest to fly across the U.S. when he landed at National Airport in Washington, DC.
1989 – The Montreal Protocol, an international treaty, went into effect. It limited the production of ozone-destroying chemicals.
1991 – Court TV began airing.
1991 – The Warsaw Pact dissolved.
1994 – Yasser Arafat of the Palestinian Liberation Organization visited the Gaza Strip.
1997 – The sovereignty over Hong Kong was transferred from Great Britain to China. Britain had controlled Hong Kong as a colony for 156 years.
1999 – The U.S. Justice Department released new regulations that granted the attorney general sole power to appoint and oversee special counsels. The 1978 independent-counsel statute expired on June 30.
2003 – In Hong Kong, thousands of protesters marched to show their opposition to anti-subversion legislation.
2004 – Saturn orbit insertion of Cassini–Huygens begins at 01:12 UTC and ends at 02:48 UTC.
2006 – The first operation of the Qinghai–Tibet Railway in China.
2007 – Smoking in England is banned in all public indoor spaces.
2008 – Rioting erupts in Mongolia in response to allegations of fraud surrounding the 2008 legislative elections.
2013 – Croatia becomes the 28th member of the European Union.
Celebrating Birthday Today
- 1981 – Carlo Del Fava, South African-Italian rugby player
- 1981 – Tadhg Kennelly, Irish-Australian footballer
- 1982 – Justin Huber, Australian baseball player
- 1982 – Joachim Johansson, a Swedish tennis player
- 1982 – Adrian Ward, American football player
- 1982 – Hilarie Burton, American actress.
- 1983 – Marit Larsen, Norwegian singer, and songwriter.
- 1984 – Donald Thomas, Bahamian high jumper
- 1985 – Chris Perez, American baseball player
- 1986 – Charlie Blackmon, American baseball player
- 1986 – Andrew Lee, Australian footballer
- 1986 – Julian Prochnow, German footballer
- 1987 – Michael Schrader, German decathlete
- 1988 – Dedé, Brazilian footballer
- 1988 – Aleksander Lesun, Russian modern pentathlete
- 1989 – Kent Bazemore, American basketball player
- 1989 – Daniel Ricciardo, Australian race car driver
- 1990 – Ben Coker, English footballer
- 1991 – Michael Wacha, American baseball player
- 1992 – Aaron Sanchez, American baseball player
- 1994 – Miha Zajc, Slovenian footballer
- 1994 – Fallon Sherrock, English darts player
- 1995 – Boli Bolingoli-Mbombo, Belgian footballer
- 1995 – Savvy Shields, Miss America 2017
- 1996 – Adelina Sotnikova, Russian figure skater
- 1998 – Aleksandra Golovkina, Lithuanian figure skater
- 2000 – Lalu Muhammad Zohri, Indonesian sprinter
- 2001 – Chosen Jacobs, American entertainer