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This Day In History: August 4th

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Communication
 
 
Crime and Corruption
1735
Freedom of the press was established with an acquittal of John Peter Zenger. The writer of the New York Weekly Journal had been charged with seditious libel by the royal governor of New York. The jury said that "the truth is not libelous."
1944
Nazi police raided a house in Amsterdam and arrested eight people. Anne Frank, a teenager at the time, was one of the people arrested. Her diary would be published after her death.
1972
Arthur Bremer was found guilty of shooting George Wallace, the governor of Alabama. Bremer was sentenced to 63 years in prison.
1983
New York Yankee outfielder Dave Winfield threw a baseball during warm-ups and accidentally killed a seagull. After the game, Toronto police arrested him for "causing unnecessary suffering to an animal."
1988
U.S. Rep. Mario Biaggi of New York was sentenced to prison. The conviction included charges of extortion, tax evasion, and acceptance of bribes in relation to the Wedtech scandal. Biaggi was paroled in 1990.
1993
Stacey Koon and Laurence Powell, Los Angeles police officers were sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison for violating Rodney King's civil rights.
2009
North Korean leader Kim Jong-il pardoned two American journalists, who had been arrested and imprisoned for illegal entry earlier in the year.
Defence
1790
The Revenue Cutter Service was formed. This U.S. naval task force was the beginning of the U.S. Coast Guard.
 
Disasters
1949
An earthquake in Ecuador destroyed 50 towns and killed more than 6000 people.
1991
The Oceanos, a Greek luxury liner, sank off of South Africa's southeast coast. All of the 402 passengers and 179 crewmembers survived.
Discovery
 
 
Education
 
 
Film, Television and Radio
1921
The first radio broadcast of a tennis match occurred. It was in Pittsburgh, PA.
 
Heads of State
1953
George Washington became a Master Mason.
 
Health and Social Welfare
 
 
Industry
1958
The first potato flake plant was completed in Grand Forks, ND.
 
Law
1977
U.S. President Carter signed the measure that established the Department of Energy.
1984
Upper Volta, an African republic, changed its name to Burkina Faso.
Motor Sport
1956
William Herz became the first person to race a motorcycle over 200 miles per hour. He was clocked at 210 mph.
1957
Juan Fangio won his final auto race and captured the world auto driving championship. It was his the fifth consecutive year to win.
People
1892
  Andrew and Abby Borden were axed to death in their home in Fall River, MA. Lizzie, Andrew's daughter, was accused of the killings but was later acquitted.
1922
The death of Alexander Graham Bell, two days earlier, was recognized by AT&T and the Bell Systems by shutting down all of its switchboards and switching stations. The shutdown affected 13 million phones.
1964
The bodies of Michael H. Schwerner, James E. Chaney, and Andrew Goodman were found in an earthen dam in Mississippi. The three were civil rights workers. They had disappeared on June 21, 1964.
1987
The Fairness Doctrine was rescinded by the Federal Communications Commission. The doctrine had required that radio and TV stations present controversial issues in a balanced fashion.
1987
A new 22-cent U.S. stamp honoring noted author William Faulkner, went on sale in Oxford, MS. Faulkner had been fired as postmaster of that same post office in 1924.
1992
Wang Hongwen died of a liver ailment. Hongwen was a member of the radical "Gang of Four". The gang had terrorized China during the Cultural Revolution.
Politics
1989
Iranian President Hashemi Rafsanjani offered to assist end the hostage crisis in Lebanon.
1990
The European Community imposed an embargo on oil from Iraq and Kuwait. This was done to protest the Iraqi invasion of the oil-rich Kuwait.
1994
Yugoslavia withdrew its support for Bosnian Serbs. The border between Yugoslavia and Serb-held Bosnia was sealed.
Publishing
1821
"The Saturday Evening Post" was published for the first time as a weekly.
1958
Billboard Magazine introduced its "Hot 100" chart, which was part popularity and a barometer of the movement of potential hits. The first number one song was Ricky Nelson's "Poor Little Fool."
Religion
 
 
Science
1954
  The uranium rush began in Saskatchewan, Canada.
 
Sport
1934
Mel Ott became the first major league baseball player to score six runs in a single game.
1957
Florence Chadwick set a world record by swimming the English Channel in 6 hours and 7 minutes.
1984
Carl Lewis won a gold medal in the Los Angeles Olympics.
1985
Tom Seaver of the Chicago White Sox achieved his 300th victory.
1985
Rod Carew of the California angels got his 3,000th major league hit.
1986
The United States Football League called off its 1986 season. This was after winning only token damges in its antitrust lawsuit against the National Football League.
1996
Josia Thugwane won a gold medal after finishing first in the marathon. He became the first black South African to win a gold medal.
Technology
 
 
The Arts
 
 
The Environment
 
 
The Law
 
 
The Workforce
1997
Teamsters began a 15-day strike against UPS (United Parcel Service). The strikers eventually won an increase in full-time positions and defeated a proposed reorganization of the companies pension plan.

 
Trade and Economy
 
 
Transport
 
 
War
1914
Britain declared war on Germany in World War I. The U.S. proclaimed its neutrality.
 
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