Here are some events that have happened on this date.
On Aug. 2, 1776, members of the Continental Congress began attaching their signatures to the Declaration of Independence.
This undated engraving shows the scene on July 4, 1776 when the Declaration of Independence was approved by the Continental Congress in Philadelphia, Pa. The document, drafted by Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Philip Livingston and Roger Sherman, announces the separation of 13 North American British colonies from Great Britain. The formal signing by 56 members of Congress began on Aug. 2.
(AP Photo)
AP Photo
In 1939, Albert Einstein signed a letter to President Franklin D. Roosevelt urging creation of an atomic weapons research program.
This undated file photo shows the famed German borne physicist Prof. Dr. Albert Einstein, author of the theory of Relativity.
(AP-PHOTO)
AP-PHOTO
In 1974, former White House counsel John W. Dean III was sentenced to one to four years in prison for obstruction of justice in the Watergate coverup. (Dean ended up serving four months.)
In this photo, John Dean III, former White House aide in the Nixon Administration, adjusts his eyeglasses as he nears the end of reading his 245-page prepared statement before the Senate Watergate Committee in Washington, D.C., on June 25, 1973.
(AP Photo)
AP Photo
In 1990, Iraq invaded Kuwait, seizing control of the oil-rich emirate. (The Iraqis were later driven out in Operation Desert Storm.)
Here, U.S. Army General H. Norman Schwarzkopf, commander of allied forces in Operation Desert Storm, points to a chart of Iraq’s Al Taqaddum Airfield damaged by allied bombing raids in Jan. 1991.
(AP Photo/John Gaps III)
AP Photo/John Gaps III
In 1943, during World War II, U.S. Navy boat PT-109, commanded by Lt. (jg) John F. Kennedy, sank after being rammed in the middle of the night by the Japanese destroyer Amagiri off the Solomon Islands. Two crew members were killed.
Future president John F. Kennedy, at right, with his PT-109 crew. (Collections of the U.S. National Archives, downloaded from the Naval Historical Center)
(Collections of the U.S. National Archives, downloaded from the Naval Historical Center)
Collections of the U.S. National Archives, downloaded from the Naval Historical Center
In 1909, the original Lincoln “wheat” penny first went into circulation, replacing the “Indian Head” cent.
This illustration shows the new reverse side that will appear on one-cent Lincoln pennies, the White House announced Dec. 20, 1958. The portrait of Lincoln on the face will remain unchanged.The new reverse portrays the Lincoln Memorial in Washington. The change is a feature of the Lincoln sesquicentennial observance.
(AP Photo)
AP Photo
In 1610, during his fourth voyage to the Western Hemisphere, English explorer Henry Hudson sailed into what is now known as Hudson Bay.
FILE – In this Nov. 6, 2007, file photo, a polar bear mother and her two cubs are seen in Wapusk National Park on the shore of Hudson Bay near Churchill, Manitoba. About a third of the world’s polar bears could face imminent threat from greenhouse gas emissions in as soon as a decade, according to a new report by the U.S. Geological Survey released Tuesday, June 30, 2015. The effects of diminished sea ice will lead to population declines throughout the century, and scientists didn’t see a rebound in population numbers from the modeling that went up to the year 2100, according to the report. MANDATORY CREDIT
(Jonathan Hayward/The Canadian Press via AP, File)
On August 2, 1939, Albert Einstein signed a letter to President Franklin D. Roosevelt urging creation of an atomic weapons research program.
On this date:
In 1610, during his fourth voyage to the Western Hemisphere, English explorer Henry Hudson sailed into what is now known as Hudson Bay.
In 1776, members of the Second Continental Congress began attaching their signatures to the Declaration of Independence.
In 1876, frontiersman “Wild Bill” Hickok was shot and killed while playing poker at a saloon in Deadwood, Dakota Territory, by Jack McCall, who was later hanged.
In 1909, the original Lincoln “wheat” penny first went into circulation, replacing the “Indian Head” cent.
In 1923, the 29th president of the United States, Warren G. Harding, died in San Francisco; Vice President Calvin Coolidge became president.
In 1939, President Roosevelt signed the Hatch Act, which prohibited civil service employees from taking an active part in political campaigns.
In 1943, during World War II, U.S. Navy boat PT-109, commanded by Lt. (jg) John F. Kennedy, sank after being rammed in the middle of the night by the Japanese destroyer Amagiri off the Solomon Islands. Two crew members were killed.
In 1974, former White House counsel John W. Dean III was sentenced to one to four years in prison for obstruction of justice in the Watergate cover-up. (Dean ended up serving four months.)
In 1980, 85 people were killed when a bomb exploded at the train station in Bologna, Italy.
In 1985, 137 people were killed when Delta Air Lines Flight 191, a Lockheed L-1011 Tristar, crashed while attempting to land at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport.
In 1990, Iraq invaded Kuwait, seizing control of the oil-rich emirate. (The Iraqis were later driven out in Operation Desert Storm.)
In 2000, Republicans awarded Texas Gov. George W. Bush their 2000 presidential nomination at the party’s convention in Philadelphia and ratified Dick Cheney as his running mate.
Ten years ago: Police in southern Afghanistan reported a bus carrying a wedding party had struck a mine, killing 10 people, including the bride and groom; meanwhile, two French humanitarian aid workers kidnapped on July 18 were released.
Five years ago: The United States issued an extraordinary global travel warning to Americans about the threat of an al-Qaida attack and closed down 21 embassies and consulates across the Muslim world for the weekend.
One year ago: Former Notre Dame football coach Ara Parseghian died at his home in Granger, Indiana, at the age of 94. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed above 22,000 for the first time, after stocks spent five months gradually moving higher.
