August 9
1854 - Henry David Thoreau's "Walden," recounting his experiment in solitary life on the shores of Massachusetts' Walden Pond, was published.
1934 - President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed an executive order nationalizing silver.
1944- 258 African-American sailors based at Port Chicago, California, refused to load a munitions ship following a cargo vessel explosion that killed 320 men, many of them Black.
1945 - The United States detonated a nuclear bomb over Nagasaki, Japan during World War II, killing an estimated 74,000 people, three days following the atomic bombing of Hiroshima.
1965 - Singapore proclaimed its independence from Malaysia.
1974 - Vice President Gerald Ford is sworn in as the 38th president of the United States following the resignation of President Richard Nixon.
1982 - A federal judge in Washington ordered John W. Hinckley Jr., who'd been acquitted of shooting President Ronald Reagan and three others by reason of insanity, committed to a mental hospital.
1988 - President Ronald Reagan nominated Lauro Cavazos to be secretary of education; Cavazos became the first Hispanic to serve in the Cabinet.
1995 - Jerry Garcia, lead singer and guitarist of the Grateful Dead, died of a heart attack at age 53.
2004 - Oklahoma City bombing conspirator Terry Nichols, addressing a court for the first time, asked victims of the blast for forgiveness as a judge sentenced him to 161 consecutive life sentences.
2013 - President Barack Obama signed into law a measure restoring lower interest rates for student loans.
2014 - Michael Brown Jr., a Black 18-year-old, was shot to death by a police officer following an altercation in Ferguson, Missouri; Brown's death led to sometimes-violent protests in Ferguson and other U.S. cities, spawning a national "Black Lives Matter" movement.
2018 - Vice President Mike Pence announced plans for a new, separate U.S. Space Force as a sixth military service by 2020.
Birthdays
32 - Alexa Bliss (professional wrestler)
33 - Adelaide Kane (actress)
38 - Anna Kendrick (actress)
40 - Ashley Johnson (actress)
47 - Jessica Capshaw (actress)
50 - Kevin McKidd (actor)
51 - Liz Vassey (actress)
52 - Nikki Schieler Ziering (actress)
53 - Thomas Lennon (actor)
53 - Chris Cuomo (TV host)
53 - Rod Brind'Amour (hockey player)
55 - Eric Bana (actor)
55 - Gillian Anderson (actress)
56 - Deion Sanders (football player/baseball player/football coach)
59 - Hoda Kotb (TV host)
59 - Brett Hull (hockey player)
65 - Amanda Bearse (actress)
66 - Melanie Griffith (actress)
68 - Doug Williams (football player)
71 - John Cappelletti (football player)
76 - Barbara Mason (singer)
79 - Sam Elliott (actor)
85 - Rod Laver (tennis player)
95 - Bob Cousy (basketball player)
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Today in Sports History - August 9
1936 - Jesse Owens became the first American to win four gold medals in one Olympics.
1971 - Satchel Paige is inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
1975 - The New Orleans Superdome as officially opened when the Saints played the Houston Oilers in exhibition football. The new Superdome cost $163 million to build.
1988 - Wayne Gretzky of the Edmonton Oilers was traded to the Los Angeles Kings. The trade was at Gretzky's request. He was sent to the Kings with Mike Krushelnyski and Marty McSorley. Edmonton received Jimmy Carson, Martin Gelina, three first-round draft picks and cash.
1990 - The NHL approved the sale of the Minnesota North Stars by George and Gordon Gund. The Gunds were granted the rights to a Bay Area team that could begin play in October 1991. The team was the San Jose Sharks.
2002 - Barry Bonds of the San Francisco Giants hits his 600th career home run.
2012 - Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt becomes the first track and field athlete to win both the 100 meter and 200 meter dashes in consecutive Olympic Games.
2012 - The U.S. women's soccer team defeats Japan 2-1 to win the gold medal at the Summer Games in London.
2012 - Shannon Eastin became the first female to officiate an NFL game when she worked as a line judge in a preseason game between the San Diego Chargers and the Green Bay Packers.
2016 - At the Rio Games, Michael Phelps earned the 20th and 21st Olympic gold medals of his career as he won the 200-meter butterfly and anchored the United States to victory in the 4x200 freestyle relay.
2022 - Tennis star Serena Williams announces her intention to retire from competition.
1854 - Henry David Thoreau's "Walden," recounting his experiment in solitary life on the shores of Massachusetts' Walden Pond, was published.
1934 - President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed an executive order nationalizing silver.
1944- 258 African-American sailors based at Port Chicago, California, refused to load a munitions ship following a cargo vessel explosion that killed 320 men, many of them Black.
1945 - The United States detonated a nuclear bomb over Nagasaki, Japan during World War II, killing an estimated 74,000 people, three days following the atomic bombing of Hiroshima.
1965 - Singapore proclaimed its independence from Malaysia.
1974 - Vice President Gerald Ford is sworn in as the 38th president of the United States following the resignation of President Richard Nixon.
1982 - A federal judge in Washington ordered John W. Hinckley Jr., who'd been acquitted of shooting President Ronald Reagan and three others by reason of insanity, committed to a mental hospital.
1988 - President Ronald Reagan nominated Lauro Cavazos to be secretary of education; Cavazos became the first Hispanic to serve in the Cabinet.
1995 - Jerry Garcia, lead singer and guitarist of the Grateful Dead, died of a heart attack at age 53.
2004 - Oklahoma City bombing conspirator Terry Nichols, addressing a court for the first time, asked victims of the blast for forgiveness as a judge sentenced him to 161 consecutive life sentences.
2013 - President Barack Obama signed into law a measure restoring lower interest rates for student loans.
2014 - Michael Brown Jr., a Black 18-year-old, was shot to death by a police officer following an altercation in Ferguson, Missouri; Brown's death led to sometimes-violent protests in Ferguson and other U.S. cities, spawning a national "Black Lives Matter" movement.
2018 - Vice President Mike Pence announced plans for a new, separate U.S. Space Force as a sixth military service by 2020.
Birthdays
32 - Alexa Bliss (professional wrestler)
33 - Adelaide Kane (actress)
38 - Anna Kendrick (actress)
40 - Ashley Johnson (actress)
47 - Jessica Capshaw (actress)
50 - Kevin McKidd (actor)
51 - Liz Vassey (actress)
52 - Nikki Schieler Ziering (actress)
53 - Thomas Lennon (actor)
53 - Chris Cuomo (TV host)
53 - Rod Brind'Amour (hockey player)
55 - Eric Bana (actor)
55 - Gillian Anderson (actress)
56 - Deion Sanders (football player/baseball player/football coach)
59 - Hoda Kotb (TV host)
59 - Brett Hull (hockey player)
65 - Amanda Bearse (actress)
66 - Melanie Griffith (actress)
68 - Doug Williams (football player)
71 - John Cappelletti (football player)
76 - Barbara Mason (singer)
79 - Sam Elliott (actor)
85 - Rod Laver (tennis player)
95 - Bob Cousy (basketball player)
===============================
Today in Sports History - August 9
1936 - Jesse Owens became the first American to win four gold medals in one Olympics.
1971 - Satchel Paige is inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
1975 - The New Orleans Superdome as officially opened when the Saints played the Houston Oilers in exhibition football. The new Superdome cost $163 million to build.
1988 - Wayne Gretzky of the Edmonton Oilers was traded to the Los Angeles Kings. The trade was at Gretzky's request. He was sent to the Kings with Mike Krushelnyski and Marty McSorley. Edmonton received Jimmy Carson, Martin Gelina, three first-round draft picks and cash.
1990 - The NHL approved the sale of the Minnesota North Stars by George and Gordon Gund. The Gunds were granted the rights to a Bay Area team that could begin play in October 1991. The team was the San Jose Sharks.
2002 - Barry Bonds of the San Francisco Giants hits his 600th career home run.
2012 - Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt becomes the first track and field athlete to win both the 100 meter and 200 meter dashes in consecutive Olympic Games.
2012 - The U.S. women's soccer team defeats Japan 2-1 to win the gold medal at the Summer Games in London.
2012 - Shannon Eastin became the first female to officiate an NFL game when she worked as a line judge in a preseason game between the San Diego Chargers and the Green Bay Packers.
2016 - At the Rio Games, Michael Phelps earned the 20th and 21st Olympic gold medals of his career as he won the 200-meter butterfly and anchored the United States to victory in the 4x200 freestyle relay.
2022 - Tennis star Serena Williams announces her intention to retire from competition.
