EVENTS
- 1786 – Shays’ Rebellion began in Massachusetts as ex-Revolutionary War Captain Daniel Shays led an armed mob. The rebellion prevented the Northampton Court from holding a session in which debtors, mostly poor ex-soldier farmers, were to be tried and likely put in prison. Following this, in September, Shays’ troops prevented Supreme Court sessions at Springfield, Massachusetts. Early in 1787, they attacked the Federal arsenal at Springfield, but were soon routed and fled. Shays was sentenced to death but was pardoned in 1788.
- 1864 – General William T. Sherman leads Union troops in an assault on Atlanta, Georgia.
- 1897 – Thomas Edison patents the movie projector.
- 1957 – Federation of Malaya gains independence. The Federation, now known as Malaysia gained its independence from the British. The Southeast Asian country, which was one of the world’s largest producer of rubber, came under British rule in the late 18th century.
- 1980 – Poland forms the Solidarity trade union.
- 1991 – Uzbekistan declares its independence from the Soviet Union. The Central Asian country had become a part of the Russian Empire in the 19th century, and was made part of the Soviet Union as the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic in 1924. The country celebrates September 1 as its Independence Day.
- 1994 – Russian Troops Leave Estonia 3 years after Estonia declared independence from the Soviet Union. USSR had occupied the Baltic country in 1944, during the Second World War. Many Western countries never recognized the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic, which was first established in 1940. Between 1941 and 1944, Nazi Germany occupied the country.
- 1998 – North Korea announces the launch of its first satellite. According to government sources of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, the satellite called Kwangmyongsong-1 was successfully launched into lower Earth orbit. Most space agencies around the world, have not been able to confirm whether the launch was successful.
BIRTHDAYS
- 1870 – Maria Montessori (Italian physician, educator)
- 1928 – James Coburn (Actor)
- 1935 – Frank Robinson (Baseball player)
- 1945 – Van Morrison (Irish singer-songwriter)
- 1945 – Itzhak Perlman (Violinist)
- 1949 – Richard Gere (Actor)
- 1970 – Deborah Gibson (Singer)
- 1972 – Chris Tucker (Actor)
- 1977 – Jeff Hardy (American wrestler, singer, painter, writer)
- 1979 – Yuvan Shankar Raja (Indian composer)
- 1979 – Mickie James (American wrestler, singer)
DEATHS
- 1688 – John Bunyan (English preacher, author)
- 1927 – Andranik Ozanian (Armenian military commander)
- 1973 – John Ford (American director)
- 1985 – Frank Macfarlane Burnet (Australian biologist, Nobel Prize laureate)
- 1997 – Diana, Princess of Wales