On August 15th...

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Feast of the Assumption of the Virgin

1040 King Duncan I of Scotland was killed in battle.

1057 Macbeth, King of Scotland, died.

1457 The earliest dated book, "Mainz Psalter," was completed.

1519 Conquistador Pedro Arias Dávilla founded what is now Panama City, Panama.

1534 Ignatius of Loyola formed the Society of Jesuits.

1537 Asunción, Paraguay was founded.

1540 Arequipa, Peru, was founded.

1620 The Mayflower set sail from Southampton, England, with 102 Pilgrims.

1658 France, Sweden, Bavaria, Brunswick, Munster, and Hessen-Kassel formed the Confederation of the Rhine.

1769 Napoleon Bonaparte, Emperor of France, was born.

1771 Scottish poet and historical novelist Sir Walter Scott was born.

1785 English essayist Thomas De Quincy was born.

1796 Botanist John Torrey was born.

1806 The first stone of the Arc de Triomphe was laid.

1812 Indians massacred soldiers and settlers of Fort Dearborn (now Chicago).

1824 Freed American slaves formed the country of Liberia.

1845 English painter Walter Crane was born.

1848 M. Waldo Hanchett patented the dental chair.

1858 The cornerstone of Saint Patrick's Cathedral was laid in New York City.

1867 The Representation of the People Act extended suffrage in the United Kingdom.

1869 Moina Belle Michael, creator of the Memorial Poppy, was born.

1877 Joshua Lionel Cowen, inventor of the Lionel Trains, was born.

1879 Actress Ethel Barrymore was born.

1883 Sculptor Ivan Mestrovic was born.

1888 Adventurer Thomas Edward Lawrence (Lawrence of Arabia) was born.

1891 San Sebastian Church, the first all-steel church in Asia, was officially inaugurated and blessed in Manila, Philippines.

1900 The Empress of China, her family, and court retainers fled Peking ahead of foreign troops.

1906 The first freight delivery tunnel system began operating beneath Chicago, Illinois.

1911 Procter & Gamble unveiled its Crisco shortening.

1912 Television chef Julia Child was born.

1914 The Panama Canal opened to traffic.
1914 A servant of Frank Lloyd Wright set fire to the architect's home, killing 7 persons in the process.

1920 Polish troops defeated Soviet troops at the Battle of Warsaw.

1925 Norway annexed Spitsbergen.

1935 Aviator Wiley Post and humorist Will Rogers were killed in a plane crash.

1939 The film "The Wizard of Oz" premiered.

1944 An Allied air raid on a train in the Netherlands killed 32 persons.

1947 India gained its independence from Great Britain.

1948 The Republic of Korea (South Korea) was proclaimed.

1950 Sukarno proclaimed the Unitary Republic of Indonesia and became its first President.
1950 Anne, Princess Royal of Great Britain, was born.

1954 Alfredo Stroessner named himself President of Paraguay.

1957 The Distant Early Warning (DEW) radar system was completed.

1960 The Republic of the Congo gained its independence from France.
1960 Prince Suvanna Phuma formed a new Laotian cabinet after rebellious army units forced the resignation of Premier Tiao Somsanith.

1969 The Woodstock Music and Art Fair opened.

1971 Bahrain gained independence from the United Kingdom.

1975 A military coup led by Khondakar Moustaque Ahmed overthrew the government of Bangladesh.

1979 The film "Apocalypse Now" was released.

1982 Equatorial Guinea adopted a constitution.

1995 John Cameron Swayze, radio and television news personality, died.

1999 Tiger Woods won the PGA Championship.
1999 Baseball player Pee Wee Reese died.

2004 Vijay Singh won the PGA Championship.

2005 Phil Mickelson won the PGA Championship.

2007 A magnitude 8.0 earthquake off the coast of Peru killed 514 persons and injured 1,090.

2010 Political columnist James J. Kilpatrick died.

2017 A falling tree killed 13 and injured 49 at a religious festival in Funchal, Madeira.

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This page was last updated on August 15, 2018.