Highlights from history: August 9
Highlights from major events that happened around the world on this day in history.
1936: Jesse Owens
In 1936, Jesse Owens won his fourth gold medal at the Berlin Olympics as the United States took first place in the 400-meter relay.
1945: Nagasaki Bombing
On August 9, 1945, three days after the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, Japan, a U.S. B-29 Superfortress code-named Bockscar dropped a nuclear device ("Fat Man") over Nagasaki, killing an estimated 74,000 people.
1969: Manson Family Murders
In 1969, actress Sharon Tate and four other people were found brutally slain at Tate's Los Angeles home; cult leader Charles Manson and a group of his followers were later convicted of the crime.
1974: Gerald R. Ford
In 1974, Vice President Gerald R. Ford became the nation's 38th chief executive as President Richard Nixon's resignation took effect.
1982: John W. Hinckley Jr.
In 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.
1985: Walker Spy Conviction
In 1985, a federal judge in Norfolk, Virginia, found retired Navy officer Arthur J. Walker guilty of seven counts of spying for the Soviet Union. (Walker, who was sentenced to life, died in prison in 2014 at the age of 79.)
1995: Jerry Garcia
In 1995, Jerry Garcia, lead singer of the Grateful Dead, died in Forest Knolls, California, of a heart attack at age 53.
2004: Terry Nichols
In 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.
2009: Danny Fitzsimons
In 2009, Iraqi authorities arrested British contractor Danny Fitzsimons in the shooting deaths of two co-workers in Baghdad's protected Green Zone. (Fitzsimons was convicted by an Iraqi court in 2011 and sentenced to 20 years in prison.)
2009: Guadalajara, Mexico
In 2009, President Barack Obama flew to Guadalajara, Mexico, for a two-day speed summit with Mexican President Felipe Calderon (fay-LEE'-pay kahl-duh-ROHN') and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
2014: Michael Brown Jr.
In 2014, Michael Brown Jr., an unarmed 18-year-old black man, 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: Melania Trump Parents
In 2018, the parents of first lady Melania Trump were sworn in as U.S. citizens; they had been living in the country as permanent residents.
2018: NFL Demonstrations
In 2018, player demonstrations again took place at several early NFL preseason games, with two Philadelphia Eagles players raising their fists during the national anthem.
2018: SoCal Holy Fire
In 2018, evacuation orders expanded to 20,000 as a wildfire that had been intentionally set moved perilously close to homes in Southern California.
2018: Space Force
In 2018, Vice President Mike Pence announced plans for a new, separate U.S. Space Force as a sixth military service by 2020.
