The Space Shuttle Challenger completed its maiden voyage, landing at Edwards Air Force Base
The successful mission lasted five days and included the first spacewalk of the shuttle program. Tragically, Challenger would be destroyed in a launch...
April 4 in History
Significant events that happened on this day.
Historical Events
1983
1979
The disco group Village People had the #1 song in America with 'In the Navy'
The song was actually used as a recruitment tool by the U.S. Navy, who offered the group a warship for their music video. The collaboration fell throu...
1975
Microsoft was founded by Bill Gates and Paul Allen in Albuquerque, New Mexico
MajorThe company was originally created to develop and sell BASIC interpreters for the Altair 8800 microcomputer. Gates dropped out of Harvard to pursue th...
1973
The World Trade Center officially opened in New York City
The Twin Towers were the tallest buildings in the world at the time of completion. The dedication ceremony was attended by 2,000 guests despite bomb t...
1968
Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee
MajorThe civil rights leader was shot while standing on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel. His death sparked riots in over 100 American cities and became a...
1964
The Beatles held all top five positions on the Billboard Hot 100 chart
MajorThis unprecedented achievement has never been repeated by any other artist. The songs were 'Can't Buy Me Love,' 'Twist and Shout,' 'She Loves You,' 'I...
1960
The first successful weather satellite, TIROS-1, was launched by NASA
It transmitted the first television pictures of Earth from space, revolutionizing meteorology. The satellite only operated for 78 days but proved the...
1949
NATO was founded when twelve nations signed the North Atlantic Treaty in Washington, D.C.
MajorThe treaty created a defensive alliance that stated an attack on one member would be considered an attack on all. It was the first peacetime military...
1938
A British man won a bet by walking backwards from London to Istanbul
Charles DeVille Wells wagered he could walk the entire 1,500-mile journey in reverse and completed it in 60 days. He wore special glasses with rear-vi...
1887
A woman named Susanna M. Salter became the first female mayor in the United States
She was elected mayor of Argonia, Kansas, after her name was placed on the ballot as a prank by men who opposed women's suffrage. She won by a two-thi...
1884
A pickpocket stole the original Coca-Cola formula from inventor John Pemberton's pharmacy
This bizarre incident forced Pemberton to recreate the formula from memory, potentially creating the 'secret recipe' mystery that persists today. The...
1850
The city of Los Angeles was officially incorporated with a population of just 1,610 people
At the time, it was a dusty frontier town in the newly admitted state of California. The city grew slowly at first but exploded after the arrival of t...
1818
Congress approved the design of the American flag with 13 stripes and one star for each state
The Flag Act of 1818 standardized the flag design after several states had been added since the original 13 colonies. It specified that new stars woul...
1581
Francis Drake completed his circumnavigation of the globe and was knighted by Queen Elizabeth I
MajorDrake became the first Englishman to sail around the world, a journey that took nearly three years. Queen Elizabeth came aboard the Golden Hind to kni...
Fun Facts from April 4
1995Technology
1968Entertainment