On this day: August 16th

On this day: August 16th

There are many and several events on this day in history. Read and discover what happened on this day: On this day: August 16th

On this day: August 16th

Events on this day: August 16th

• 1777: British forces are defeated by American troops in the Battle of Bennington, part of the Revolutionary War.
• 1780: The Battle of Camden in South Carolina occurred during the American Revolutionary War. The battle was a big defeat for the Americans, as forces under General Gates were defeated by troops of British General Charles Cornwallis, resulting in 900 Americans killed and 1,000 captured.
• 1858: The first transatlantic telegraph message is sent. The message sent by Britain’s Queen Victoria to American President James Buchanan read, ‘Europe and America are united by telegraphic communication. Glory to God in the highest, on earth peace, goodwill to men.’ The cable, which cut down the time of communication between the two continents, was successful only for a few months. Technical difficulties led to the cable being closed in October of 1858.
• 1896: Gold was discovered in Rabbit Creek, a tributary of the Klondike River in Alaska, resulting in the Great Klondike Gold Rush.
• 1898: Patent for Loop-the-Loop roller coaster is awarded. The United States’ patent office awarded the patent for the loop-the-loop roller coaster to American inventor Edwin Prescott. First installed in Coney Island, New York, the roller coaster was able to carry only 4 people at a time.
• 1930: The first color cartoon with sound is made. It’s called Fiddlesticks.
• 1954: The first issue of “Sports Illustrated” hits the newsstands. The sports magazine, which is famous for its annual swimsuit issue, was not profitable for the first few years of its existence. The boost in spectator sports eventually helped it become successful.
• 1960: Cyprus attains freedom from the British. The Mediterranean island country first came under British control in the early 20th century as a strategic British outpost. In 1925, it was formally added to the British Empire. The London and Zurich Agreements signed in February 1959 gave independence to Cyprus and set up a system of governance based on ethnicity.
• 1960: Joseph Kittinger parachutes from 102,800 feet. He sets three records: high-altitude jump, free-fall, and fastest speed by a human without an aircraft.
• 1987: First day of harmonic convergence. The largest worldwide meditation event lasted for 2 days and was organized by new-age author José Argüelles. The dates for the event were chosen because of their astrological significance—on these days the Sun, the Moon, and 6 of the planets were aligned in a triangular position as seen from the Earth.

Birthdays On this day: August 16th

• 1815: John Bosco (Italian priest, educator)
• 1888: T.E. Lawrence ‘of Arabia’ (1888-1935) was born in Tremadoc, North Wales
• 1913: Menachem Begin (Prime Minister of Israel)
• 1953: Kathy Lee Gifford (TV host)
• 1954: James Cameron (Director of Titanic and Avatar)
• 1958: Madonna (Singer)
• 1960: Timothy Hutton (Actor)
• 1962: Steve Carell (Actor)
• 1980: Vanessa Carlton (Singer)
• 1991: G.E.M. (Hong Kong singer-songwriter, actress)

Deaths On this day: August 16th

• 1938: Robert Johnson (American singer-songwriter, guitarist)
• 1959: William Halsey, Jr. (American Admiral)
• 1977: Elvis Presley (American singer, guitarist, actor)
• 200: Abu Nidal (Palestinian militant leader)
• 2003: Idi Amin (Ugandan dictator)

Read also: On this day: August 15th