TODAY IN HISTORY

On Sept. 9, 1776, the second Continental Congress made the term “United States” official, replacing “United Colonies.”

Also on this date In 1942,

during World War II, a Japanese plane launched from a submarine off the Oregon coast dropped a pair of incendiary bombs in a failed attempt at igniting a massive forest fire; it was the first aerial bombing of the U.S. mainland by a foreign power.

In 1948,

the People’s Democratic Republic of Korea (North Korea) was declared.

In 1956,

Elvis Presley made the first of three appearances on “The Ed Sullivan Show.”

In 1971,

prisoners seized control of the maximum-security Attica Correctional Facility near Buffalo, New York, beginning a siege that ended up claiming 43 lives.

In 1991,

boxer Mike Tyson was indicted in Indianapolis on a charge of raping Desiree Washington, a beauty pageant contestant. (Tyson was convicted and ended up serving three years of a six-year prison sentence.)

In 2013,

four days of vehicular gridlock began near the George Washington Bridge when two of three approach lanes from Fort Lee, New Jersey, were blocked off; the traffic jam was later blamed on loyalists to New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie over the refusal of Fort Lee Mayor Mark Sokolich to endorse Christie for re-election. (Two political insiders were convicted for their roles in the closure; the Supreme Court later threw out the convictions.)

In 2014,

Apple unveiled its longanticipated smartwatch as well as the next generation of its iPhone.

In 2016,

Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, speaking at an LGBT fundraiser in New York City, described half of Republican Donald Trump’s supporters as “a basket of deplorables,” a characterization for which she would end up expressing regret.

Ten years ago:

A natural gas pipeline explosion killed eight people and destroyed dozens of homes in the San Francisco suburb of San Bruno, California.

Five years ago:

New York became the first U.S. city to require salt warnings on chain-restaurant menus.

One year ago:

President Donald Trump said peace talks with the Taliban were now “dead,” two days after he abruptly canceled a secret meeting he had arranged with Taliban and Afghan leaders.

AP Inmates at Attica State Prison in Attica, New York, raise their fists in a show of unity after prisoners seized control of the prison on Sept. 9, 1971.