TODAY IN HISTORY

THURSDAY AUG 19, 2021

1934

A plebiscite in Germany approved the vesting of sole executive power in Adolf Hitler.

1807

Robert Fulton’s North River Steamboat arrived in Albany, two days after leaving New York.

1812

The USS Constitution defeated the British frigate HMS Guerriere off Nova Scotia during the War of 1812, earning the nickname “Old Ironsides.”

1814

During the War of 1812, British forces landed at Benedict, Maryland, with the objective of capturing Washington D.C.

1848

The New York Herald reported the discovery of gold in California.

1909

The first automobile races were run at the just-opened Indianapolis Motor Speedway; the winner of the first event was auto engineer Louis Schwitzer, who drove a Stoddard-dayton touring car twice around the 2.5-mile track at an average speed of 57.4 mph.

1942

During World War II, about 6,000 Canadian and British soldiers launched a disastrous raid against the Germans at Dieppe, France, suffering more than 50-percent casualties.

1955

Torrential rains caused by Hurricane Diane resulted in severe flooding in the northeastern U.S., claiming some 200 lives.

1960

A tribunal in Moscow convicted American U2 pilot Francis Gary Powers of espionage.

1974

U.S. Ambassador Rodger P. Davies was fatally wounded by a bullet that penetrated the American embassy in Nicosia, Cyprus, during a protest by Greek Cypriots.

1980

301 people aboard a Saudi Arabian L-1011 died as the jetliner made a fiery emergency return to the Riyadh airport.