September This Day in History, Historic Events
What Historic September Events Occurred on Your Birthday?
Our “This Day in History for September” section contains historical September events categorized by month and day. See what happened on your birthday, or any day of the year. Find out what happened on this day in September.
Major Historical September Events
September 1, 1752 – The Liberty Bell arrives in Philadelphia.
September 1, 1830 – “Mary Had a Little Lamb” was published.
September 1, 1878 – Emma M. Nutt becomes the first woman telephone operator.
September 1, 1939 – Germany invades Poland, starting World War II.
September 1, 1995 – Rock and Roll Hall of Fame opens in Cleveland, OH.
September 2, 1666 – The Great Fire of London started. 80% of the city is destroyed.
September 2, 1931 – Bing Crosby makes his solo radio debut.
September 2, 1945 – V-J Day
September 3, 1189 – Richard the Lion-Hearted is crowned King of England at Westminster.
September 3, 1813 – The image of “Uncle Sam“, a symbol of America, was first used.
September 3, 1951 – The TV soap opera Search for Tomorrow premieres on CBS.
September 4, 476- The traditional end of the Western Roman Empire Romulus Augustulus abdicates the throne as Rome is invaded by the forces of Odoacer.
September 4, 1609 – Explorer-navigator Henry Hudson is the first European to discover the island of Manhattan.
September 4, 1833 -Ten-year-old Barney Flaherty becomes the first Newspaper Carrier.
Septmeber 4, 1886 – Apache Chief Geronimo surreders ending the last U.S. – Indain war.
September 4, 1888 – George Eastman received a patent for roll film and trademarked the name “Kodak”.
September 4, 1950 – The comic strip “Beetle Bailey debuts in 12 newspapers.
September 5, 1698 – Russian Czar Peter the Great imposes a tax on beards.
September 5, 1774 – The First Continental Congress assembled in Philadelphia.
September 5, 1836- Sam Houston is elected President of the Republic of Texas.
September 5, 1966 – Jerry Lewis holds his first Muscular Dystrophy Telethon, raising $1 million.
September 6, 1916 – Clarence Saunders opens “Piggly Wiggly”, the first true supermarket in Memphis, TN.
September 6, 1995 – Cal Ripken Jr. broke Lou Gehrig’s baseball Iron Man record by playing in his 2,131st game.
September 6, 1997 – The funeral of Princess Diana is held at Westminster Abbey in London.
September 7, 1921 – The first Miss America beauty Pageant is held in Atlantic City N.J.
September 7, 1936 – The Boulder Dam, later renamed the Hoover Dam, begins operation.
September 7, 1998 – Google was founded by Sergey Brin and Larry Page.
September 8, 1504 – Michelangelo’s Statue of David is unveiled.
September 8, 1921 – Margaret Gorman of Washington, DC was crowned the first Miss America in Atlantic City, NJ.
September 8, 1966 – Star Trek premiered on television. The original series had 80 episodes. See Star Trek Day.
September 8, 1974 – President Gerald R. Ford gives unconditional pardon to Richard Nixon for any crimes related to Watergate. See Pardon Day
September 8, 1977 – Joe Pedott of San Fransisco, CA.manufactures the first Chia Pet. See Chia Pet Day.
September 8, 1986 – The Oprah Winfrey Show premieres on television.
September 9, 1776 – The U.S. Congress officially changed the name of the nation from the United Colonies to The United States of America.
September 9, 1850 – California became the 31st state.
September 9, 1947 – Computer scientist Grace Hopper reports the first computer bug. In this case, it was an actual bug… a moth.
September 9, 1956 – Elvis Presley first appears on the Ed Sullivan Show.
September 10, 1846 – The Sewing Machine is patented. See Sewing Machine Day
September 10, 1953 – Swanson sells the first “TV Dinner”.
September 10, 1955 – Gunsmoke premieres on television. It became TV’s longest-running Western program.
September 10, 1993 – The TV series “X-Files” premiered.
September Historical Events: 911 Remembrance Day, Never Forget
September 11, 1941 – Construction of the Pentagon begins in Arlington, VA.
September 11, 1959 – Congress passes a bill authorizing food stamps for low-income Americans.
September 11, 1962 – The Beatles recorded their first single “Love Me Do”. (1962)
September 11, 1967 – “The “Carol Burnett Show” premieres on television.
September 11, 2001 – Islamic Al-Qaeda militants flew planes into NYC’s twin World Trade Towers and the Pentagon. More on September 911
September 12, 1953 – Future President John F. Kennedy married Jacqueline Bouvier.
September 12, 1949 – The television show “Lassie” premieres.
September 12, 1966 – The television show “The Monkees” premieres, featuring the rock group.
September 12, 1981 – “The Smurfs” animated cartoon series premieres.
September 13, 1788 – New York City becomes the Capitol of the United States. I bet you didn’t know that!
September 13, 1943 – Chiang Kai-Shek became the president of China.
September 13, 1969 – “Scooby-Doo Where Are You?” premieres on television.
September 13, 1985 – Nintendo introduces the first Super Mario game.
September 14, 1716 – The first lighthouse in America is lit in Boston Harbor on Brewster Island.
September 14, 1814 – Francis Scott-Key composed the lyrics to “The Star-Spangled Banner”.
September 14, 1867 – Economist and philosopher Karl Marx produces the first volume of Das Kapital.
September 14, 1938 – The Graf Zepplin II makes its maiden voyage.
September 14, 1972 – “The Waltons” premieres on television.
September 14, 1085 – The TV sitcom “Golden Girls” premieres on NBC.
September 15, 1930 – The first International Bridge Tournament is held in London, England. The U.S. team defeats England.
September 15, 1949 – The Lone Ranger premieres on television. It was originally a radio series.
September 15, 1997 – The domain name “google.com” is registered.
September 15, 2019 – At 97 years old, Norman Lear becomes the oldest person to win an Emmy.
September 16, 1620 – The Mayflower sets sail from Plymouth, England. It carried pilgrims headed to the New World, to escape religious persecution.
September 16, 1630 – The Massachusetts village of Shawmut changes its name to Boston.
September 16, 1782 – The Great Seal of the United States of America was impressed on an official document for the first time.
Septeber 16, 1908 – Carraige maker William C. Durant founds General Motors in Flint, MI.
September 16, 1983 – Arnold Schwarzenegger becomes a U.S. citizen.
September 17, 1972 – Award-winning comedy show M*A*S*H premieres on television.
September 17, 1991 –Home Improvement, with Tim the Tool Man Taylor premieres on television.
September 17, 2010 – After a run of 54 years, the last episode of the soap opera “As the World Turns” airs.
September 18, 1755 – Fort Ticonderoga in New York opens.
September 18, 1793 – President George Washington lays the cornerstone for the Capitol building in Washington, D.C.
September 18, 1947 – U.S. Air Force is established.
September 18, 1965 – The television comedy “I Dream of Jeannie” premieres on NBC.
September 19, 1930 – Chubby Checker’s hit song “The Twist” hits #1 on Billboard’s Top 100 list.
September 19, 1970 – Mary Tyler Moore Show premieres on television.
September 19, 1984 – The UK and China complete a proposed agreement the transfer Hong Kong to China by 1997.
September 20, 1984 – Equal Rights Party nominates the first woman for U.S. President and Vice President.
September 20, 1946 – Winston Churchill argues for a “United States of Europe”. It was an idea before its time.
September 20, 1954 – The first Fortran computer program is run.
September 20, 1973 – Billie Jean King defeats Bobby Riggs in a battle of the sexes tennis match.
September Historical Events - in 1970, MNF Premiered on Television
September 21, 1895 – Duryea Wagon Company, founded by Charles and J. Frank Duryea, becomes America’s first automobile manufacturer.
September 21, 1933 – J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Hobbit” is published in London.
September 21, 1945 – Henry Ford retires from Ford Motor Company.
September 21, 1957 – The television series “Perry Mason” premieres.
September 21, 1970 – Monday Night Football premieres on television.
September 22, 1692 – The last people in the U.S. are hanged for witchcraft in Salem, MA.
September 22, 1862 – President Abraham Lincoln declares the Emancipation Proclamation.
September 22, 1985 – The first Farm Aid concert is held in Champaign, IL.
September 22, 1989 – The television series “Baywatch” premieres.
September 22, 1994 – The television sitcom “Friends’ premieres.
September 22, 1999 – The record for drinking Ketchup belongs to Dustin Phillips (USA). On this day, he drank a 14 oz. bottle of Ketchup through a 1/4″ straw in 33 seconds.
September 23, 1642 – Harvard University’s first commencement
September 23, 1846 – The planet Neptune is first discovered by German astronomer Johann Gottfried Galle.
September 23, 1962 – “The Jetsons” premieres on television.
September 23, 1986 – The U.S. Congress votes to make the rose the national flower. What took them so long!?
September 24, 1493 – With a fleet of 17 ships, Christopher Columbus sets sail on his second expedition to the New World.
September 24, 1742 – Boston’s famous “Faneuil Hall” opens to the public.
September 24, 1934 – 2,500 fans see Babe Ruth’s farewell appearance last Yankee Stadium.
September 24, 1957 – Elvis Presley hit “Jailhouse Rock” is released.
September 24, 1960 – The U.S. Enterprise is launched, the first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier.
September 24, 1964 – “Daniel Boone “premieres on television.
September 24, 2007 – The television comedy series “The Big Bang Theory” premieres.
September 25, 1513 – Vasco Nunez de Balboa discovers the Pacific Ocean. Tell that to Pacific Islanders and a whole bunch of people on the east coast of Asia.
September 25, 1780 – Benedict Arnold joins the British.
September 25, 1789 – The New U.S. Congress proposes the Bill of Rights.
September 25, 1882 – Major League Baseball’s first doubleheader is played between Providence and Worcester.
September 25, 1981 – Sandra Day O’Connor became the first female Supreme Court Justice.
September 25, 2015 – Bruce Jenner officially changes his gender to female, and her name to Caitlyn.
September 26, 1914 – The Federal Trade Commission was established.
September 26, 1960 – The first televised Presidential debate occurs between John F. Kennedy and Richard M. Nixon.
September 26, 1969 – “The Brady Bunch” premieres on television.
September 27, 1789 – The U.S. Postal Service was founded.
September 27, 1825 – The first passenger locomotive is operated by George Stephenson in England.
September 27, 1854 – The passenger steamship SS Arctic sinks in the Atlantic Ocean off Newfoundland. Only 86 of 400 passengers survive.
September 27, 1954 – “The Tonight Show premiers on television with Steve Allen as the first host.
September 28, 1528 – A Spanish fleet sinks off the coast of Florida in a hurricane. About 350 died.
September 28, 1850 – U.S. Navy abolishes flogging as a punishment.
September 28, 1904 – A woman on Fifth Avenue in New York City is arrested for smoking a cigarette in a car.
September 28, 1919 – The Giants beat the Phillies in the fastest baseball game ever played in the majors. it was 51 minutes long.
September 29, 1927 – Telephone service begins between the U.S. and Mexico.
September 29, 1950 – Bell Laboratories invents the telephone answering machine.
September 30, 1902 – Rayon is patented.
September 30, 1982 – The television sitcom “Cheers premieres.
Additional Resources
Famous Birthdays Who else was born on your Birthday? Find out!
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