Today in History

Today is Wednesday, July 3, the 185th day of 2024. There are 181 days left in the year.

Today’s Highlight in History:

On July 3, 1863, the pivotal three-day Civil War Battle of Gettysburg in Pennsylvania ended in a major victory for the North as Confederate troops failed to breach Union positions during an assault known as Pickett’s Charge.

Also on this date:

In 1775, Gen. George Washington took command of the Continental Army at Cambridge, Massachusetts.

In 1944, during World War II, Soviet forces recaptured Minsk from the Germans.

In 1950, the first carrier strikes of the Korean War took place as the USS Valley Forge and the HMS Triumph sent fighter planes against North Korean targets.

In 1971, singer Jim Morrison of The Doors died in Paris at age 27.

In 1979, Dan White, convicted of voluntary manslaughter in the shooting deaths of San Francisco Mayor George Moscone (mahs-KOH’-nee) and Supervisor Harvey Milk, was sentenced to seven years and eight months in prison.

In 1986, President Ronald Reagan presided over a gala ceremony in New York Harbor that saw the relighting of the renovated Statue of Liberty.

In 1988, the USS Vincennes shot down an Iran Air jetliner over the Persian Gulf, killing all 290 people aboard.

In 2011, Novak Djokovic (NOH’-vak JOH’-kuh-vich) won his first Wimbledon, beating defending champion Rafael Nadal.

In 2012, Andy Griffith who made homespun American Southern wisdom his trademark as the wise sheriff in “The Andy Griffith Show,” died at his North Carolina home at age 86.

Today’s Birthdays: Playwright Tom Stoppard is 87. Attorney Gloria Allred is 83. Actor Kurtwood Smith is 81. Country singer Johnny Lee is 78. Humorist Dave Barry is 77. Actor Betty Buckley is 77. Talk show host Montel Williams is 68. Country singer Aaron Tippin is 66. Rock musician Vince Clarke (Depeche Mode, Yaz, Erasure) is 64. Actor Tom Cruise is 62. Actor Thomas Gibson is 62. Actor Connie Nielsen is 59. Actor Yeardley Smith is 60. Actor-singer Audra McDonald is 54. Hockey Hall of Famer Teemu Selanne is 54. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is 53. Actor Patrick Wilson is 51. Former mixed martial artist Wanderlei Silva is 48. Actor Olivia Munn is 44. Formula One driver Sebastian Vettel is 37. Rock singer-songwriter Elle King is 35.