1783 – Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier makes the first tethered balloon ascent
1877 – First session of the US 45th Congress (1877-79) convenes in Washington, D.C.
1919 – Fourteen horses begin a 300-mile race from Vermont to Massachusetts for a $1,000 prize
1940 – Heavy German air raid on London kills 400 people
1967 – The Motherland Calls, a monumental statue commemorating the Battle of Stalingrad, is completed in Volgograd, Russia, and is then the world’s tallest statue, designed by Yevgeny Vuchetich
1968 – Al Oerter of the US wins the men’s discus with an Olympic record of 64.78 m at the Mexico City Games, achieving his unprecedented fourth consecutive Olympic discus title
1970 – Anwar Sadat is elected as the third President of Egypt, succeeding the late Gamal Abdel Nasser
1987 – Lanford Wilson’s play “Burn This” premieres in New York City