Today in News History

On July 4, several notable moments in the history of News stand out. In 1845, Henry David Thoreau moves into a small cabin on Walden Pond in Concord, Massachusetts. Thoreau's account of his two years there, Walden, will become a touchstone of the environmental movement. In 1863, American Civil War: Retreat from Gettysburg: The Confederate Army of Northern Virginia under Robert E. Lee withdraws from the battlefield after losing the Battle of Gettysburg, signaling an end to his last invasion of the North. In 1881, Ulysses S. Grant III, American general (died 1968) was born. In 1913, President Woodrow Wilson addresses American Civil War veterans at the Great Reunion of 1913. In 1920, Paul Bannai, American politician (died 2019) was born. In 1951, William Shockley announces the invention of the junction transistor. In 1977, The George Jackson Brigade plants a bomb at the main power substation for the Washington state capitol in Olympia, in solidarity with a prison strike at the Walla Walla State Penitentiary Intensive Security Unit. In 1982, Space Shuttle program: Columbia lands at Edwards Air Force Base at the end of the program's final test flight, STS-4. President Ronald Reagan declares the Space Shuttle to be operational. In 2009, The Statue of Liberty's crown reopens to the public after eight years of closure due to security concerns following the September 11 attacks. In 2024, The Labour Party, led by Keir Starmer, wins a landslide majority in the 2024 United Kingdom general election, ending 14 years of Conservative government. Together, these milestones provide historical context for today's news news and ongoing narratives.