History Today

Hello, and welcome to This Day in History. Here’s what happened on June 15th. He’s known as the father of our country, but George Washington was a retired British soldier managing a Virginia plantation until this day in 1775, when he was appointed to lead the Continental Army. In a letter he wrote to Martha, Washington predicted he’d be home in a few months. Instead he served in the field for more than 8 years before returning victorious to Mount Vernon.

Hello, and welcome to This Day in History. Here’s what happened on June 14th. Ever since June 14th was officially established as Flag Day by President Woodrow Wilson in 1916, the Stars and Stripes have been flown over all public buildings on this day. It’s also the anniversary of the day in 1777 when Congress took a break from debating the Articles of Confederation to decide on a new flag.

Hello, and welcome to This Day in History. Here’s what happened on June 13th. On this day in 323, one of history’s greatest military minds, the Macedonian leader Alexander the Great, died at the age of 33. Alexander led his first troops into combat when he was just 16 years old, and at 18, he commanded the lion’s share of his father’s forces as they brought most of Greece under Macedonian rule.

Hello, and welcome to This Day in History. Here’s what happened on June 12th. “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall.” Those are some of the most famous words in presidential history, and Ronald Reagan said them as part of a speech he gave in West Berlin on this day in 1987. Happily for Berliners, the speech foreshadowed events to come: Two years later, East and West Germans did in fact break down the infamous barrier between East and West Berlin.

Hello, and welcome to This Day in History. Here’s what happened on June 11th. You might be a child of the 80s if you dreamed about having a cuddly alien with a glowing finger all your own. E.T. : the Extra-Terrestrial, directed by the then-34-year-old director Steven Spielberg, premiered on this day in 1982. E.T. told the story of a wise alien stranded on Earth who enlists the help of a little boy named Eliot to get back to his home planet.

Hello, and welcome to This Day in History. Here’s what happened on June 10th. The addiction recovery program Alcoholics Anonymous has more than 2 million members in more than 110,000 groups around the world. It all started back on this day in 1935, when it was founded in Akron, Ohio, by Bill Wilson and Dr. Robert Smith, two recovering alcoholics. AA uses a 12-step rehabilitation program that has helped millions of people stop drinking.

Hello, and welcome to This Day in History. Here’s what happened on June 9th. With the 152nd running of New York’s Belmont Stakes postponed to June 20th due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we look back to this day in 1973, and one of the biggest days in Belmont--and horse racing--history. That’s when Secretariat--known as Big Red for his stunning red coat--won his historic Triple Crown victory, breaking a 25-year Triple Crown drought.

Hello, and welcome to This Day in History. Here’s what happened on June 8th. LIfe during the COVID-19 pandemic might just feel like a chapter out of a dystopian novel. One of the masterpieces of the genre--George Orwell’s 1984--was published on this day in 1949. The novel’s all-seeing leader, known as “Big Brother,” has become a universal symbol for intrusive government and oppressive bureaucracy.

Hello, and welcome to This Day in History. Here’s what happened on June 7th. Alaska’s Denali National Park recently reopened to the public. At the heart of the park is Denali, formerly known as Mount McKinley, the highest point in North America at more than 20,000 feet above sea level. On this day in 1913, an expedition led by Alaskan missionary Hudson Stark became the first to reach Denali’s south peak.

Hello, and welcome to This Day in History. Here’s what happened on June 6th. It was the defining moment of a generation--on this day in 1944, General Dwight Eisenhower led Allied forces in the D-Day invasion of France, beginning the liberation of Europe from Nazi Germany during World War II.