Todays History

East Germany closes the border between the eastern and western sectors of Berlin top prevent attempts to escape to the West.

Isaac Singer is given a patent for his sewing machine.

The first prisoners arrive at the prison on Alcatraz Island.

The Swedish warship Vasa sinks in the Stockholm harbor after only about 20 minutes of being launched.

Betty Boop makes her debut in Dizzy Dishes.

The “8888 Uprising” takes place in Burma.

The Iraqi government kils over 3000 Assyrians in the village of Simele. The day becomes Assyrian Martyrs Day.

The Soviet Union illegally annexes Estonia.

The Mayflower departs from Southampton, England on its first try to reach North America.

The Greenwich foot tunnel that goes under the River Thames opens.