Portal:United States/Anniversaries/August/August 5
- 1861 – In order to help pay for the war effort during the American Civil War, the United States government issues the first income tax as part of the Revenue Act of 1861. The tax took 3% of the incomes of those that earned over $800 a year.
- 1884 – The cornerstone for the Statue of Liberty is laid on Bedloe's Island in New York Harbor.
- 1914 – In Cleveland, Ohio, the first electric traffic light is installed.
- 1930 – Neil Armstrong (pictured), best known for being the first person to set foot on the Moon, is born.
- 1957 – American Bandstand, a musical variety show aimed at teenagers, makes its national debut on ABC television network. The show would run for over 30 years.
- 1963 – The United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union sign a treaty banning the testing of nuclear weapons underwater, in the atmosphere, and in space.
On this day for the United States
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Events
- 1735 – Freedom of the press: New York Weekly Journal writer John Peter Zenger is acquitted of seditious libel against the royal governor of New York, on the basis that what he published was true.
- 1763 – Pontiac's War: Battle of Bushy Run – British forces led by Henry Bouquet defeat Chief Pontiac's Indians at Bushy Run.
- 1812 – War of 1812: Tecumseh's Indian force ambushes Thomas Van Horne's 200 Americans at Brownstone Creek, causing them to flee and retreat.
- 1861 – American Civil War: In order to help pay for the war effort, the United States government issues the first income tax as part of the Revenue Act of 1861 (3% of all incomes over US $800; rescinded in 1872).
- 1861 – The United States Army abolished flogging.
- 1862 – American Civil War: Battle of Baton Rouge – Along the Mississippi River near Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Confederate troops drive Union forces back into the city.
- 1864 – American Civil War: Battle of Mobile Bay begins – At Mobile Bay near Mobile, Alabama, Admiral David Farragut leads a Union flotilla through Confederate defenses and seals one of the last major Southern ports.
- 1882 – Standard Oil of New Jersey is established.
- 1884 – The cornerstone for the Statue of Liberty is laid on Bedloe's Island in New York Harbor.
- 1914 – In Cleveland, Ohio, the first electric traffic light is installed.
- 1957 – American Bandstand, a show dedicated to the teenage "baby–boomers" by playing the songs and showing popular dances of the time, debuts on the ABC television network.
- 1963 – United States, United Kingdom, and Soviet Union sign a nuclear test ban treaty.
- 1964 – Vietnam War: Operation Pierce Arrow – American aircraft from carriers USS Ticonderoga and USS Constellation bomb North Vietnam in retaliation for strikes attacked U.S. destroyers in the Gulf of Tonkin.
- 1969 – Mariner program: Mariner 7 makes its closest fly–by of Mars (3,524 kilometers).
- 1974 – Vietnam War: The U.S. Congress places a $1 billion dollar limit on military aid to South Vietnam.
- 1981 – Ronald Reagan fires 11,359 striking air–traffic controllers who ignored his order for them to return to work.