On This Day in History

July 1

Historical Events

1858 Joint reading of Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace's papers on evolution to the Linnean Society renders audience awestruck and silent.

A lithograph of the Battle of Gettysburg published by Currier & Ives in 1863

1863 Battle of Gettysburg begins in Pennsylvania, Union forces halt Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia.

1867 The Dominion of Canada is formed, comprising the provinces of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario and Quebec, with John A. Macdonald serving as the first Prime Minister.

1916 First day of the Battle of the Somme in World War I: The British Army suffers its worst day, losing 19,240 men.

1997 United Kingdom returns Hong Kong and the New Territories to the People's Republic of China.

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Famous Birthdays

Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz 1646 - 1716 Comte de Rochambeau 1725 - 1807

Estée Lauder 1906 - 2004 Diana Spencer 1961 - 1997

Also Dan Aykroyd (72) and Carl Lewis (63).

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Famous Deaths

Harriet Beecher Stowe 1811 - 1896 Harriet Quimby 1875 - 1912

Also Alice Mary Robertson and Juan Perón.

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Five Miles of Mud Costs a Million Casualties

The Battle of the Somme, which began on this day, left one man dead every five seconds. It was one of the bloodiest conflicts in human history.

Battle of the Somme