August 1: Facts & Historical Events On This Day

Kenyan cancer survivors protested in Nairobi.

The demonstration saw many take to the streets, declaring that the country was suffering a national disaster.

The Swedish crown jewels were stolen from a cathedral in broad daylight.

The stolen jewels belonged to the Swedish monarchs who lived in the early 1600s. The thieves escaped on a speedboat.

Authorities blamed climate change for an Anthrax outbreak in the Arctic Circle of Russia.

Female rowing duo Heather Stanning & Helen Glover claimed Team GB’s first Olympic medal at the London Olympics.

The Mississippi River Bridge collapsed during rush hour.

This disaster took thirteen lives and left 145 people injured.

The Petronas Towers opened in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Designed by César Pelli, the building is an impressive 1,483 feet tall.

The US won gold in the first-ever women’s soccer at the Olympics.

Nintendo released “Kirby’s Dream Land” for the Game Boy in North America.

It was the first game in the Kirby series and was re-released on the Nintendo 3DS in 2011.

MTV launched, broadcasting its first music video at 12:01 am.

The first music video played on the iconic channel was the Buggles' "Video Killed the Radio Star."

Formula 1 driver Niki Lauda crashed in the German Grand Prix and was hospitalized with near-fatal burns.

Astronauts on Apollo 15 discovered a rock that could date back to the birth of the moon.

Apollo 15 was the fourth crewed landing on the moon from which core samples were taken. Some of these samples were thought to contain rocks that date back to the origin of the moon's creation.

Anne Frank wrote her last diary entry.

She was arrested three days later, and placed in a concentration camp.

Colorado became the 38th state to join the United States of America.

British scientist Joseph Priestley discovered oxygen by removing it from the air.

This experiment was groundbreaking for understanding what oxygen is and how it works. Priestley isolated oxygen in its gaseous state not only to discover the element oxygen but to understand what it does. Priestley was not the first to experiment with oxygen, as Carl Wilhelm had similar findings the year before. However, his discovery was not published until 1777, making Priestley officially the first person to discover oxygen.

While sailing in the Atlantic Ocean, Christopher Columbus discovered Venezuela, which he called “Isla Santa.”