August 9 in history — What Happened Today in History

As a direct result of the Watergate scandal, Richard Nixon becomes the first president of the United States to resign from office. Vice President Gerald Ford becomes president.

Mars 7 is launched from the USSR.

The Troubles: In Northern Ireland, the British authorities launch Operation Demetrius. The operation involves the mass arrest and internment without trial of individuals suspected of being affiliated with the Irish Republican Army (PIRA). Mass riots follow, and thousands of people flee or are forced out of their homes.

LANSA Flight 502 crashes after takeoff from Alejandro Velasco Astete International Airport in Cusco, Peru, killing 99 of the 100 people on board, as well as two people on the ground.

Tate–LaBianca murders: Followers of Charles Manson murder pregnant actress Sharon Tate (wife of Roman Polanski), coffee heiress Abigail Folger, Polish actor Wojciech Frykowski, men's hairstylist Jay Sebring and recent high-school graduate Steven Parent.

The State of Singapore separates from the Malaysian federation due to a heated ideological conflict between their ruling parties.[citation needed][needs copy edit]

South Kasai secedes from the Congo.

World War II: Nagasaki is devastated when an atomic bomb, Fat Man, is dropped by the United States B-29 Bockscar. Thirty-five thousand people are killed outright, including 23,200–28,200 Japanese war workers, 2,000 Korean forced workers, and 150 Japanese soldiers.

World War II: The Red Army invades Japanese-occupied Manchuria.

The United States Forest Service and the Wartime Advertising Council release posters featuring Smokey Bear for the first time.

World War II: Continuation War: The Vyborg–Petrozavodsk Offensive, the largest offensive launched by Soviet Union against Finland during the Second World War, ends to a strategic stalemate. Both Finnish and Soviet troops at the Finnish front dig to defensive positions, and the front remains stable until the end of the war.

World War II: Battle of Savo Island: Allied naval forces protecting their amphibious forces during the initial stages of the Battle of Guadalcanal are surprised and defeated by an Imperial Japanese Navy cruiser force.

Dmitri Shostakovich's 7th symphony premieres in a besieged Leningrad.

Summer Olympics: Jesse Owens wins his fourth gold medal at the games.

A train robbery takes place in Kakori, near Lucknow, India, by the Indian independence revolutionaries, against the British government.

The first Boy Scout encampment concludes at Brownsea Island in southern England.

Edward VII and Alexandra of Denmark are crowned King and Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.

The first International Congress of Mathematicians is held in Zürich, Switzerland.

Thomas Edison receives a patent for a two-way telegraph.

American Indian Wars: Battle of the Big Hole: A small band of Nez Percé Indians clash with the United States Army.

American Civil War: Battle of Cedar Mountain: At Cedar Mountain, Virginia, Confederate General Stonewall Jackson narrowly defeats Union forces under General John Pope.

Åland War: The Battle of Suomenlinna begins.

American Transcendentalist philosopher Henry David Thoreau publishes his memoir Walden.

The Webster–Ashburton Treaty is signed, establishing the United States–Canada border east of the Rocky Mountains.

Louis Philippe becomes the king of the French following abdication of Charles X.

American Indian Wars: The Creek sign the Treaty of Fort Jackson, giving up huge parts of Alabama and Georgia.

Napoleon annexes Westphalia as part of the First French Empire.

An army under Bernard of Saxe-Weimar defeats imperial troops at the battle of Wittenweiher.

Dipa Karmakar, Indian gymnast

Farahnaz Forotan, Afghan journalist

Alice Barlow, English actress

Alexa Bliss, American bodybuilder and wrestler

Hansika Motwani, Indian actress

İshak Doğan, Turkish footballer

Sarah McBride, American LGBT activist and US Representative

Stuart McInally, Scottish rugby player

Brice Roger, French skier

D'Arcy Short, Australian cricketer

Bill Skarsgård, Swedish actor

Jason Heyward, American baseball player

Stefano Okaka, Italian footballer

J. F. Ade Ajayi, Nigerian historian and academic (born 1929)

Andriy Bal, Ukrainian footballer and coach (born 1958)

Arthur G. Cohen, American businessman and philanthropist, co-founded Arlen Realty and Development Corporation (born 1930)

Ed Nelson, American actor (born 1928)

Harry Elliott, American baseball player and coach (born 1923)

Eduardo Falú, Argentinian guitarist and composer (born 1923)

William Lynch, Jr., American lawyer and politician (born 1947)

Carl Davis, American record producer (born 1934)

Gene F. Franklin, American engineer, theorist, and academic (born 1927)

Al Freeman, Jr., American actor, director, and educator (born 1934)

David Rakoff, Canadian-American actor and journalist (born 1964)

Carmen Belen Richardson, Puerto Rican-American actress (born 1930)

Mel Stuart, American director and producer (born 1928)