Discover what happened on February 7 with HISTORY's summaries of major events, anniversaries, famous births and notable deaths.

February 7

Discover what happened on February 7 with HISTORY&#8217;s summaries of major events, anniversaries, famous births and notable deaths.

What Happened on February 7 | HISTORY

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Congress passed the Gulf of Tonkin resolution in 1964, authorizing major U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War. Martin Luther King Jr., won the Nobel Peace Prize, and President Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964. China tested its first atomic bomb, the Beatles made their first appearance on “The Ed Sullivan Show” and Ford unveiled its first Mustang at the New York World’s Fair. Pop-Tarts debuted, while Diet Pepsi bubbled onto the market, the nation’s first mass-distributed diet soda.

1964

1974 was a year of firsts. Richard Nixon, enmeshed in the Watergate scandal, became the first American president to resign from office. Hank Aaron became the first baseball player to top Babe Ruth’s career home run record. Scientists in Ethiopia found the first skeleton of a 3-million-year-old human ancestor that walked upright, while archaeologists in China unearthed an army of more than 8,000 lifesize terracotta warriors. In America, disco fever raged, and Archie Bunker broke TV sitcom ground with his blunt and bigoted take on hot-button social issues. 

1974

1962

1904

1984

After a devastating Windsor Castle fire and assorted family crises, Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II called 1992 her “annus horribilis,” or horrible year. The police beating of Rodney King in Los Angeles sparked one of the worst riots in U.S. history, while exploding sewers in Mexico killed hundreds. On the brighter side, South Africa ended apartheid, the U.S. and Russia declared the Cold War over, Mae Jemison became the first Black woman in space and a big purple dinosaur named Barney hit TV, singing about love, kindness and cleaning up.

1992

2002

In this year, a new armed conflict erupted between England and America—named, simply, the War of 1812. In Europe, French emperor Napoleon invaded Russia, along with the largest army ever assembled, some 600,000 men. In England, a group known as the Luddites attacked textile mills to destroy newfangled industrial machinery, adding a new word to the language for anyone who opposes technological progress. And in a landmark for folklore, German brothers Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm published their first volume of fairy tales.

1812

U.S. President James A. Garfield took the oath of office in March, only to die from an assassin’s bullet six months later. Out West, Indian leader Sitting Bull surrendered to the U.S. Army, while lawmen and cattle rustlers had a 30-second gunfight at the O.K. Corral. In Russia, the assassination of Czar Alexander II led to violent attacks—or “pogroms”—on Russian Jews. Black educator Booker T. Washington founded the Tuskegee Institute, and nurse-humanitarian Clara Barton established the American Red Cross.

1881

The turbulence of 1968 began on New Year’s Day with the Tet Offensive, shocking Americans with the unwinnable realities of the Vietnam War. The assassinations of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy darkened the national mood and deepened domestic unrest. Mass protests erupted around the globe, from Chicago to Prague to France, Mexico and beyond. In space, Apollo 8 orbited the moon, while back on earth, “Laugh-In” topped TV ratings, “Hair” premiered on Broadway and McDonald’s debuted the iconic Big Mac.

1968

The “shot heard round the world”—the opening salvo of the American Revolution, fired at the Battles of Lexington and Concord—got 1775 off with a bang. Before the year was out, the Second Continental Congress had appointed George Washington to command the troops and Benjamin Franklin to run the post office. Meanwhile in France, King Louis XVI was crowned, likely unaware that he’d one day face his own revolution—and the guillotine.

1775

1979

Across the globe, 1917 brought upheaval. Russians overthrew Czar Nicholas II, then staged a second revolution, putting Vladimir Lenin’s Bolsheviks in power and sparking a civil war. The U.S. and China both declared war on Germany, entering World War I in its fourth year. Puerto Ricans gained U.S. citizenship. And as America’s first-ever female congresswoman took office, the push for women’s suffrage intensified, with increased picketing and the arrest of many activists, followed by jailhouse hunger strikes, force feedings and mistreatment.

1917

America’s Founding Fathers decided that one elected civilian—the U.S. president—would lead the executive branch of the federal government, a governmental structure that has remained in place for more than 200 years.

U.S. Presidents

World War I pitted Germany, Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire against Great Britain, the United States, France, Russia, Italy and Japan. New military technology resulted in unprecedented carnage. By the time the war was over and the Allied Powers claimed victory, more than 16 million people—soldiers and civilians alike—were dead.

World War I

The 1970s was an era when the women's rights, gay rights and environmental movements gained momentum. The Vietnam War came to a close, the Watergate scandal led to the resignation of President Richard Nixon, the United States ended direct involvement in the Vietnam War and President Jimmy Carter grappled with an energy crisis, inflation and the Iran Hostage Crisis.

1970s

The Holocaust, during which some 6 million Jews, Gypsies, homosexuals and other people were systematically exterminated by Nazi Germany during World War II, was one of the most horrific war crimes ever committed.

Holocaust

Crime has been a dark and powerful undercurrent in human society throughout history. Uncover the facts behind some of the most daring robberies, brazen scams and brutal murders ever committed.

Crime

The 1990s is often remembered as a decade of relative peace and prosperity: The Soviet Union fell, ending the decades-long Cold War, and the rise of the Internet ushered in a radical new era of communication, business and entertainment. However, the decade was not without violence and tragedy, including the Bosnian genocide, the Rodney King beating and subsequent L.A. Riots, and the bombing of the World Trade Center. The Columbine High School shooting marked a solemn chapter in gun violence, and the devastatingly deadly Oklahoma City bombing by a domestic terrorist followed lethal standoffs between federal agents and armed civilians at Ruby Ridge, Idaho and Waco, Texas.

1990s

In the early 20th century, America was flexing its economic and political muscle on the international stage. The era was defined by the temperance movement, Progressive-era activism, the sinking of the Titanic and World War I.

Early 20th Century U.S.

The Revolutionary War waged by the American colonies against Britain influenced political ideas and revolutions around the globe, as a small fledgling nation won its freedom from the greatest military force of its time.

American Revolution

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History.com Editors

Art history tells the complex story of human civilization through art, literature and design. It ranges from prehistoric art of the Neolithic period through Renaissance masterpieces, Impressionism, Modernism, the Bauhaus and contemporary art.

Art, Literature and Film History

Space exploration, one of the greatest technological achievements in human history, includes the Apollo missions, the Space Shuttles Columbia and Challenger, and people like Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong.

Space Exploration

The Cold War rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union lasted for decades and resulted in anti-communist suspicions and international incidents that led two superpowers to the brink of nuclear disaster.

Cold War

Natural disasters and changes in the environment, such as global warming, the San Francisco Earthquake, Hurricane Katrina, the Galveston Hurricane, the Krakatoa eruption and others, have profoundly shaped human history. Explore both the sudden and long-term impacts of natural and human-made disasters.

This Day In History: February 7

The Beatles arrive in New York

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Guests watch Mel Brooks’ “Blazing Saddles” movie premiere from horseback

Full U.S.‑Cuba embargo is announced

This Day in History Video: What Happened on February 7

The Great Baltimore Fire begins

Navy captain becomes the first human to perform an untethered space walk

European Union treaty signed

President George W. Bush announces plan for “faith‑based initiatives”

Earthquake causes fluvial tsunami in the Mississippi River

Criminal case ends in plea bargain—one of the first

Mysterious murder, later solved by forensic evidence

Benjamin Franklin publishes “An Imaginary Speech”

Josef Mengele, known as the “Angel of Death,” dies

German sub sinks Scottish passenger ship SS California

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