August 12

This Day in History

Also on This Day

Lead Story
Skeleton of Tyrannosaurus rex discovered, 1990
American Revolution
Washington anticipates British strategy, 1776
Automotive
"Tucker: The Man & His Dream" debuts, 1988
Civil War
John Hunt Morgan captures a Federal garrison at Gallatin, 1862
Cold War
East Germany begins construction of the Berlin Wall, 1961
Crime
Great Train robber escapes from prison, 1964
Disaster
Russian sub sinks with 118 onboard, 2000
General Interest
King Philip's War ends, 1676
Armistice ends the Spanish-American War, 1898
Soviets test "Layer-Cake" bomb, 1953
Nicklaus sets title record, 1973
JAL air crash, 1985
Hollywood
James Bond creator Ian Fleming dies, 1964
Literary
English poet laureate Robert Southey is born, 1774
Music
The Wizard of Oz movie musical premieres in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, 1939
Old West
Fur trader Manuel Lisa dies, 1820
Sports
Rising NFL star paralyzed by hit, 1978
Vietnam War
Henry Cabot Lodge sworn in as Ambassador to Vietnam, 1965
VC launch new offensive, 1969
World War I
British Parliament passes Defense of the Realm Act , 1914
World War II
Hitler institutes the Mother's Cross, 1938
Roosevelt and Churchill confer, map out short- and long-term goals, 1941

General Interest

Aug 12, 1953:

Soviets test "Layer-Cake" bomb

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Less than one year after the United States tested its first hydrogen bomb, the Soviets detonate a 400-kiloton device in Kazakhstan. The explosive power was 30 times that of the U.S. atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima, and the mushroom cloud produced by it stretched five miles into the sky. Known as the "Layer Cake," the bomb was fueled by layers of uranium and lithium deuteride, a hydrogen isotope. The Soviet bomb was smaller and more portable than the American hydrogen bomb, so its development once again upped the ante in the dangerous nuclear arms race between the Cold War superpowers.

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This Week in History, Aug 12 - Aug 18

Aug 12, 1676
King Philip's War ends
Aug 12, 1898
Armistice ends the Spanish-American War
Aug 12, 1953
Soviets test "Layer-Cake" bomb
Aug 12, 1973
Nicklaus sets title record
Aug 12, 1985
JAL air crash
Aug 13, 1521
Aztec capital falls to Cortés
Aug 13, 1899
Hitchcock born
Aug 13, 1926
Fidel Castro born
Aug 14, 1784
Russians settle Alaska
Aug 14, 1900
Peking relieved by multinational force
Aug 15, 1057
Malcolm slays Macbeth
Aug 15, 1914
Panama Canal open to traffic
Aug 15, 1947
India and Pakistan win independence
Aug 15, 1961
Berlin Wall built
Aug 16, 1812
Detroit surrenders without a fight
Aug 16, 1948
Babe Ruth dies
Aug 16, 1972
Moroccan king survives attack by own air force
Aug 16, 1977
Elvis Presley dies
Aug 17, 1943
Patton wins race to Messina
Aug 17, 1978
Balloon crosses the Atlantic
Aug 17, 1987
Hitler's last living henchman dies
Aug 17, 1999
Deadly earthquake strikes Turkey
Aug 18, 1227
Genghis Khan dies
Aug 18, 1590
Roanoke Colony deserted
Aug 18, 1920
Woman suffrage amendment ratified
Aug 18, 1963
Meredith graduates from Ole Miss

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