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President Truman orders U.S. forces to Korea

Born on This Day

Vera Wang

1949 -

Fashion designer noted for her wedding gowns and haute couture formal wear.

J.J. Abrams

1966 -

Director and producer known for his work in both TV ("Alias" and "Lost") and film ("Star Trek" and "Star Wars" franchises).

Emma Goldman

1869 - 1940

Lithuanian-born anarchist and women's rights advocate whose radical politics led to her deportation from the U.S. in 1919.

Vera WangGetty Images

J.J. AbramsFilmMagic

1970

JUN27

Chicago hosts the first-ever Pride parade, commemorating the one-year anniversary of the Stonewall uprising. The open celebration of LGBTQ+ rights marked a welcome change for a community long forced into the shadows.

Timeline

Also on This Day in History

Discover more of the major events, famous births, notable deaths and everything else history-making that happened on June 27th

James Smithson, founding donor of the Smithsonian Institution, dies

In Genoa, Italy on June 27, 1829, English scientist James Smithson dies after a long illness, leaving behind a will with a peculiar footnote. In the event that his only nephew died without any heirs, Smithson decreed that the whole of his estate would go to “the United States of America, to found at Washington, […]

Religious founder Joseph Smith killed by mob

Joseph Smith, the founder and leader of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (more commonly known as Mormonism), is murdered along with his brother Hyrum when a mob breaks into a jail where they are being held in Carthage, Illinois. Born in Vermont in 1805, Smith claimed in 1823 that he had been […]

Colorado governor orders ‘friendly Indians’ to report to Army forts for sanctuary

On June 27, 1864, Colorado Governor John Evans issues a proclamation warning that all peaceful Native Americans in the region must report to the or risk being attacked, creating the conditions that will lead to the Sand Creek Massacre. Evans’ offer of sanctuary was at best halfhearted. His primary goal in 1864 was to eliminate all […]

First Newbery Medal for children’s literature awarded to Hendrik Willem van Loon

On June 27, 1922, the American Library Association (ALA) awards the first Newbery Medal, honoring the year’s best children’s book, to The Story of Mankind by Hendrik Willem van Loon. The idea for an award honoring outstanding contributions to children’s literature came from Frederic G. Melcher, a former bookseller who in 1918 became an editor […]

British intelligence breaks German “Enigma” key used on the Eastern Front

On June 27, 1941, British cryptologists help break the secret code used by the German army to direct its strategic military operations on the Eastern front in the Soviet Union. British and Polish experts had already broken many of the Enigma codes for the Western front. Enigma was the Germans’ most sophisticated coding machine, necessary […]

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Ebola breaks out in Sudan

A factory storekeeper in the Nzara township of Sudan becomes ill on June 27, 1976. Five days later, he dies, and the world’s first recorded Ebola virus epidemic begins making its way through the area. By the time the epidemic is over, 284 cases are reported, with about half of the victims dying from the […]

Route 66 decertified

After 59 years, the iconic Route 66 enters the realm of history on June 27, 1985, when the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials decertifies the road and votes to remove all its highway signs. Measuring some 2,200 miles in its heyday, Route 66 stretched from Chicago, Illinois to Santa Monica, California, passing […]

Activist Bree Newsome removes Confederate flag from South Carolina State House

On the morning of June 27, 2015, activists posing as joggers signal to one of their comrades that the police have momentarily turned their attention away from the flagpole outside the South Carolina State House. Having received the signal, Brittany “Bree” Newsome scales the pole, takes down the Confederate flag that was flying there and […]

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