Historical Events on August 19

  • 1612: 3 women who hail from the village of Samlesbury, England are put on trial for practicing the dark arts of witchcraft. The trial of these 3 women, who were known as the Samlesbury witches, becomes one of the most famous witch trials in British history.
  • 1666: Rear Admiral Robert Holmes attacks the Dutch island Terschelling during the Second Anglo-Dutch War.
  • 1692: 4 mean and 1 woman are convicted of witchcraft and subsequently executed in Salem, Massachusetts during the Salem Witch Trials.
  • 1782: The Battle of Blue Licks occurs on this day. It is the last major engagement of the American Revolutionary War.
  • 1812: An American frigate known as the USS Constitution defeats the British frigate known as the HMS Guerriere off of the coast of Nova Scotia, Canada.
  • 1854: The U.S Army kills the Lakota Chief known as Conquering Bear. This results in them all being massacred, as well as the beginning of the First Sioux War.
  • 1862: Lakota warriors turn their attack the a settlement known as New Ulm instead of trying to attack the heavily-fortified Fort Ridgely during the American Indian Wars.
  • 1909: the first car race takes place at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
  • 1919: Afghanistan gains its independence from the U.K.
  • 1944: French forces, with the aid of Allied troops, rise up against German forces and become the Liberation of Paris.
  • 1945: Led by Ho Chi Minh, the Viet Minh take power in Hanoi, Vietnam during what became known as the August Revolution.

Famous Birthdays on August 19

  • English author and philosopher Gilbert Ryle is born in 1900.
  • American poet Ogden Nash is born in 1902.
  • American novelists James Gould Cozzens is born in 1903.
  • American singer-songwriter Jimmy Rowles is born in 1918.
  • American publisher Malcolm Forbes is born in 1919.
  • American screenwriter, producer and Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry is born in 1921
  • 42nd President of the United States Bill Clinton is born in 1946.
  • American actor John Stamos is born in 1963.
  • American actor Kevin Dillon is born in 1965.
  • American actress Kyra Sedgwick is born in 1965.