On This Day in History – November 3

Major Events

1. 1493 – Christopher Columbus sights the Caribbean island of Dominica during his second voyage.
2. 1534 – The English Parliament passes the Act of Supremacy, recognizing Henry VIII as head of the Church of England.
3. 1839 – The first Opium War begins between Britain and China.
4. 1903 – Panama declares independence from Colombia with U.S. support.
5. 1911 – Chevrolet officially enters the U.S. automobile market, founded by Louis Chevrolet and William C. Durant.
6. 1913 – The United States introduces its first modern income tax following ratification of the 16th Amendment.
7. 1936 – President Franklin D. Roosevelt is re-elected in a landslide victory.
8. 1957 – The Soviet Union launches Sputnik 2 carrying Laika into orbit (commonly noted on Nov 2–3 by timezone).
9. 1964 – Lyndon B. Johnson defeats Barry Goldwater in a U.S. presidential landslide.
10. 1973 – NASA launches Mariner 10 to study Mercury, the first mission to visit that planet.
11. 1979 – Iran seizes the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, taking 52 Americans hostage.
12. 1992 – Bill Clinton is elected the 42nd President of the United States.
13. 2014 – One World Trade Center opens in New York City, replacing the Twin Towers as the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere.

Famous Birthdays

1. William Cullen Bryant (1794–1878) – American poet and journalist.
2. Stephen Austin (1793–1836) – Known as the “Father of Texas.”
3. Walker Evans (1903–1975) – American photographer famed for Depression-era portraits.
4. Charles Bronson (1921–2003) – American actor known for Death Wish.
5. Michael Dukakis (born 1933) – Former Governor of Massachusetts and 1988 U.S. presidential candidate.
6. Roseanne Barr (born 1952) – American comedian and actress.
7. Dennis Miller (born 1953) – American comedian and political commentator.
8. Kate Capshaw (born 1953) – American actress and wife of Steven Spielberg.
9. Adam Ant (born 1954) – British singer and musician.
10. Dolph Lundgren (born 1957) – Swedish actor and martial artist.
11. Colin Kaepernick (born 1987) – American football player and activist.
12. Kendall Jenner (born 1995) – American model and television personality.

Notable Deaths

1. Annie Oakley (1860–1926) – American sharpshooter and performer.
2. H.W. Brands (1844–1920) – British engineer and inventor.
3. Wilhelm Reich (1897–1957) – Austrian psychoanalyst and author.
4. Jean-Baptiste Lully (1632–1687) – French composer and conductor.
5. Henri Matisse (1869–1954) – French painter and sculptor.
6. William Styron (1925–2006) – American novelist, author of Sophie’s Choice.
7. Ram Vilas Paswan (1946–2020) – Indian politician and Union Minister.
8. Bobby Heenan (1944–2017) – American wrestling manager and commentator.
9. Y. A. Tittle (1926–2017) – American Hall of Fame football quarterback.

Holidays

• Independence Day (Dominica) – Celebrates the nation’s independence from the United Kingdom in 1978.
• Culture Day (Japan) – Promotes peace, culture, and academic freedom.
• Victory Day (Maldives) – Commemorates the 1988 victory over mercenaries attempting to overthrow the government.
• Sandwich Day (USA) – Honors the invention of the sandwich and encourages creative lunch choices.

Fun Facts

1. The sandwich is named after John Montagu, the 4th Earl of Sandwich, who popularized it in the 18th century.
2. On this day in 1903, Panama declared independence thanks to U.S. naval intervention.
3. NASA’s Mariner 10 mission became the first to visit Mercury after launching on November 3, 1973.
4. One World Trade Center officially opened on November 3, 2014, standing 1,776 feet tall.
5. Japan’s Culture Day is one of the few national holidays dedicated to art, literature, and science.