Portal:United States/Anniversaries/April/April 4
- 1818 – Congress adopts the flag of the United States with 13 red and white stripes and one star for each state (then 20).
- 1841 – William Henry Harrison (pictured) dies of pneumonia, becoming the first President to die in office, and President with the shortest term served.
- 1887 – Argonia, Kansas elects Susanna M. Salter as the first female mayor in the United States.
- 1949 – Twelve nations, led by the United States, sign the North Atlantic Treaty creating the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation.
- 1968 – Martin Luther King Jr. is assassinated by James Earl Ray at a motel in Memphis, Tennessee.
- 1984 – President Ronald Reagan calls for an international ban on chemical weapons.
On this day for the United States
January • February • March • April • May • June • July • August • September • October • November • December
April 4:
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Events
- 1812 - U.S. President James Madison enacted a ninety-day embargo on trade with the United Kingdom.
- 1818 - The United States Congress adopts the flag of the United States with 13 red and white stripes and one star for each state (then 20).
- 1841 - William Henry Harrison dies of pneumonia becoming the first President of the United States to die in office and the one with the shortest term served.
- 1850 - Los Angeles, California is incorporated as a city.
- 1859 - Bryant's Minstrels debut "Dixie" in New York City in the finale of a blackface minstrel show.
- 1865 - American Civil War: A day after Union forces capture Richmond, Virginia, U.S. President Abraham Lincoln visits the Confederate capital.
- 1887 - Argonia, Kansas elects Susanna M. Salter as the first female mayor in the United States.
- 1945 - World War II: American troops liberate Ohrdruf forced labor camp in Germany.
- 1967 - Martin Luther King Jr. delivers his "Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence" speech in New York City's Riverside Church.
- 1968 - Martin Luther King Jr. is assassinated by James Earl Ray at a motel in Memphis, Tennessee.
- 1968 - Apollo program: NASA launches Apollo 6.
- 1969 - Dr. Denton Cooley implants the first temporary artificial heart.
- 1973 - The World Trade Center in New York is officially dedicated.
- 1975 - Microsoft is founded as a partnership between Bill Gates and Paul Allen.
- 1975 - Vietnam War: Operation Baby Lift - A United States Air Force C-5A Galaxy crashes near Saigon, South Vietnam shortly after takeoff, transporting orphans - 172 die.
- 1983 - Space Shuttle Challenger makes its maiden voyage into space (STS-6).
- 1984 - President Ronald Reagan calls for an international ban on chemical weapons.
- 1988 - Governor Evan Mecham of Arizona is convicted in his impeachment trial and removed from office.
- 1991 - Senator John Heinz of Pennsylvania and six others are killed when a helicopter collides with their plane over an elementary school in Merion, Pennsylvania.
- 1994 - Marc Andreessen and Jim Clark found Netscape Communications Corporation under the name "Mosaic Communications Corporation".
- 1996 - Comet Hyakutake was imaged by the USA Asteroid Orbiter Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous.