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August 18th Major News Events

  1. 1920 The 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution ratified
  2. 1931 China Yangtze River Flood
  3. 1937 Toyota Motor Company Founded
  4. 1963 U.S.A. James Meredith
  5. 2006 China 60hr work week at Apple iPod plant

Find More Details for What happened 18th August This Day in History on your birthday

18 Aug, 1920 19th Amendment

1920 : The 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution proposed on June 4th, 1919 and ratified when Tennessee became the 36th state to approve it on this day in history guaranteeing women the right to vote, the fight for this right by the women's suffragette movement for 10 years had forced this change.

18 Aug, 1915 Holland Zeppelin Shot Down

1915 : Germans were using Zeppelins to drop bombs over England and when a German Zeppelin appeared over Holland, Dutch soldiers opened fire, shooting it down.

18 Aug, 1921 England Lloyd George

1921 : In England, Premier Lloyd George told the House of Commons that he recognized Japan’s loyalty during World War I, but at the same time did not want to offend the U.S. . Japan and the U.S. were in conflict over the Pacific. George urged Americans to make peace with Japan over this issue and he said that this would ensure world peace.

18 Aug, 1930 Canada Chief Justice

1930 : In St. John’s Newfoundland that province’s Chief Justice, William Horwood, was threatened with a stick by an irate Joseph Burnstein who had just been evicted by court order. Burnstein was frequently in trouble with the law and police abducted him before the Chief Justice was harmed.

18 Aug, 1931 China Yangtze River Flood

1931 : The Yangtze River in China peaks during flooding which causes the death of 3.7 million people directly and indirectly over the next several months. The Yangtze River was just one of the major rivers in China that flooded and included the Yellow river, and the Huai river. The 1931 China floods are thought to be the deadliest natural disaster ever recorded.

18 Aug, 1937 Toyota Motor Company

1937 : Following on from the success of Toyota Industries the son of the original founder Sakichi Toyoda of Toyota Industries, Kiichiro Toyoda, founds the Toyota Motor Company in Japan.

From our 1955 Toys

Farm Stake Tonka Truck From The 1950s Farm Stake Tonka Truck
Manufacturer: Tonka
Price: $3.98
Realistic in every detail... right down to its rear wheels with mud flaps! Small-fry farmers find it ideal to haul any load. The stake panels come out for the big jobs. Made of tough, heavy gauge metal.

From our 1960s Quiz Page

Question 19

19. What was the name of the unsuccessful Cuban invasion attempt that tried to overthrow Fidel Castro in 1961?

Question 21

21. In what year was US President John F. Kennedy assassinated?

Question 23

23. By 1966, the United States had nearly how many troops in Vietnam?

Question 24

24. When did the Voting Rights Act became law in the US?

Question 26

26. The first VCR home video recorder was introduced by what company in 1964?

18 Aug, 1947 Indonesia Battle For Independence

1947 : Despite a U.N. demand for a cease fire, the Indonesian-Dutch conflict heated up recently. President Soekarno insisted that the battle continue for the cause of Indonesian independence. His scorched earth policy frustrated Dutch domination. Soekarno asserted, “ …it is better for Indonesia to become a sea of flames than be colonized again.” Indonesia declared independence in 1945 and finally gained Independence in 1949.

18 Aug, 1955 West German Mixed Feelings Over Unification

1955 : The chief desire of all Germans was the unification of the East and the West of their country. However, the North Atlantic Treaty Alliance had kept Germany partitioned. West Germany was also a member of NATO, another factor in the division. Foreign correspondent, John Collins remarked, “The average West German is undoubtedly friendly to the West and hostile to the Communists.”

18 Aug, 1963 U.S.A. James Meredith

1963 : James Meredith becomes the first African American to graduate from the University of Mississippi with a degree in Political Science, he had become the first black student at the University of Mississippi on On October 1st, 1962, after having been turned down twice and with support from the then President of the United States John F. Kennedy who sent federal troops and U.S. Marshals to control riots that had broken out on the campus. Many see his enrollment and subsequent graduation as a pivotal moment in the history of civil rights in the United States.

18 Aug, 1969 U.S.A. Woodstock

1969 : Although Woodstock was supposed to run for 3 days on the 15th, 16th and 17th of August bands were still playing on the 18th to the tens of thousands of fans that had not left the Woodstock Music and Art Fair and the final musician to close the concert was non other than the great Jimi Hendrix.

18 Aug, 1969 Northern Ireland Pope Paul VI

August 8, 1969 : In Northern Ireland, Pope Paul VI called for Catholics and Protestants to have, “reciprocal pardon and mutual agreement.” However, British troops enforced an uneasy peace in Northern Ireland and Catholics and Protestants remained behind barricades. A police station in Crossmaglen was attacked on Sunday and in London 1,000 Irish demonstrators protested outside the Ulster Office.

18 Aug, 1971 Australia / New Zealand Announce Pull Out Of Troops

1971 : Following protests in Australia and New Zealand over the Vietnam War both countries announce troop withdrawal by the end of the year leaving America isolated in it's Vietnam Policy.

18 Aug, 1977 France Marcel Bich

1977 : Sixty-three year old French Baron, Marcel Bich, came into his title and fortune by founding the Bic pens company. He rose from being a door-to-door salesman to baron and business tycoon. Bich owned the largest fleet of 12 meter yachts in the world and competed in many American contests with his boats.

18 Aug, 1982 Wang Labs Enters Chapter 11

1982 : Following a long period of growth and little competition to it's Word Processing systems, as the PC starts to increase it's market share and new Word Processing Software appears WANG LABS is forced into chapter 11 bankruptcy.

18 Aug, 1983 U.S.A. Hurricane Alicia

1983 : Hurricane Alicia makes landfall near Galveston, Texas with winds in excess of 100 MPH, leaving 22 dead and causing more than two billion dollars in damages.

18 Aug, 1989 Israel Palestinians Strike

1989 : In the Gaza Strip, Palestinians stopped working at their jobs in Israel. The protest was ordered by militants in response to the issuing of computerized identity cards by the Israeli government. The strike closed down shops, educational facilities, and businesses.

Born This Day In History August 18th

Celebrating Birthdays Today

Roman Polanski

Born: Rajmund Roman Liebling August 8 1933 Paris, France

Known For : Roman Polanski best known as an Academy Award-winning film director, writer, and producer who won Oscars for Chinatown, Rosemary's Baby and was nominated for The Pianist, Tess and Pirates. He is still making movies with his next release The Ghost due to come out in 2010. His pregnant wife, Sharon Tate, was murdered in 1969 by the Manson Family. In 1977 he entered a guilty plea to the charge of unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor and fled the United States to escape jail time, he is still officially considered by U.S. authorities to be a fugitive from justice and cannot return to the United States without risking arrest and imprisonment.


Celebrating Birthdays Today

Robert Redford

Born: Charles Robert Redford Jr. August 8 1936 Santa Monica, California, United States

Known For : Robert Redford American Actor, director, environmentalist, philanthropist and the founder of the Sundance Film Festival (largest independent cinema festival in the United States which allows independent filmmakers from the US and around the world to showcase their movies). He became a household name following the success of the movie Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) starring alongside Paul Newman. His other notable films as an actor include The Great Gatsby, All the President's Men, Out of Africa, The Sting and The Horse Whisperer. He is also a successful director winning a number of awards for movies including Ordinary People, The Horse Whisperer and Quiz Show.


18 Aug, 1996 Africa 900 million African bees die

August 8, 1996 : Fruit crops and African plants were in danger of dying because 900 million African bees died. The death of the bees was caused by intermingling them with foreign bees that were imported from the Cape. Non-native bees interfered with the mating process of the African bees.

18 Aug, 2001 Philippines Hotel Fire

2001 : A fire at the Manor Hotel in a suburb of the capital Manila has left 75 dead with a further 70 missing, the cause of the fire in the six story hotel is not known.

18 Aug, 2005 Indonesia 100 million left without power

2005 : 100 million living in Java and Bali are left without power for up to 7 hrs following a major transmission line failure, currently ranked as the worst power outage in history.

18 Aug, 2006 Iraq Temperatures Up To 140 degrees

2006 : Sgt. Major Joel Arnold of the “Ironman Battalion” recently fought in Iraq and was wounded. He is one of 500 soldiers in Iraq that came from Iowa. Arnold relates that in Iraq sometimes the thermometer gets up to 140 degrees and a friend of his said that it felt like his fingernails were on fire. However, Arnold mentioned that the army food was good, they had air conditioning sometimes, and were provided with Internet, telephones, and video conferences. These amenities however do not ensure that the soldiers will come home alive.

18 Aug, 2006 China 60hr work week at Apple iPod plant

August 8, 2006 : Following negative commentary by the British and American press Apple have released findings from an internal audit of it's iPod supplier factory in China. The report has reported that the hours worked at the factory were "excessive" and will be changed to enforce a "normal" 60-hour week, Apple has not denied that the average wage at the plant is about $60 per month. In response to reports of child labor the auditors could find no proof of child labor at the supplier. The plant where iPod's are manufactured is a massive operation with 32,000 staff living on-site at the plant which includes housing, banks, hospital, supermarkets, and a variety of recreational facilities including soccer fields, a swimming pool, TV lounges and Internet cafes.

18 Aug, 2007 Afghanistan Kidnapping

2007 : A German Christian aid worker was kidnapped by a criminal organization unrelated to the Taliban in Kabul. The kidnapping of this woman at gunpoint marked the first kidnapping of a foreigner in the Afghan capital of Kabul in two years. She was released by her captors only a few days after the kidnapping.

18 Aug, 2008 Nepal New Prime Minister

2008 : The chairman of the Communist Party of Nepal was sworn in as the Prime Minister of Nepal after large political changes in prior months. Prachanda, the Maoist leader, was known as a rebel leader before his party gained a majority of seats in the assembly.

18 Aug, 2009 United States Tom Barrett

August 8, 2009 : Mayor of the US city of Milwaukee, Tom Barrett, was injured while trying to protect a woman and a child from an attack. The mayor intervened in a domestic dispute after leaving the state fair with his family. Barrett was praised by US President Obama for his courage.

18 Aug, 2012 Limbless Man Completes Five Continent Swim

2012 : French swimmer Philippe Croizon completed a swim to link five continents using custom made flippers. The swimmer who lost all his limbs in an electrocution accident hoped his accomplishments would inspire other disabled people.

18 Aug, 2013 Thousands of Syrian Refugees Flood Iraq's Border

2013 : Around 10,000 Syrian refugees crossed the border of Iraqi Kurdistan one one day, with another 10,000 crossing the border earlier in the week. The United Nations stated that the reason so many refugees were showing up was unclear and that they and other agencies were having a difficult time coping with the large amount of people.


From 1955 Fashions

Dyed Squirrel Clutch Cape 1955 Dyed Squirrel Clutch Cape
Price: $103.50
Brief little cape of fine imported squirrel... fur origin: Russia. Glamorous for the smaller woman over suits, dresses, coats. Graceful back, tuxedo front. Novelty acetate and rayon lining. Brown.

1960s Shoes and Hats Fashion Accessories page

  • 1960 Alligator Handbag

    Alligator Handbag

    Price: $29.97

    Genuine alligator handbag. There's no handsomer accessory than an alligator bag. Satchel-shaped, elegant in every line and detail.. from the polished gold-color metal frame to the leather lining and leather coin purse inside. Rear wall zipper pocket. Mirror included. Comes in brown or black.

  • 1960 Austrian Crystal Set

    Austrian Crystal Set

    Price: $1.97 - $11.97

    Aurora borealis crystals in an exciting gray color. Faceted to interplay their fiery brilliance. Three row necklace ($11.97), clip earrings ($3.97), bracelet ($5.97), or pendant ($1.97).