Today's Highlight in History:
On Aug. 2, 1776, members of the Continental Congress began attaching their signatures to the Declaration of Independence.
On this date:
In 1790, the enumeration for the first United States census began; the final total was 3,929,214.
In 1873, inventor Andrew S. Hallidie successfully tested a cable car he had designed for the city of San Francisco.
In 1876, frontiersman "Wild Bill" Hickok was shot and killed while playing poker at a saloon in Deadwood, Dakota Territory.
In 1923, the 29th president of the United States, Warren G. Harding, died in San Francisco.
In 1927, four years after becoming president, Calvin Coolidge issued a written statement to reporters: "I do not choose to run for President in 1928."
In 1934, German President Paul von Hindenburg died, paving the way for Adolf Hitler's complete takeover.
In 1939, Albert Einstein signed a letter to President Roosevelt urging creation of an atomic weapons research program.
In 1943, during World War II, Navy boat PT-109, commanded by Lt. John F. Kennedy, sank after being rammed by the Japanese destroyer Amagiri off the Solomon Islands.
In 1964, the destroyer USS Maddox suffered light damage from North Vietnamese patrol torpedo boats in the Gulf of Tonkin.
In 1990, Iraq invaded Kuwait, seizing control of the oil-rich emirate. (The Iraqis were later driven out in Operation Desert Storm.)
Ten years ago: Cyclist Marco Pantani of Italy won the Tour de France, which had been marred by a doping scandal. Ventriloquist Shari Lewis died in Los Angeles at age 65.
