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On This Day in History — July 2
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Highlights of July 2
- 2020 — A landslide at a jade mine in Hpakant killed 175–200 miners, the deadliest mining accident in Burmese history. Read more
- 2013 — In the Indonesian province of Aceh on the northern end of Sumatra, a Mw 6.1 strike-slip earthquake killed at least 35 people and injured 276 others. Read more
- 2013 — The International Astronomical Union announced that the fourth and fifth moons of Pluto to be discovered would be named Kerberos and Styx, respectively. Read more
- 1998 — Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J. K. Rowling, the second novel of the Harry Potter series, was published. Read more
- 1990 — Singing Revolution: The Soviet economic blockade of Lithuania (pictured) was lifted when the Lithuanian parliament agreed to suspend the effects of their act to re-establish Lithuania as a state. Read more
- 1976 — More than a year after the end of the Vietnam War, North and South Vietnam officially merged under communist rule to form the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Read more
- 1964 — The Civil Rights Act was signed into law, outlawing segregation in schools, at the workplace, and other facilities that served the general public in the United States. Read more
- 1941 — A German SS unit arrived in Vilnius, Lithuania, and began the systematic execution of up to 100,000 people over the next three years. Read more
- 1881 — U.S. president James A. Garfield (pictured) was fatally shot by Charles J. Guiteau at the Baltimore and Potomac Railroad station in Washington, D.C. Read more
- 1816 — The French frigate Méduse ran aground off the coast of present-day Mauritania, with the survivors escaping on a makeshift raft, depicted in Théodore Géricault's painting The Raft of the Medusa. Read more
- 1779 — American Revolutionary War: French troops landed near St. George's, Grenada, and began their capture of the island. Read more
- 1724 — On the Feast of the Visitation, Bach led the first performance of his Meine Seel erhebt den Herren, BWV 10, based on the German Magnificat. Read more
- 1644 — First English Civil War: The combined forces of Scottish Covenanters and English Parliamentarians defeated Royalist troops at the Battle of Marston Moor. Read more
- 706 — The bodies of Emperor Gaozong of Tang and Empress Wu Zetian were interred in the Qianling Mausoleum. Read more
- 626 — Li Shimin (pictured) led his forces to assassinate his rival brothers in a coup for the imperial throne of Tang China. Read more
Events
- 2024 — A stampede during a religious event in Uttar Pradesh, India, leaves at least 121 people dead and 150 others injured. Read more
- 2013 — A magnitude 6.1 earthquake strikes Aceh, Indonesia, killing at least 42 people and injuring 420 others. Read more
- 2005 — The Live 8 benefit concerts takes place in the G8 states and in South Africa. More than 1,000 musicians perform and are broadcast on 182 television networks and 2,000 radio networks. Read more
- 2000 — Vicente Fox Quesada is elected the first President of México from an opposition party, the Partido Acción Nacional, after more than 70 years of continuous rule by the Partido Revolucionario Institucional, in the 2000 Mexican general election. Read more
- 1997 — The Bank of Thailand floats the baht, triggering the Asian financial crisis. Read more
- 1994 — USAir Flight 1016 crashes near Charlotte Douglas International Airport, killing 37 of the 57 people on board. Read more
- 1993 — A mob sets fire to the Hotel Madımak in Sivas, Turkey, where an Alevi cultural festival was taking place, killing 37 people. Read more
- 1990 — In the 1990 Mecca tunnel tragedy, 1,400 Muslim pilgrims are suffocated to death and trampled upon in a pedestrian tunnel leading to the holy city of Mecca. Read more
- 1986 — Rodrigo Rojas and Carmen Gloria Quintana are burnt alive during a street demonstration against the dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet in Chile in the Quemados case. Read more
- 1986 — Aeroflot Flight 2306 crashes while attempting an emergency landing at Syktyvkar Airport in Syktyvkar, in present-day Komi Republic, Russia, killing 54 people. Read more
- 1976 — End of South Vietnam; Communist North Vietnam annexes the former South Vietnam to form the unified Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Read more
- 1966 — France conducts its first nuclear weapon test in the Pacific, on Moruroa Atoll. Read more
- 1964 — Civil rights movement: U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Civil Rights Act of 1964 meant to prohibit segregation in public places. Read more
- 1937 — Amelia Earhart and navigator Fred Noonan are last heard from over the Pacific Ocean and disappear while attempting to make the first equatorial round-the-world flight. Read more
- 1934 — The Night of the Long Knives ends after three days of killings. Read more
- 1921 — World War I: U.S. President Warren G. Harding signs the Knox–Porter Resolution formally ending the war between the United States and Germany. Read more
- 1917 — In the leadup to the Battle of Aqaba, T. E. Lawrence and his Arab forces defeat a battalion of Ottomans at Abu al-Lissan. Read more
- 1890 — The U.S. Congress passes the Sherman Antitrust Act. Read more
- 1881 — Charles J. Guiteau shoots and fatally wounds U.S. President James A. Garfield (who will die of complications from his wounds on September 19). Read more
- 1863 — American Civil War: On the second day of the Battle of Gettysburg - the Battle of Little Round Top takes place and results in a Union victory after the Confederate troops unsuccessfully try to assault the Union left flank. Read more
- 1840 — A Ms 7.4 earthquake strikes present-day Turkey and Armenia; combined with the effects of an eruption on Mount Ararat, kills 10,000 people. Read more
- 1823 — Bahia Independence Day: The Siege of Salvador ends Portuguese rule in Brazil, with the final defeat of the Portuguese crown loyalists in the province of Bahia. Read more
- 1776 — American Revolution: The Continental Congress adopts the Lee Resolution severing ties with the Kingdom of Great Britain. The wording of the formal Declaration of Independence was agreed upon and publicly released two days later, on July 4. Read more
- 1645 — Wars of the Three Kingdoms: Battle of Alford. Read more
- 1644 — English Civil War: Battle of Marston Moor. Read more
- 1582 — Battle of Yamazaki: Toyotomi Hideyoshi defeats Akechi Mitsuhide. Read more
- 1494 — Age of Discovery: The Treaty of Tordesillas is ratified by Spain. Read more
- 1298 — Battle of Göllheim: Albert I of Habsburg defeats Adolf of Nassau-Weilburg. Read more
- 866 — Battle of Brissarthe: The Franks led by Robert the Strong are defeated by a joint Breton-Viking army. Read more
- 626 — Li Shimin, the future Emperor Taizong of Tang, ambushes and kills his rival brothers Li Yuanji and Li Jiancheng in the Xuanwu Gate Incident. Read more
- 311 — Beginning of the papacy of Pope Miltiades. Read more
Born on July 2
- 1996 — Julia Grabher, Austrian tennis player Read more
- 1995 — Ryan Murphy, American swimmer Read more
- 1994 — Henrik Kristoffersen, Norwegian skier Read more
- 1994 — Derrick White, American basketball player Read more
- 1993 — Vince Staples, American rapper and actor Read more
- 1993 — Saweetie, American rapper Read more
- 1992 — Madison Chock, American ice dancer Read more
- 1992 — Jānis Timma, Latvian basketball player Read more
- 1990 — Kayla Harrison, American judoka Read more
- 1990 — Merritt Mathias, American soccer player Read more
- 1990 — Morag McLellan, Scottish field hockey player Read more
- 1990 — Margot Robbie, Australian actress and producer Read more
- 1990 — Danny Rose, English footballer Read more
- 1990 — Bill Tupou, New Zealand rugby league player Read more
- 1989 — Nadezhda Grishaeva, Russian basketball player Read more
- 1989 — Alex Morgan, American soccer player Read more
- 1988 — Lee Chung-yong, South Korean footballer Read more
- 1987 — Esteban Granero, Spanish footballer Read more
- 1986 — Brett Cecil, American baseball player Read more
- 1986 — Lindsay Lohan, American actress and singer Read more
- 1985 — Chad Henne, American football player Read more
- 1985 — Ashley Tisdale, American actress, singer, and producer Read more
- 1984 — Thomas Kortegaard, Danish footballer Read more
- 1984 — Elise Stefanik, American politician Read more
- 1984 — Johnny Weir, American figure skater Read more
- 1983 — Michelle Branch, American singer-songwriter and guitarist Read more
- 1983 — Kyle Hogg, English cricketer Read more
- 1981 — Nathan Ellington, English footballer Read more
- 1981 — Carlos Rogers, American football player Read more
- 1980 — Nyjer Morgan, American baseball player Read more
- 1979 — Walter Davis, American triple jumper Read more
- 1979 — Ahmed al-Ghamdi, Saudi Arabian terrorist, hijacker of United Airlines Flight 175 (died 2001) Read more
- 1979 — Sam Hornish Jr., American race car driver Read more
- 1979 — Joe Thornton, Canadian ice hockey player Read more
- 1978 — Jüri Ratas, Estonian politician, 42nd Mayor of Tallinn Read more
- 1977 — Deniz Barış, Turkish footballer Read more
- 1976 — Krisztián Lisztes, Hungarian footballer Read more
- 1976 — Tomáš Vokoun, Czech-American ice hockey player Read more
- 1976 — Ľudovít Ódor, Prime minister of Slovakia Read more
- 1975 — Éric Dazé, Canadian ice hockey player Read more
Died on July 2
- 2025 — Sophia Hutchins, American socialite (born 1996) Read more
- 2025 — Julian McMahon, Australian-American actor (born 1968) Read more
- 2020 — Ángela Jeria, Chilean archaeologist and human rights activist (born 1926) Read more
- 2020 — Byron Bernstein, American Twitch streamer (born 1989) Read more
- 2019 — Lee Iacocca, American automotive executive (born 1924) Read more
- 2018 — Alan Longmuir, Scottish musician (born 1948) Read more
- 2017 — Vladislav Rastorotsky, a Russian (and former Soviet) artistic gymnastics coach, (born 1933) Read more
- 2017 — Smith Hart, American-born Canadian professional wrestler (born 1948) Read more
- 2016 — Caroline Aherne, English actress and comedian (born 1963) Read more
- 2016 — Michael Cimino, American director, producer, and screenwriter (born 1939) Read more
- 2016 — Patrick Manning, 4th & 6th Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago (born 1946) Read more
- 2016 — Elie Wiesel, Holocaust survivor, activist, and author (born 1928) Read more
- 2015 — Ronald Davison, New Zealand lawyer and judge, 10th Chief Justice of New Zealand (born 1920) Read more
- 2015 — Charlie Sanders, American football player and sportscaster (born 1946) Read more
- 2015 — Jim Weaver, American football player and coach (born 1945) Read more
- 2015 — Jacobo Zabludovsky, Mexican journalist (born 1928) Read more
- 2014 — Emilio Álvarez Montalván, Nicaraguan ophthalmologist and politician (born 1919) Read more
- 2014 — Manuel Cardona, Spanish physicist and academic (born 1934) Read more
- 2014 — Mary Innes-Ker, Duchess of Roxburghe (born 1915) Read more
- 2014 — Harold W. Kuhn, American mathematician and academic (born 1925) Read more
- 2014 — Louis Zamperini, American runner and World War II US Army Air Forces captain (born 1917) Read more
- 2013 — Anthony G. Bosco, American bishop (born 1927) Read more
- 2013 — Douglas Engelbart, American computer scientist, invented the computer mouse (born 1925) Read more
- 2013 — Armand Gaudreault, Canadian ice hockey player (born 1921) Read more
- 2013 — Anthony Llewellyn, Welsh-American chemist, academic, and astronaut (born 1933) Read more
- 2012 — Maurice Chevit, French actor and screenwriter (born 1923) Read more
- 2012 — Julian Goodman, American journalist (born 1922) Read more
- 2012 — Angelo Mangiarotti, Italian architect and academic (born 1921) Read more
- 2012 — Betty Meggers, American archaeologist and academic (born 1921) Read more
- 2012 — Ed Stroud, American baseball player (born 1939) Read more
- 2011 — Itamar Franco, Brazilian engineer and politician, 33rd President of Brazil (born 1930) Read more
- 2010 — Beryl Bainbridge, English screenwriter and author (born 1932) Read more
- 2008 — Natasha Shneider, Russian-American singer, keyboard player, and actress (born 1956) Read more
- 2008 — Elizabeth Spriggs, English actress and screenwriter (born 1929) Read more
- 2007 — Beverly Sills, American operatic soprano and television personality (born 1929) Read more
- 2006 — Jan Murray, American comedian, actor, and game show host (born 1916) Read more
- 2005 — Ernest Lehman, American director, producer, and screenwriter (born 1915) Read more
- 2005 — Norm Prescott, American actor, composer, and producer, co-founded Filmation Studios (born 1927) Read more
- 2004 — Mochtar Lubis, Indonesian journalist and author (born 1922) Read more
- 2003 — Briggs Cunningham, American race car driver and businessman (born 1907) Read more
Holidays & observances
Christian feast day:
Aberoh and Atom (Coptic Church); Christian feast day:
Bernardino Realino; Christian feast day:
Blessed Eugénie Joubert; Christian feast day:
Feast of the Visitation (Anglicanism; Levoča at Mariánska hora); Christian feast day:
Monegundis; Christian feast day:
Oudoceus; Christian feast day:
Martinian and Processus; Christian feast day:
Pishoy (Coptic Church); Christian feast day:
Stephen III of Moldavia (Romanian Orthodox Church); Christian feast day:
July 2 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics); Flag Day (Curaçao); Palio di Provenzano (Siena, Italy); Police Day (Azerbaijan)
Events, births and deaths from Wikipedia contributors, “July 2”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Lists are selections; the full record lives at the source.