July 21st

Crete Earthquake followed by tsunami around the Eastern Mediterranean allegedly destroys Alexandria.

Herostratus sets fire to the Temple of Artemis in Ephesus, one of the Seven Wonders of the World.

The space shuttle program came to an end after 30 years as Atlantis landed at Cape Canaveral, Fla..

President Barack Obama signed into law the most sweeping overhaul of U.S. lending and high finance rules since the 1930s.

Former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic, one of the world's top war crimes fugitives, was arrested in a Belgrade suburb by Serbian security forces.

'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows', the final volume in the book series by J.K. Rowling, went on sale.

Telecommunications giant WorldCom Inc. filed for bankruptcy protection after disclosing it had inflated profits by nearly $4 billion through deceptive accounting.

Astronaut Alan Shepard died at age 74.

Massachusetts Gov. Michael Dukakis accepted the Democratic presidential nomination at the party's convention in Atlanta.

Lowest temperature ever measured on Earth. Vostok Station, a Russian station on Antarctica experienced the lowest temperatures ever measured in recorded human history. The temperatures fell to −128.6 °F (−89.2 °C)

Mary Eugenia Charles is elected as PM of Dominica. Her election to office made her the first female and the longest PM of the Commonwealth of Dominica. She is also the first elected female head of state in the Americas.

Libyan–Egyptian War begins. This short war between Libya and Egypt started with Libya striking Egyptian cities. The war lasted for 2 days with a ceasefire on July 24.

Aswan Dam opens in Egypt, enables human control of the flooding of the Nile.

Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin blasted off from the moon aboard the lunar module.

Capt. Virgil "Gus" Grissom became the second American to rocket into a sub-orbital pattern around the Earth, flying on the Liberty Bell 7.

France surrendered North Vietnam to the Communists.

The U.S. Senate ratified the North Atlantic Treaty.

The Democratic National Convention in Chicago nominated Sen. Harry S. Truman to be vice president.

In the 'Monkey Trial,' John T. Scopes was found guilty of violating Tennessee state law by teaching evolution.

After 13 years, the 4,607-mile Trans-Siberian railway is completed.

Author Ernest Hemingway was born in Oak Park, Ill.

The first train robbery west of the Mississippi was pulled off by Jesse James and his gang.

The first Battle of Bull Run was fought at Manassas, Va., during the Civil War, resulting in a Confederate victory.

Belgium became independent as Leopold I was proclaimed King of the Belgians.