Discover what happened on June 13 in history, featuring landmark legal decisions, memorable sports victories, technological innovations, and events that helped shape American culture and history.
What Happened on June 13 in History?
Important events on this day include the Supreme Court establishing Miranda Rights in Miranda v. Arizona, the opening of the world’s first roller coaster at Coney Island, the Detroit Pistons winning their first NBA championship, and the first successful parachute jump from an airplane.
JUNE 13 – TODAY IN HISTORY:
1789 – Ice cream was served to General George Washington by Mrs. Alexander Hamilton.
1825 – Walter Hunt patented the safety pin. Hunt then then sold the rights for $400.
1884 – The world’s first roller coaster opened at Coney Island in Brooklyn, NY. It was called the “Gravity Pleasure Switchback Railway” and cars traveled at a speed of 6 miles per hour.
1866 – The 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was passed by Congress. It was ratified on July 9, 1868. The amendment was designed to grant citizenship to, and protect the civil liberties of, recently freed slaves. It did this by prohibiting states from denying or abridging the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States, depriving any person of his life, liberty, or property without due process of law, or denying to any person within their jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.
1888 – Congress created the Department of Labor.
1912 – Captain Albert Berry made the first successful parachute jump from an airplane in Jefferson, MS.
1920 – The U.S. Post Office Department ruled that children may not be sent by parcel post.
1922 – Charlie Osborne started the longest attack of hiccups. He hiccuped over 435 million times before stopping. He died in 1991, 11 months after his hiccups ended.
1924 – The Detroit Tigers lost to the New York Yankees after Tiger pitcher Bert Cole hit Bob Meusel with a pitch. The resulting riot by the 18,000 fans caused a Tiger forfeit.
1927 – Charles Lindbergh was honored with a ticker-tape parade in New York, NY.
1927 – For the first time, an American Flag was displayed from the right hand of the Statue of Liberty.
1944 – Marvin Camras patented the wire recorder.
1948 – Babe Ruth’s #3 was retired as he made his final appearance at Yankee Stadium.
1966 – The landmark “Miranda v. Arizona” decision was issued by the U.S. Supreme Court, which obligates police officers to read arrested persons their constitutional rights.
1967 – President Lyndon Johnson nominated Solicitor-General Thurgood Marshall, a grandson of slaves, to become the first black Justice of the Supreme Court.
1977 – James Earl Ray, the convicted assassin of Martin Luther King Junior, was recaptured and returned to jail after escaping for three days.
1979 – Sioux Indians were awarded $105 million in compensation for the U.S. seizure in 1877 of their Black Hills in South Dakota.
1983 – The unmanned U.S. space probe Pioneer 10 became the first spacecraft to leave the solar system. It was launched in March 1972. The first up-close images of the planet Jupiter were provided by Pioneer 10.
1988 – The Liggett Group, a cigarette manufacturer, was found liable for a lung-cancer death. They were, however, found innocent by the federal jury of misrepresenting the risks of smoking.
1989 – The Detroit Pistons won their first National Basketball Association title. They beat the L.A. Lakers in four games.
1989 – Jerry Lee Lewis got a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
1989 – President George H.W. Bush exercised his first Presidential veto on a bill dealing with minimum wage.
1994 – A jury in Anchorage, AK, found Exxon Corp. and Captain Joseph Hazelwood to be reckless in the Exxon Valdez oil spill, allowing victims of the oil spill to seek $15 billion in damages.
1997 – Jurors in Oklahoma City, OK sentence terrorist bomber Timothy McVeigh to death for his part in the 1995 Oklahoma City bombings.
2002 – The Detroit Red Wings won their third Stanley Cup in six years, by beating the Carolina Hurricanes 3-1 at Joe Louis Arena to win the Finals in five games. After the game, coach Scotty Bowman announced his retirement.
2005 – Michael Jackson was found not guilty on all 10 counts in his 14 week child molestation trial.
2007 – Kelly Allen Frank, who was arrested in 2005 for a scheme to kidnap David Letterman’s son and his nanny and escaped from prison on June 8th, was recaptured.
2017 – The Grand Rapids Griffins won the Calder Cup. The Griffins beat the Syracuse Crunch 4-3 in Game 6 of the Calder Cup Finals in front of a sold-out crowd at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, MI.
2022 – Flooding at Yellowstone National Park swept away a bridge and washed out roads.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS ON JUNE 13:
Irvin D. Yalom – 95 years old (1931) – Psychotherapist and academic
James Anthony Griffin – 92 years old (1934) – Bishop
Leonard Kleinrock – 92 years old (1934) – Computer scientist and engineer
Eleanor Holmes Norton – 89 years old (1937) – Lawyer and politician
Marcel Lachemann – 85 years old (1941) – Baseball player, coach and manager
Whitley Strieber – 81 years old (1945) – Author
Paul L. Modrich – 80 years old (1946) – Biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
Joe Roth – 78 years old (1948) – Director and producer, co-founded Morgan Creek Productions
Ann Druyan – 77 years old (1949) – Popular science writer
Howard Leese – 75 years old (1951) – Guitarist and producer
Richard Thomas – 75 years old (1951) – Actor, director, and producer
Tim Allen – 73 years old (1953) – Actor, comedian, and producer
Leah Ward Sears – 71 years old (1955) – German-American lawyer and jurist
Sal Paolantonio – 70 years old (1956) – Lieutenant and journalist
Roy Cooper – 69 years old (1957) – Lawyer and politician, 75th Governor of North Carolina
Bruce Flowers – 69 years old (1957) – Basketball player
Dicky Thompson – 69 years old (1957) – Golfer
Davey Hamilton – 64 years old (1962) – Race car driver
Glenn Michibata – 64 years old (1962) – Canadian-American tennis player and coach
Ally Sheedy – 64 years old (1962) – Actress and author
Hannah Storm – 64 years old (1962) – Journalist and author
Audrey Niffenegger – 63 years old (1963) – Author and academic
Sunny Balwani – 61 years old (1965) – Pakistani-American businessman and criminal
Lukas Ligeti – 61 years old (1965) – Austrian-American drummer and composer
Laura Kightlinger – 57 years old (1969) – Actress, comedian, producer and screenwriter
Rivers Cuomo – 56 years old (1970) – Rock musician
Sam Adams – 53 years old (1973) – Football player
Tanner Foust – 53 years old (1973) – Race car driver and television host
Valeri Bure – 52 years old (1974) – Russian-American ice hockey player
Steve-O – 52 years old (1974) – Stunt performer
Jeff Davis – 51 years old (1975) – Screenwriter and producer
Jennifer Nicole Lee – 51 years old (1975) – Model, actress and author
Earthwind Moreland – 49 years old (1977) – Football player
Ethan Embry – 48 years old (1978) – Actor
Miguel Pate – 47 years old (1979) – Long jumper
Ryan Pickett – 47 years old (1979) – Director, producer and screenwriter
Jamario Moon – 46 years old (1980) – Basketball player
Chris Evans – 45 years old (1981) – Actor and producer
Nate Jones – 44 years old (1982) – Football player
Steve Novak – 43 years old (1983) – Basketball player
Kat Dennings – 40 years old (1986) – Actress and comedian
Jonathan Lucroy – 40 years old (1986) – Baseball catcher
Ashley Olsen – 40 years old (1986) – Child actress, fashion designer and businesswoman
Mary-Kate Olsen – 40 years old (1986) – Child actress, fashion designer and businesswoman
Gabe Carimi – 38 years old (1988) – Football player
Cody Walker – 38 years old (1988) – Actor
Ryan McDonagh – 37 years old (1989) – Ice hockey defenseman
Hassan Whiteside – 37 years old (1989) – Basketball player
James McCann – 36 years old (1990) – Baseball player
Will Claye – 35 years old (1991) – Jumper
DAYS OF THE YEAR FOR JUNE 13:
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For additional information check out websites like: www.on-this-day.com, www.born-today.com, www.famousbirthdays.com, www.daysoftheyear.com, and www.nationaldaycalendar.com.
