California “discovered”
Explorer Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo, known as the “discoverer” of California, landed this day in 1542 near what is now San Diego and became the first European to set foot on the west coast of what would become the United States. 1542.
SpaceX successfully launched Falcon 1, becoming the first privately owned company to send a liquid-fueled rocket into orbit. 2008.
Tennis player Althea Gibson—the first African American to win singles titles at the French Open (1956), Wimbledon (1957–58), and the U.S. Open (1957–58)—died at age 76. 2003
Madagascar voted for autonomy within the French Community. 1958
