June 4
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Featured Event
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On this day in 1937, a Humpty Dumpty grocery store in Oklahoma introduced the first shopping carts. Alas, customers were initially doubtful. Women already pushed carts around (albeit ones with babies in them) and were tired of doing so, and male shoppers thought the cart made them look effeminate. However, the new invention became hugely popular, revolutionizing grocery shopping. [Read today’s version of Today in History > >.]
Featured Biography
Featured Biography
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Born this day in 1738 was George III, during whose 60-year reign Britain won an empire in the Seven Years’ War, lost its American colonies, and then, after a struggle against France, emerged as a leading power in Europe.
Famous Birthdays
More on June 4
Ken Levine/Getty Images
2010
American basketball coach John Wooden—who directed teams of the University of California at Los Angeles to 10 NCAA championships in 12 seasons (1964–65, 1967–73, and 1975)—died at age 99. [Take our quiz about basketball player nicknames.]
Chris Walter/Retna Ltd.
1984
American musician Bruce Springsteen released Born in the U.S.A., which became one of his defining works. [Test your knowledge of rock and roll.]
© Denis Makarenko/Dreamstime.com
1975
American actress Angelina Jolie, who was known for her sex appeal and edginess as well as for her humanitarian work, was born. [Sort fact from fiction in our quiz about famous actors.]
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
1970
The Kingdom of Tonga achieved independence within the British Commonwealth. [Sort fact from fiction in our quiz about Africa.]
U.S. Dept. of Defense
1942
Japan was repulsed by the United States at the Battle of Midway in World War II. [How much do you know about World War II?]
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1940
Following a massive rescue effort that included civilian boats, the withdrawal of Allied troops trapped at Dunkirk, France, was completed during World War II; more than 300,000 soldiers were saved. [Test your knowledge of World War II.]
Image: Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
1937
The world’s first shopping carts were introduced at Humpty Dumpty grocery stores in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. [Test your knowledge of inventions.]
Image: Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
1920
The Treaty of Trianon was signed by representatives of Hungary on one side and the Allied powers on the other, concluding World War I. [Sort fact from fiction in our World War I quiz.]
National Archives and Records Administration
1919
The Nineteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which gave women the right to vote, was passed by the Senate, two weeks after being approved by the House of Representatives; the amendment was ratified the following year. [Match the amendment number to its purpose.]
© PA Images/Alamy
1913
British suffragette Emily Davison entered the racetrack during the Epsom Derby and moved in front of King George V’s horse, which struck her; she died four days later and became a martyr to the cause of women’s suffrage. [Take our quiz about suffragettes.]
Courtesy of The National Portrait Gallery, London
1833
British Field Marshal Garnet Joseph Wolseley, 1st Viscount Wolseley, whose most brilliant campaign involved seizing the Suez Canal and, after a night march, surprising and defeating ʿUrābī Pasha at Al-Tall al-Kabīr (September 13, 1882), was born.
Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. Samuel H. Kress Collection, 1961.9.15
1796
Napoleon Bonaparte commanded the Siege of Mantua, which resulted in the exclusion of Austrians from northern Italy. [Test your knowledge of Napoleon Bonaparte.]
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1783
Joseph-Michel and Jacques-Étienne Montgolfier launched an uncrewed hot-air balloon, the first public demonstration of the discovery that hot air in a large lightweight bag rises. [Take our quiz about the history of aviation.]