On This Day - What Happened on September 4

1921

1921: The largest labor uprising ends

In the summer of 1921, thousands of armed coal miners headed to Mingo county, West Virginia, where miners had been jailed during a bitter struggle over unionization. But at Blair Mountain, an anti-union sheriff and an armed force were determined to stop them. Over several days the two sides fought in what became known as the Battle of Blair Mountain. The conflict finally ended on this day in 1921, when federal troops were sent to the area.

September 4, 1921: The largest armed labor uprising in U.S. history turned a mountain into a battlefield

Prints and Photographs Division—National Child Labor Committee Collection/Library of Congress Washington DC (LC-USZ62-88489); Photo Illustration Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Featured Event

Historical map of Los Angeles and surrounding areas around 1900, showing the city in dark shading at the center, with nearby towns such as Pasadena, Santa Monica, Redondo, and Long Beach labeled. Major roads and rail lines radiate outward from Los Angeles, and coastal features like San Pedro and the Pacific Ocean are depicted.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Los Angeles founded

On this day in 1781, Spanish settlers laid claim to what became Los Angeles, now the second most populous U.S. city and the home to Hollywood, whose name is synonymous with the American motion-picture industry.

Featured Biography

Beyonce smiling on the red carpet at the 2013 Grammy Awards, wearing a black and white dress with her hair pulled back.

Beyoncé

Born this day in 1981, American singer-songwriter and actress Beyoncé became one of the defining performers of the early 21st century—known as “Queen Bey” to her fans—and her influence extended far beyond music.

Famous Birthdays

1927

John McCarthy

American mathematician and computer scientist

1918

Paul Harvey

American broadcaster

1896

Antonin Artaud

French author and actor

1824

Anton Bruckner

Austrian composer

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B. Lane/UN Photo

2016

Mother Teresa, founder of the Order of the Missionaries of Charity and winner of the 1979 Nobel Prize for Peace, was canonized by Pope Francis I. [Test your knowledge of saints.]

2014

American entertainer Joan Rivers—who first gained fame in the 1960s as a nightclub and television comic known for the catchphrase “Can we talk?” and who later critiqued celebrities’ wardrobes—died in New York City. [Sort fact from fiction in our pop culture quiz.]

Lucy Nicholson—AP/REX/Shutterstock.com

2006

Australian wildlife conservationist and television personality Steve Irwin, who achieved worldwide fame as the exuberant and risk-taking host of The Crocodile Hunter (1992–2006) TV series and related documentaries, was killed by a venomous bull stingray.

Kelly Clarkson sings into a microphone on stage, wearing a black outfit, with band members playing guitar, trombone, and singing backup behind her.

2002

American singer Kelly Clarkson became the first winner of the reality television series American Idol. [Test your knowledge of songs and music stars.]

Larry Page and Sergey Brin, creators of the online search engine Google

1998

The American search engine company Google Inc. was formally established as founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page filed incorporation papers. [Take our quiz about tech companies.]

Image: Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

1989

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the U.S. Air Force launched the last Titan III rocket. [Sort fact from fiction in our space exploration quiz.]

PRNewsFoto/Fleetwood Enterprises, Inc./AP Images

1972

A revival of The Price Is Right began airing with Bob Barker as host; it was a huge hit, becoming one of the longest-running game shows on American television. [Take our pop culture quiz.]

AP Images

1972

American swimmer Mark Spitz won his seventh gold medal during the Munich Olympic Games, the first person ever to do so in a single Olympics. [Sort fact from fiction in our swimming quiz.]

1957

The Ford Motor Company introduced the Edsel automobile, which was perhaps its most notable failure. [How much do you know about American industry and innovation?]

OWI/FSA/Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.; photograph, Gordon Parks (LC-USW3-030278-D)

1908

Novelist and short-story writer Richard Wright, among the first African American writers to protest white treatment of blacks, was born. [Test your knowledge of African American writers.]

Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. (digital. id. pga 03463)

1870

Napoleon III, who ruled France first as president (1850–52) and then as emperor (1852–70), was deposed and the Third Republic proclaimed. [How much do you know about French history?]

Courtesy Meserve-Kunhardt Collection

1864

John Hunt Morgan, the Confederate guerrilla leader of “Morgan’s Raiders,” was killed by Federal troops. [Take our American Civil War quiz.]

François-Auguste-René, vicomte de Chateaubriand

Wellcome Library, London (CC BY 4.0)

1768

French author and diplomat François-Auguste-René, vicomte de Chateaubriand, who was one of the country’s first Romantic writers and France’s preeminent literary figure in the early 19th century, was born. [Test your knowledge of French literature.]

Courtesy of the Master and Fellows of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge; photograph, The Conway Library, Courtauld Institute Galleries, London

925

King Athelstan of the West Saxons became the first king to rule all of England. [Take our kings of England quiz.]

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