Today in History

Today is Friday, Sept. 11, the 255th day of 2020. There are 111 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On September 11, 2001, nearly 3,000 people were killed as 19 al-Qaida hijackers seized control of four jetliners, sending two of the planes into New York's World Trade Center, one into the Pentagon and the fourth into a field in western Pennsylvania.

On this date:

In 1777, during the American Revolution, forces under Gen. George Washington were defeated by the British in the Battle of Brandywine.

In 1789, Alexander Hamilton was appointed the first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury.

In 1814, an American fleet scored a decisive victory over the British in the Battle of Lake Champlain in the War of 1812.

In 1885, author D.H. Lawrence was born in Eastwood, Nottinghamshire, England.

In 1936, Boulder Dam (now Hoover Dam) began operation as President Franklin D. Roosevelt pressed a key in Washington to signal the startup of the dam's first hydroelectric generator.

In 1941, groundbreaking took place for the Pentagon. In a speech that drew accusations of anti-Semitism, Charles A. Lindbergh told an America First rally in Des Moines, Iowa, that "the British, the Jewish and the Roosevelt administration" were pushing the United States toward war.

In 1972, the troubled Munich Summer Olympics ended. Northern California's Bay Area Rapid Transit system began operations.

In 1973, Chilean President Salvador Allende) died during a violent military coup.

In 2006, in a prime-time address, President George W. Bush invoked the memory of the victims of the 9/11 attacks as he staunchly defended the war in Iraq, though he acknowledged that Saddam Hussein was not responsible for the attacks.

In 2007, a new Osama bin Laden videotape was released on the sixth anniversary of 9/11; in it, the al-Qaida leader's voice is heard commemorating one of the suicide hijackers and calling on young Muslims to follow his example by martyring themselves in attacks.

In 2008, presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama put aside politics as they visited ground zero together on the anniversary of 9/11 to honor its victims.

In 2012, a mob armed with guns and grenades launched a fiery nightlong attack on a U.S. diplomatic outpost and a CIA annex in Benghazi, Libya, killing U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans.

Ten years ago: Speaking at the Pentagon, President Barack Obama appealed to the nation to honor the memory of the September 11 victims by hewing to the values of diversity and tolerance. In New York, a morning ceremony of remembrance gave way to an afternoon of protests and counter-protests over a proposed Islamic center near ground zero. A gunman in rural eastern Kentucky killed five people before turning the shotgun on himself. Kim Clijsters won a second consecutive U.S. Open championship and third overall, easily beating Vera Zvonareva 6-2, 6-1. Actor Kevin McCarthy, 96, died in Hyannis, Massachusetts.

Five years ago: A crane collapsed onto the Grand Mosque in Mecca, killing 111 people ahead of the annual hajj pilgrimage. Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry ended his second bid for the Republican presidential nomination, becoming the first major candidate of the 2016 campaign to give up on the White House. Roberta Vinci stunned Serena Williams to end her Grand Slam bid in one of the greatest upsets in tennis history; the 43rd-ranked Italian won 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 in the U.S. Open semifinals.

One year ago: The Supreme Court allowed nationwide enforcement of a new Trump administration rule preventing most Central American migrants from seeking asylum in the United States; the policy was meant to deny asylum to anyone who passed through another country on the way to the U.S. without seeking protection there. Oil tycoon T. Boone Pickens died at his Dallas home; he was 91.

Today's Birthdays: Actor Earl Holliman is 92. Comedian Tom Dreesen is 81. Movie director Brian De Palma is 80. Singer-actor-dancer Lola Falana is 78. Rock musician Mickey Hart (The Dead) is 77. Guitarist Leo Kottke is 75. Actor Phillip Alford is 72. Actor Amy Madigan is 70. Rock singer-musician Tommy Shaw (Styx) is 67. Sports reporter Lesley Visser is 67. Actor Reed Birney is 66. Former Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson is 63. Musician Jon Moss (Culture Club) is 63. Actor Scott Patterson is 62. Rock musician Mick Talbot (The Style Council) is 62. Actor/director Roxann Dawson is 62. Actor John Hawkes is 61. Actor Anne Ramsay is 60. Actor Virginia Madsen is 59. Actor Kristy McNichol is 58. Musician-composer Moby is 55. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is 55. Business reporter Maria Bartiromo is 53. Singer Harry Connick Jr. is 53. Rock musician Bart Van Der Zeeuw is 52. Actor Taraji P. Henson is 50. Actor Laura Wright is 50. Rock musician Jeremy Popoff (Lit) is 49. Blogger Markos Moulitsas is 49. Singer Brad Fischetti (LFO) is 45. Rapper Mr. Black is 43. Rock musician Jon Buckland (Coldplay) is 43. Rapper Ludacris is 43. Rock singer Ben Lee is 42. Actor Ryan Slattery is 42. Actor Ariana Richards is 41. Country singer Charles Kelley (Lady Antebellum) is 39. Actor Elizabeth Henstridge is 33. Actor Tyler Hoechlin is 33. Actor Mackenzie Aladjem is 19.