Today in History

Today is Tuesday, Aug. 30, the 242nd day of 2022. There are 123 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On Aug. 30, 2020, the United States completed its withdrawal from Afghanistan, ending America's longest war with the Taliban back in power, as Air Force transport planes carried a remaining contingent of troops from Kabul airport; officials put the number of Americans remaining in Afghanistan at under 200 and said they would keep working to get those people out. After watching the last U.S. planes disappear into the sky over Afghanistan, Taliban fighters fired their guns into the air, celebrating victory after a 20-year insurgency.

On this date:

In 1861, Union Gen. John C. Fremont instituted martial law in Missouri and declared slaves there to be free. (However, Fremont's emancipation order was countermanded by President Abraham Lincoln.)

In 1941, during World War II, German forces approaching Leningrad cut off the remaining rail line out of the city.

In 1945, U.S. Gen. Douglas MacArthur arrived in Japan to set up Allied occupation headquarters.

In 1963, the "Hot Line" communications link between Washington and Moscow went into operation.

In 1967, the Senate confirmed the appointment of Thurgood Marshall as the first Black justice on the U.S. Supreme Court.

In 1983, Guion S. Bluford Jr. became the first Black American astronaut to travel in space as he blasted off aboard the Challenger.

In 1991, Azerbaijan declared its independence, joining the stampede of republics seeking to secede from the Soviet Union.

In 1992, the television series "Northern Exposure" won six Emmy Awards, including best drama series, while "Murphy Brown" received three Emmys, including best comedy series.

In 1993, "The Late Show with David Letterman" premiered on CBS-TV.

In 1997, Americans received word of the car crash in Paris that claimed the lives of Princess Diana, her boyfriend, Dodi Fayed, and their driver, Henri Paul. (Because of the time difference, it was August 31 where the crash occurred.)

In 2005, a day after Hurricane Katrina hit, floods were covering 80 percent of New Orleans, looting continued to spread and rescuers in helicopters and boats picked up hundreds of stranded people.

In 2007, in a serious breach of nuclear security, a B-52 bomber armed with six nuclear warheads flew cross-country unnoticed; the Air Force later punished 70 people.

Ten years ago: Mitt Romney launched his fall campaign for the White House with a rousing, personal speech to the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Florida, proclaiming that America needs "jobs, lots of jobs." Earlier in the evening, actor-director Clint Eastwood offered an endorsement of Romney that entailed using an empty chair to represent President Barack Obama. The U.S. Justice Department announced it had ended its investigation into CIA interrogations of terrorist detainees without bringing criminal charges.

Five years ago: The former Hurricane Harvey completed a U-turn in the Gulf of Mexico and rolled ashore for the second time in six days, hitting southwestern Louisiana as a tropical storm with heavy rains and winds of 45 miles an hour. Floodwaters began to recede in Houston, where thousands of homes were flooded. A federal judge in Texas temporarily blocked most of a new state law that would have let police officers ask people during routine stops whether they were in the country legally; the law also threatened sheriffs with jail time for not cooperating with federal immigration authorities. (The crackdown on "sanctuary cities" took effect the following March after a federal appeals court upheld the law.)

One year ago: Rescuers in boats, helicopters and high-water trucks brought to safety hundreds of people in Louisiana who were trapped by the floodwaters of Hurricane Ida. The entire resort city of South Lake Tahoe, California, was ordered evacuated as a ferocious wildfire raced toward Lake Tahoe on the California-Nevada state line; the city of 22,000 was normally filled with tens of thousands of summer tourists. (Improved weather conditions would help keep the flames out of the city.)

Today's Birthdays: Actor Elizabeth Ashley is 83. Actor Ben Jones is 81. Actor John Kani is 80. Cartoonist R. Crumb is 79. Olympic gold medal skier Jean-Claude Killy is 79. Comedian Lewis Black is 74. Actor Timothy Bottoms is 71. Actor David Paymer is 68. Jazz musician Gerald Albright is 65. Actor Michael Chiklis is 59. Actor Michael Michele is 56. Country singer Sherrie Austin is 51. Rock singer-musician Lars Frederiksen (Rancid) is 51. Actor Cameron Diaz is 50. TV personality Lisa Ling is 49. Rock singer-musician Aaron Barrett (Reel Big Fish) is 48. Actor Raul Castillo is 45. Actor Michael Gladis is 45. MLB pitcher Adam Wainwright is 41. Former tennis player Andy Roddick is 40. Singer Rachael Price (Lake Street Dive) is 37. Rock musician Ryan Ross is 36. Actor Johanna Braddy is 35. Actor Cameron Finley is 35.