On This Day for July 2 - Civil Rights Act signed, Thurgood Marshall is featured, and more

This message contains graphics. If you do not see the graphics, click here to view. July 02 FEATURED BIOGRAPHY Thurgood Marshall READ MORE   FEATURED EVENT 1964 Civil Rights Act signed READ MORE   Advertisement Advertisement   MORE EVENTS ON THIS DAY 2016: Romanian-born Jewish writer Elie Wiesel, who won the 1986 Nobel Peace Prize largely for his works that provide a sober yet passionate testament of the destruction of European Jewry during World War II, died at age 87. [Test your knowledge of the Nobel Prize.] 2008: More than six years after being taken hostage by FARC guerrillas, Colombian politician Ingrid Betancourt was freed during a rescue mission in which army soldiers posed as international aid workers. [Take our quiz about Latin American history.] 2002: American adventurer Steve Fossett became the first balloonist to circumnavigate the world alone. [Test your knowledge of aircraft and aviation.] 1997: American actor Jimmy Stewart—who came to personify a decent everyman struggling to overcome difficult circumstances while rising to heroic stature in the process—died in California. [Sort fact from fiction in our quiz about A-list actors.] 1979: The United States first issued the Susan B. Anthony dollar coin, making Anthony the first woman to be depicted on U.S. currency. [Take our quiz about famous firsts for women.] 1962: American businessman Sam Walton opened the first Walmart (then known as Wal-Mart) store, in Rogers, Arkansas; it was the start of what would become the largest retail sales chain in the United States. SEE ALL EVENTS ON THIS DAY ALSO BORN ON THIS DAY 1947 Larry David American comedian and writer 1898 Anthony C. McAuliffe United States general 1925 Patrice Lumumba Congolese politician 1908 Thurgood Marshall United States jurist 1929 Imelda Marcos Filipino public figure 1877 Hermann Hesse German writer SEE ALL BIOS ON THIS DAY   Advertisement   FOLLOW: To unsubscribe from Britannica e-mails, click here. Encyclopædia Britannica 325 N. LaSalle Street, Suite 200 Chicago, Illinois 60654 United States © 2021 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. Privacy Policy • Help