THIS WEEK IN HISTORY

02 June, 2002 – Steve Fossett completes the first solo around-the-world balloon flight

This was American businessman Fossett's sixth attempt to circumnavigate the world. It took him 13 days in a balloon called Spirit of Freedom to cover 20,000 miles.


03 June, 1962 – Algeria gains its independence from France

Algeria's independence from France, after 132 years of French rule, was finalised after the signing of the Évian Accords. The accords ended a seven-year long violent war of independence.


04 June, 1865 – Alice in Wonderland is published for the first time

The classic fantasy novel was written by author Lewis Carroll. The book recounted the adventures of a curious girl, Alice, who falls into a rabbit hole and meets human-like animals and creatures.


05 June, 1811 – Venezuela declares independence from Spain

Under the leadership of Francisco de Miranda, Venezuela declared its independence from Spain. This started the Venezuelan War of Independence. The country gained independence 10 years later in 1821.


06 June, 1912 – King Gustaf V officially opens the fifth Summer Olympics in Stockholm

The international multi-event sports meet was the first such event in history to introduce the photo finish and automatic timing devices for track competitions. 28 countries participated in the games.


07 June, 1947 – Roswell UFO sighting

An object crashed into a ranch near Roswell, New Mexico raising speculations that the object was an extraterrestrial spacecraft containing alien life forms.


08 June, 1889 – Wall Street Journal published for the first time

Three financial reporters named Charles Dow, Edward Jones, and Charles Bergstresser created The Wall Street Journal to supersede a previous periodical called the Customers' Afternoon Letter.

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