1972-1991

By jroof
  • Period: to

    1972-1991

  • Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms

    he Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms becomes independent from the IRS.

  • Last U.S. ground troops leave Nam

    The last U.S. ground troops are withdrawn from Vietnam.

  • Nixon re-elected as president

    Nixon re-elected in the largest plurality of votes in American history.

  • Apollo 17

    eleventh and final manned mission in the American Apollo space program.

  • Roe vs. Wade

    A landmark decision by the United States Supreme Court on the issue of abortion

  • US dollar devalued 10%

    The United States Dollar is devalued by 10%.

  • First handheld cellular phone

    The first handheld cellular phone call is made by Martin Cooper in New York City.

  • World Trade Center opens

    The World Trade Center officially opens in New York City with a ribbon cutting ceremony.

  • Yankee stadium closes for nenovation

    Yankee Stadium, known as "The House That Ruth Built", closes for a two year renovation at a cost of $160 million. The New York Yankees play all of their home games at Shea Stadium in 1974 and 1975.

  • The Super Outbreak

    The largest series of tornadoes in history (at 149), hits 13 U.S. states and one Canadian province. 315 people are killed and more than 5,000 are injured.

  • Hank Aaron home run record

    Hank Aaron of the Atlanta Braves breaks Babe Ruth's home run record by hitting his 715th career home run.

  • Nixon resigns

    Nixon resigns presidency. Gerald Ford becomes President.

  • Ford pardons Nixon

    President Ford ends investigations by granting Nixon a pardon.

  • Wheel of Fortune

    The television series Wheel of Fortune premieres on NBC.

  • Bill Gates founds Microsoft

    Bill Gates founds Microsoft, which in time, will dominate the home computer operating system market.

  • Fall of Saigon

    The event marked the end of the Vietnam War and the start of a transition period leading to the formal reunification of Vietnam into a communist state.

  • Ford survives assassination

    President Ford survives two assassination attempts in a 17-day time span.

  • Saturday Night Live

    The television series Saturday Night Live premieres on NBC.

  • Earthquake kills 22,000

    In Guatemala and Honduras an earthquake kills more than 22,000.

  • First part of Washington Metro subway opens

    The first 4.6 miles of the Washington Metro subway system opens.

  • Copyright Act of 1976

    The Act spells out the basic rights of copyright holders, codified the doctrine of "fair use".

  • Jimmy Carter becomes president

    Jimmy Carter of Georgia defeats President Ford

  • Apple is incorporated

    Apple Computer Inc. is incorporated.

  • First Personal Computer

    The first home personal computer, Commodore PET, released for retail sale

  • Elvis dies

    Elvis Presley, the king of rock and roll dies in his home in Graceland at age 42. 75,000 fans lined the streets of Memphis for this funeral

  • First successful home video game

    Atari 2600 becomes the first successful home video game system, popularizes the use of microprocessor based hardware and cartridges containing game code.

  • Pete Rose gets his 3000th hit

    Pete Rose of the Cincinnati Reds gets his 3,000th major league hit.

  • Argentina wins FIFA World Cup

    Argentina defeats the Netherlands 3–1 after extra time to win the 1978 FIFA World Cup.

  • First test tube baby

    Louise Brown, the world's first test tube baby, is born in Oldham, Greater Manchester, UK.

  • Humphrey Hawkins Full Employment Act

    Humphrey Hawkins Full Employment Act signed into law, adjusting the government's economic goals to include full employment, growth in production, price stability, and balance of trade and budget.

  • Ohio pays families for Kent State shooting

    The State of Ohio agrees to pay $675,000 to families of the dead and injured in the Kent State shootings.

  • Three Mile Island nuclear accident

    Three Mile Island nuclear accident, America's most serious nuclear power plant accident in history.

  • Deadliest aviation accident on US soil

    American Airlines Flight 191 crashes after takeoff from O'Hare International Airport killing all 271 aboard and 2 on the ground, making it the deadliest aviation incident on U.S. soil

  • Iran hostage crisis begins

    Iran hostage crisis begins. In the aftermath, a second energy crisis develops, tripling the price of oil and sending gasoline prices over $1 per gallon for the first time.

  • Refugee Act

    Refugee Act, which reformed United States immigration law and admitted refugees on systematic basis for humanitarian reasons

  • US boycotts Olympics

    U.S. boycotts Summer Olympics in Moscow to protest Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, also announces grain embargo against the Soviet Union with the support of the European Commission.

  • Mount St. Helens

    Mount St. Helens eruption in Washington kills 57

  • Ronald Reagan becomes president

    Ronald Reagan defeats Jimmy Carter in the 1980 presidential election.

  • John Lennon assassinated

    John Lennon, one of the founding members of The Beatles, is assassinated.

  • Space Shuttle Columbia is launched

    The Space Shuttle Columbia is launched, marking America's first return to space since 1975

  • MTV signs on

    MTV signs on, becoming the first 24-hour cable network dedicated to airing music videos.

  • Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981

    It was an Act to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 to encourage economic growth through reductions in individual income tax rates.

  • Sandra Day O'Connor

    Sandra Day O'Connor becomes first woman on the U.S. Supreme Court

  • AT&T agrees to divest itself

    AT&T agrees to divest itself into 22 subdivisions.

  • 100,000 attend first day of World's Fair in Knoxville

    A crowd of over 100,000 attends the first day of the 1982 World's Fair in Knoxville, Tennessee. The fair is kicked off with an address by President Ronald Reagan. Over 11 million people attend the fair during its 6-month run.

  • EPCOT opens

    In Orlando, Florida, Walt Disney World opens the second largest theme park, EPCOT Center, to the public for the first time.

  • DJIA surges

    The Dow Jones Industrial Average surges 43.41 points, or 4.25%, to close at 1,065.49, its first all-time high in more than 9 years. It last hit a record on January 11, 1973 when the average closed at 1,051.70.

  • Apple releases the Apple Lisa personal computer

    Apple Inc. releases the Apple Lisa personal computer.

  • 241 US Marines die

    241 U.S. Marines killed by suicide bomb in Lebanon

  • US invades Grenada

    United States invades Grenada

  • Chrystler releases the Dodge Caravan

    Chrysler unveils its minivans - the Dodge Caravan and Plymouth Voyager (as 1984 models) - to the public

  • Michael Jackson is in Pepsi commercial

    Michael Jackson's hair catches on fire during a Pepsi commercial.

  • Reagan re-elected

    U.S. presidential election, 1984 (Ronald Reagan is re-elected)

  • Crack is introduced

    The drug problem intensifies as crack (a smokeable form of cocaine) is first introduced into the Los Angeles area

  • Awareness of child sexual abuse

    Awareness of child sexual abuse by pedophiles raised through high-profile media coverage on programs such as 60 Minutes and 20/20.

  • orld Wrestling Federation's first WrestleMania

    Professional wrestling hits the mainstream with the World Wrestling Federation's first WrestleMania and the debut of Saturday Night's Main Event, and the WWF's flagship star, Hulk Hogan, becoming a cultural icon

  • Villanova wins NCAA tournament

    8th seeded Villanova defeats national powerhouse Georgetown 66–64 to win the first 64 team field NCAA Tournament in Lexington, Kentucky.

  • Highest grossing film of 1985

    Back to the Future opens in American theatres and ends up being the highest grossing film of 1985 in the United States and the first film in the successful franchise.

  • World awareness of famine and AIDS

    World awareness of famine in Third World countries spark "We Are the World" and Live Aid. Also, awareness of AIDS (acquired immune deficiency syndrome) is raised with the death of actor Rock Hudson.

  • Total solar eclipse

    A total solar eclipse occurs over Antarctica at 14:11:22 UTC

  • Space Shuttle Challenger found

    United States Navy divers find the largely intact but heavily damaged crew compartment of the Space Shuttle Challenger; the bodies of all seven astronauts are still inside.

  • Statue of Liberty reopens to public

    The Statue of Liberty is reopened to the public after an extensive refurbishment.

  • Goldwater--Nichols Act

    U.S. President Ronald Reagan signs the Goldwater–Nichols Act into law, making official the largest reorganization of the United States Department of Defense since the Air Force was made a separate branch of service in 1947.

  • WNBC Radio's traffic helicopter crashes

    In New York City, WNBC Radio's traffic helicopter crashes into the Hudson River, killing traffic reporter Jane Dornacker. The last words heard on-the-air were Dornacker's screams of terror, "Hit the water! Hit the water! Hit the water!"

  • Iran–Contra affair

    Iran–Contra affair: The Lebanese magazine Ash-Shiraa reports that the United States has been selling weapons to Iran in secret, in order to secure the release of 7 American hostages held by pro-Iranian groups in Lebanon.

  • DJIA falls 22.6%

    Dow Jones Industrial Average falls 22.6% in single session on Black Monday

  • DJIA closes above 2000

    The Dow Jones Industrial Average closes above 2,000 for the first time, gaining 8.30 to close at 2,002.25.

  • Black Monday

    Black Monday: Stock market levels fall sharply on Wall Street and around the world.

  • The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty

    The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty is signed in Washington, D.C. President Reagan and Soviet Premier Gorbachev.

  • Wrigley Field adds lights

    Wrigley Field in Chicago, Illinois, becomes the last Major League Baseball park to add lights for night games

  • Discovery launch

    Discovery launched as first post-Challenger space shuttle flight

  • George H.W. Bush elected president

    U.S. presidential election, 1988 (Vice president George H. W. Bush is elected)

  • Yellowstone fires of 1988

    Severe droughts and massive heat wave grip the Midwest and Rocky Mountain states. The crisis reaches its peak with the Yellowstone fires of 1988.

  • Time Warner is formed

    Time, Inc. and Warner Communications announce plans for a merger, forming Time Warner.

  • Exxon Valdez oil spill in Alaska

    Exxon Valdez oil spill in Alaska's Prince William Sound

  • Hurricane Hugo

    Hurricane Hugo strikes the East Coast, causing $7 billion in damage.

  • The Simpsons

    The animated comedy The Simpsons debuts.

  • US invades Panama

    United States invasion of Panama: General Manuel Noriega, the deposed "strongman of Panama", surrenders to American forces.

  • Apartheid

    Apartheid: In South Africa, President F.W. de Klerk allows the African National Congress to legally function again and promises to free Nelson Mandela.

  • The Hubble Space Telescope is launched

    STS-31: The Hubble Space Telescope is launched aboard Space Shuttle Discovery.[2]

  • East and West Germany merge currency

    Cold War: West Germany and East Germany agree to merge currency and economies

  • Exxon agrees to pay 1 billion for oil spill

    The United States Department of Justice announces that Exxon has agreed to pay $1 billion for the clean-up of the Exxon Valdez oil spill in Alaska.

  • DJIA closes above 3000 for first time ever

    The Dow Jones Industrial Average closes above 3,000 for the first time ever, at 3,004.46.

  • Oakland Hills firestorm

    The Oakland Hills firestorm kills 25 and destroys 3,469 homes and apartments.

  • Cold War ends

    The Cold War ends as President of the Soviet Union Mikhail Gorbachev resigns and the Soviet Union dissolves.