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General Ford signs the Helinski Accord on European Security
In the summer of 1975 Gerald Ford traveled to Helsinki, Finland, joining Prime Minister Harold Wilson, President Giscard d’Estaing, and the leaders of 30 other nations to sign the Helsinki Accords. Drafted by these 35 nations, the accord, or Final Act, was the result of two years of negotiations.While U.S. participation was heavily criticized at home, from both the left and the right, Ford believed it was his most significant foreign policy acheivement. -
The U.S. Achieves the first moon landing
On 20 July, 1969, the Lunar Module, Eagle, landed on the moon, in a place called the Sea of Tranquillity. Commander Neil Armstrong was the first man to walk on the moon. The Lunar Module, Eagle was the vehicle designed to take the men from the Command Module to land on the moon. It had a descent module, with the engine that brought them from the Command module, As he stepped off the ladder and put his foot on the moon’s surface, he said, ‘One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.’ -
Nixon becomes the first U.S. President to fly to China
U.S. President Richard Nixon's 1972 visit to the People's Republic of China was an important step in formally normalizing relations between the United States and the People's Republic of China. It marked the first time a U.S. president had visited the PRC, who at that time considered the U.S. one of its staunchest foes. The visit has become a metaphor for an unexpected or uncharacteristic action by a politician. -
Telivised Senate hearings on Watergate begin
Television cameras covered the Watergate hearings gavel-to-gavel, from day one until 7 August. 319 hours of television were amassed, a record covering a single event. All three commercial television networks then in existence--NBC, CBS, and ABC--devoted an average of five hours per day covering the Watergate hearings for their first five days. -
Richard Nixon becomes the first U.S. President to resign
On August 9th, 1974, Richard Nixon became the first U.S. President to resign his office rather than become the first to be removed via impeachment. The night before he had made one of the most dramatic appearances in television history by announcing his intention to resign. A White House speechwriter began drafting a resignation speech several days before the event, as the President agonized over his decision to stay or to go. Speaking to the nation on TV for over 15 minutes, Nixon recounted hi -
U.S. celebrates the bicentennial of the signing of the Declaration of Independence
The United States Bicentennial was a series of celebrations and observances during the mid-1970s that paid tribute to the historical events leading up to the creation of the United States as an independent republic. The Bicentennial culminated on Sunday, July 4, 1976, with the 200th anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. -
Jimmy Carter nogatioates the Camp David Accords to promote peace in the Middle East
The high point of Jimmy Carter's presidency occurred on Monday, September 18, 1978. While Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin looked on from the balcony, Carter briefed a joint session of Congress on the success of their thirteen-day summit at Camp David, Maryland. Stopping twenty-five times for applause, he described the first peace treaty between Israel and one of its Arab neighbors, as well as a framework for further progress toward peace. -
American hostages in Iran are set free
Operation Eagle Claw, on April 24, 1980, which resulted in a failed mission, the destruction of two aircraft and the deaths of eight American servicemen and one Iranian civilian. It ended with the signing of the Algiers Accords in Algeria on January 19, 1981. The hostages were formally released into United States custody the following day, just minutes after the new American president Ronald Reagan was sworn in. -
U.S. boycotts the Moscow summer Olympics
The 1980 Summer Olympics boycott of the Moscow Olympics was a part of a package of actions initiated by the United States to protest the Soviet war in Afghanistan. It preceded the 1984 Summer Olympics boycott carried out by the Soviet Union and other Communist friendly countries.
