In History, Today on September 8

Michelangelo's statue of David is unveiled in Florence.

The Spanish establish the first permanent European settlement in the continental United States at St. Augustine, Florida.

The Dutch surrender New Amsterdam to the English, who rename it New York.

The first six Football League matches ever are played in England.

Honda Point disaster: Seven U.S. Navy destroyers run aground off the California coast.

The Siege of Leningrad by German forces begins during World War II.

Italy surrenders to the Allies during World War II.

The Treaty of San Francisco is signed by 48 nations, officially ending the state of war between Japan and the Allied Powers.

The first episode of Star Trek airs on NBC.

U.S. President Gerald Ford pardons former President Richard Nixon for any crimes he may have committed while in office.

The Oprah Winfrey Show is broadcast nationally for the first time.

The Republic of Macedonia becomes independent from Yugoslavia.

USAir Flight 427 crashes on approach to Pittsburgh International Airport, killing all 132 on board.

The United Nations General Assembly adopted the Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS, a landmark document aimed at combating the global HIV/AIDS epidemic.

NASA's Genesis spacecraft crash-landed in Utah after its parachute failed to deploy, but scientists were able to recover some of the solar wind samples it collected.

The San Bruno pipeline explosion occurred in San Bruno, California, when a natural gas pipeline owned by Pacific Gas and Electric Company exploded, killing eight people and destroying 38 homes.

NASA launched the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft, its first mission to return samples from an asteroid, specifically Bennu, to Earth.

A powerful earthquake with a magnitude of 8.2 struck off the southern coast of Mexico, causing significant damage and resulting in at least 98 deaths.

Queen Elizabeth II, the longest-reigning monarch in British history, passed away at Balmoral Castle in Scotland, marking the end of a 70-year reign.