A Brief History
This article presents a chronological list of notable events that happened on August 31st. For each date below, please click on the date to be taken to an article covering that date’s event.
Digging Deeper
On August 31, 1535, King Henry VIII of England was kicked out of the Catholic Church by Pope Paul III, although a more official excommunication would come three years later.
On August 31, 1854, a seminal moment in the history of illness and scientific application of anti-disease efforts struck the Broad Street area of Soho, London, England, when a severe cholera outbreak began.
On August 31, 1869, the world’s first recorded road traffic death involving a motor vehicle occurred when Irish scientist Mary Ward fell out of her cousins’ steam car and was run over by it.
On August 31, 1939, German troops dressed in Polish uniforms pretended to attack a German radio station near the German-Polish border at Gleiwitz (Gliwice in Polish).
On August 31, 1943, the Buckley Class destroyer, USS Harmon (DE-678) was commissioned, the first American Navy ship named after an African-American person.
On August 31, 1965, fans of super-different airplanes could add another oddity to their list when the Aero Spacelines Super Guppy made its first flight.
On August 31, 1965, fans of super-different airplanes could add another oddity to their list when the Aero Spacelines Super Guppy made its first flight. (NOTE: The link in the date for this entry leads to a different article than the other mention to this same event above.)
On August 31st, 1997, Princess Diana died in a Paris hospital after being involved in an accident in which the car she had been riding in had been chased down and harassed by paparazzi before crashing into a wall and pillar of an underground tunnel.
On August 31, 2006, the Norwegian police announced the recovery of Edvard Munch’s famous painting, The Scream, which had been stolen in 2004.
On August 31, 2014, hackers released private pictures of Oscar-winner Jennifer Lawrence.
On August 31, 2018, the new sci-fi action-adventure film Kin made its debut across the United States.
Comedy fans had their chance to be among the first in Cleveland, Ohio to see Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul. on Wednesday, August 31, 2022 at 7:00 PM at Cinemark At Valley View and XD at 6001 Canal Rd. in Valley View, Ohio!
Drama fans had their chance to be among the first in Cleveland, Ohio to see a free, virtual screening of Sitting in Bars with Cake on Thursday, August 31st, 2023 at 7:30PM Eastern.
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Historical Evidence
For more information, please see…
Andrews, John and Matt Baker. Timeline of World History. Thunder Bay Press, 2020.
You can also watch video versions of this article on YouTube.
