JUNE 17 | Birthdays and Events
Famous Birthdays
People born on June 17
Susan La Flesche Picotte
Died: September 18, 1915
Member of the Omaha tribe who is widely acknowledged as one of the first Indigenous people, and the first Indigenous woman, to earn a medical degree.
Ruth Graves Wakefield
Died: January 10, 1977
Considered the creator of the chocolate chip cookie.
Ralph Waite
Died: February 13, 2014
Actor fondly remembered for his role as John Walton Sr. on the television series The Walton.
Pete Browning
Died: September 10, 1905
Professional baseball center fielder and left fielder known as "the Louisville Slugger".
Gregg Rolie
Musician and co-founder of the rock bands Santana and Journey.
E. G. Squier
Died: April 17, 1888
Archaeologist who made significant discoveries about the Incan's.
Diane Murphy
Actress known for her role as Tabitha in Bewitched.
David Akeman
Died: November 10, 1973
Also known as Stringbean, David is best known for his role as a main cast member on the hit television show Hee Haw and as a member of the Grand Ole Opry.
Charles Momsen
Died: May 25, 1967
Admiral and inventor of the Momsen Lung, the submarine rescue device.
Barry Manilow
legendary singer of hits like Looks Like We Made It, Mandy, and Copacabana (At the Copa).
Historical Events on June 17
Events that occurred on June 17 throughout history
The first chartered accident insurer is obtains a charter.
The Travelers Insurance Co of Hartford becomes the first chartered accident insurer and sold it's first policy for two-cents within a year.
The Statue of Liberty arrives in the New York Harbor.
The Statue of Liberty arrives in the New York Harbor disassembled into 350 individual pieces and packed into 214 crates. Because there were not enough funds to complete the pedestal, Liberty remained stored in crates for months while more funds were raised to complete the base she would sit on.
The U.S. Navy Hospital Corps is established.
President William McKinley signed an act of Congress establishing the U.S. Navy Hospital Corps. The act act professionalized naval medicine by organizing a dedicated, formally trained enlisted medical force to support U.S. Sailors and Marines.
The College Board introduces its first standardized test.
The College Board introduces its first standardized test, laying the foundation for the SAT.
Amelia Earhart becomes the first women to fly over the Atlantic.
Amelia Earhart leaves Newfoundland as a passenger and becomes the first woman to fly over the Atlantic. She tended the flight log while flying.
WWI veterans gather at the U.S. Capital to hear a bill that would give them benefits.
World War I vets gather at the U.S. to hear the Senate consider a bill that would give them benefits. The Senate rejected the bill by a decisive vote of 62 to 18, prompting the angry veterans to build shantytowns until their benefits were paid.
The first kidney transplant is conducted
Dr. Richard Lawler performed a kidney transplant at Little Company of Mary Hospital in Evergreen Park in Chicago, Illinois.
President Nixon called drug abuse "America's public enemy number one."
The U.S. government's "War on Drugs" initiative is formally launched for better drug control, prevention, and enforcement in the country.
The body of the 12th President of the U.S., President Zachary Taylor, is exhumed.
The body of the 12th President of the U.S., President Zachary Taylor, is exhumed. The exhumation was to test for poison after historians speculated he may have been assassinated. The results come back that he died of natural causes.
O. J. Simpson is arrested for the murders of his ex-wife.
O. J. Simpson is arrested for the murders of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend Ronald Goldman.
Juneteenth National Independence Day is signed into law.
President Joe Biden signs Juneteenth National Independence Day into law. The law as the first new federal holiday designated in the U.S. since Martin Luther King Jr. Day was created in 1983.