Today in History: November 3m 2026
November 3 – On This Day
1493 – During his second voyage, Christopher Columbus first sights the island of Dominica in the Caribbean.
1534 – The English Parliament passes the first Act of Supremacy, making King Henry VIII the Supreme Head of the Church of England and breaking with Rome.
1793 – French playwright, journalist, and feminist Olympe de Gouges is guillotined during the French Revolution for her outspoken views (including opposition to the Terror and advocacy for women’s rights).
1903 – Panama declares independence from Colombia in a rebellion supported by the United States. The U.S. quickly recognizes the new republic, paving the way for the Panama Canal treaty.
1922 (Arkansas) – The town of Smackover (Union County) is officially incorporated amid the local oil boom that turned the small community into a boomtown.
1930 (Oklahoma) – Braniff Airways, Inc. is formed in Oklahoma by Thomas E. Braniff (president), E. E. Westervelt, and Paul R. Braniff. It soon began scheduled passenger service linking Tulsa, Oklahoma City, and points in Texas.
1957 – The Soviet Union launches Sputnik 2, carrying the dog Laika—the first living creature to orbit Earth. The mission was a one-way trip; later accounts confirmed she died within hours from overheating and stress.
1964 – Lyndon B. Johnson wins a full term as U.S. president in a landslide over Barry Goldwater (more than 60% of the popular vote and 44 states).
1992 – Democratic Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton defeats incumbent President George H. W. Bush and independent Ross Perot to become the 42nd U.S. president, ending 12 years of Republican control of the White House. Clinton won 370 electoral votes.
2014 – One World Trade Center officially opens in New York City on the site of the Twin Towers destroyed on September 11, 2001.
Born on November 3
1793 – Stephen F. Austin, early Texas leader and colonizer (“Father of Texas”).
1921 – Charles Bronson, American actor (The Magnificent Seven, Death Wish).
1933 – Amartya Sen, Indian economist and philosopher (Nobel Prize in Economics, 1998).
1949 – Anna Wintour, longtime editor-in-chief of Vogue.
1952 – Roseanne Barr, American comedian and actress (Roseanne).
1957 – Dolph Lundgren, Swedish actor and martial artist (Rocky IV, The Expendables).
1962 – Gabe Newell, co-founder and president of Valve (Steam).
1995 – Kendall Jenner, American model and media personality.
One year ago today (November 3, 2025)
Events that day included reports confirming famine in parts of Sudan (Darfur and South Kordofan) amid the ongoing civil war, a magnitude 6.3 earthquake near Mazar-i-Sharif in Afghanistan that killed at least 20 people, and the deaths of several notable figures, including former U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney.
