Associated Press

On Aug. 2, 1776, members of the Second Continental Congress began attaching their signatures to the Declaration of Independence.

In 1790, the first United States Census was conducted; a total of 3,929,214 U.S. residents were counted.

In 1873, inventor Andrew S. Hallidie successfully tested a cable car he had designed for the city of San Francisco.

In 1923, the 29th president of the United States, Warren G. Harding, died in San Francisco; Vice President Calvin Coolidge became president.

In 1939, Albert Einstein signed a letter to President Franklin D. Roosevelt urging creation of an atomic weapons research program.

In 1990, Iraq invaded Kuwait, seizing control of the oil-rich emirate. (The Iraqis were later driven out by the U.S.)