{"id":3715,"date":"2026-08-14T10:04:38","date_gmt":"2026-08-14T10:04:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/coloradospringsmoverss.com\/?p=3715"},"modified":"2026-08-14T10:04:38","modified_gmt":"2026-08-14T10:04:38","slug":"today-in-history-august-14-thousands-gather-for-last-public-execution-in-us","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/coloradospringsmoverss.com\/?p=3715","title":{"rendered":"Today in History: August 14, thousands gather for last public execution in US"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Getting your Trinity Audio player ready…<\/strong><\/div>\n
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Today is Friday, Aug. 14, the 226th day of 2026. There are 139 days left in the year.<\/p>\n

Read more Colorado\u2019s small towns are matching big city home prices<\/a><\/p>\n

Today in history:<\/h4>\n

On Aug. 14, 1936, in front of an estimated 20,000 spectators, Rainey Bethea was hanged in Owensboro, Kentucky, in the last public execution in the United States.<\/p>\n

Also on this date:<\/h4>\n

In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act into law, ensuring income for elderly Americans and creating a federal unemployment insurance program.<\/p>\n

In 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill signed the Atlantic Charter, which detailed the postwar goals of the two nations.<\/p>\n

In 1945, President Harry S. Truman announced that Imperial Japan had surrendered unconditionally, ending World War II.<\/p>\n

In 1947, Pakistan gained independence from British rule.<\/p>\n

In 1994, Ilich Ramirez Sanchez, the terrorist known as \u201cCarlos the Jackal,\u201d was captured by French agents in Sudan.<\/p>\n

In 1995, Shannon Faulkner officially became the first female cadet in the history of The Citadel, South Carolina\u2019s state military college. (However, Faulkner withdrew from the school less than a week later, citing the stress of her court fight, and her isolation among the male cadets.)<\/p>\n

Read more \u2018Smoking gun\u2019 email shows White House summoned agencies to Colorado-focused meeting amid Tina Peters furor<\/a><\/p>\n

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In 1997, an unrepentant Timothy McVeigh was formally sentenced to death for the Oklahoma City bombing. (McVeigh was executed by lethal injection in 2001.)<\/p>\n

In 2009, Charles Manson follower Lynette \u201cSqueaky\u201d Fromme, 60, convicted of trying to assassinate President Gerald Ford in 1975, was released from a Texas prison hospital after more than three decades behind bars.<\/p>\n

In 2016, Usain Bolt became the first athlete to win the 100-meter dash in three consecutive Olympics, taking gold at the Summer Games in Rio.<\/p>\n

In 2018, a 650-foot section of Genoa, Italy\u2019s Morandi highway bridge collapsed in a rainstorm, sending dozens of vehicles plunging to the ground and killing 43 people. The bridge was part of a major route linking northern Italy with the French Riviera.<\/p>\n

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In 2021, a 7.2-magnitude earthquake struck Haiti, turning thousands of structures into rubble; Haiti\u2019s government put the death toll at more than 300,000, while a report commissioned by the U.S. government placed it between 46,000 and 85,000.<\/p>\n

Read more Jeffco Public Schools paraprofessional dragged student with disability down hallway, affidavit says<\/a><\/p>\n

Today\u2019s Birthdays:<\/h4>\n
    \n
  • Broadway lyricist Lee Adams (\u201cBye Bye Birdie\u201d) is 102.<\/li>\n
  • Country singer Connie Smith is 85.<\/li>\n
  • Comedian-actor Steve Martin is 81.<\/li>\n
  • Film director Wim Wenders is 81.<\/li>\n
  • Singer-musician Larry Graham is 80.<\/li>\n
  • Actor Susan Saint James is 80.<\/li>\n
  • Author Danielle Steel is 79. \u201c<\/li>\n
  • Far Side\u201d cartoonist Gary Larson is 76.<\/li>\n
  • Actor Carl Lumbly is 75.<\/li>\n
  • Olympic gold medal swimmer Debbie Meyer is 74.<\/li>\n
  • Actor Jackee Harry is 70.<\/li>\n
  • NASCAR Hall of Famer Rusty Wallace is 70.<\/li>\n
  • Actor Marcia Gay Harden is 67.<\/li>\n
  • Basketball Hall of Famer Earvin \u201cMagic\u201d Johnson is 67.<\/li>\n
  • Singer Sarah Brightman is 66.<\/li>\n
  • Actor Susan Olsen (TV: \u201cThe Brady Bunch\u201d) is 65.<\/li>\n
  • Actor Halle Berry is 60.<\/li>\n
  • Golfer Darren Clarke is 58.<\/li>\n
  • Actor Catherine Bell is 58.<\/li>\n
  • Actor Mila Kunis is 43.<\/li>\n
  • Actor Lamorne Morris is 43.<\/li>\n
  • Actor Marsai Martin is 22.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    In front of an estimated 20,000 spectators, Rainey Bethea was hanged in Owensboro, Kentucky, in the last public execution in the United States.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3714,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11,4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3715","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-national-news","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nToday in History: August 14, thousands gather for last public execution in US - Colorado Springs Moverss<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/coloradospringsmoverss.com\/?p=3715\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Today in History: August 14, thousands gather for last public execution in US - 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