This Day in History: August 7

On this day, Aug. 7 …

2000: Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Al Gore selects Connecticut Sen. Joseph Lieberman as his running mate; Lieberman becomes the first person of Jewish descent on a major party's presidential ticket

Also on this day:

• 1782: Gen. George Washington creates the Order of the Purple Heart, a decoration to recognize merit in enlisted men and noncommissioned officers.
• 1789: The U.S. Department of War is established by Congress.
• 1959: The United States launches the Explorer 6 satellite, which sent back images of Earth.
• 1961: Yale psychology professor Stanley Milgram began conducting his controversial human behavior experiments concerning obedience toward authority figures.
• 1964: Congress passes the Gulf of Tonkin resolution, giving President Lyndon B. Johnson broad powers in dealing with reported North Vietnamese attacks on U.S. forces.

• 1971: The Apollo 15 moon mission ends successfully as its command module splashed down in the Pacific Ocean.

• 1998: Terrorist bombs at U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania kill 224 people, including 12 Americans.
• 2005: ABC News anchorman Peter Jennings dies in New York at age 67.
• 2010: Elena Kagan is sworn in as the 112th justice and fourth woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court.
• 2018: Chicago police say they will deploy hundreds of additional officers to neighborhoods where a surge of gun violence over the weekend leaves at least 11 people dead and 70 wounded. 
• 2019: Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-Texas, faces backlash for posting the names and employers of dozens of Trump campaign donors in the San Antonio area.