Today in History • Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024

On Sept. 3, 1783, representatives of the United States and Britain signed the Treaty of Paris, which officially ended the Revolutionary War and recognized U.S. sovereignty.

Also on this date:

In 1861, during the Civil War, Confederate forces invaded the border state of Kentucky, which had declared its neutrality in the conflict.

In 1894, the United States celebrated the first federal Labor Day holiday.

In 1935, Sir Malcolm Campbell became the first person to drive an automobile more than 300 miles-per-hour, speeding across the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah.

In 1939, Britain, France, Australia and New Zealand declared war on Germany, two days after the Nazi invasion of Poland; in a radio address, Britain’s King George VI said, “With God’s help, we shall prevail.”

In 1943, Allied forces invaded Italy during World War II, the same day Italian officials signed a secret armistice with the Allies.

In 1976, America’s Viking 2 lander touched down on Mars to take the first close-up, color photographs of the red planet’s surface.

In 1999, a French judge closed a two-year inquiry into the car crash that killed Princess Diana, dismissing all charges against nine photographers and a press motorcyclist, and concluding the accident was caused by an inebriated driver.

In 2019, Walmart said it would stop selling ammunition for handguns and short-barrel rifles, and the store chain requested that customers not openly carry firearms in its stores; the announcement followed a shooting at a Walmart store in Texas that left 22 people dead.

Today’s Birthdays: Singer-musician Al Jardine (The Beach Boys) is 81. Actor Valerie Perrine is 81. Filmmaker Jean-Pierre Jeunet is 71. Rock guitarist Steve Jones (The Sex Pistols) is 69. Actor Steve Schirripa (TV: “The Sopranos”) is 66. Author Malcolm Gladwell is 61. Actor Charlie Sheen is 59. Filmmaker Noah Baumbach is 55. Dance-rock musician Redfoo (LMFAO) is 49. Actor Garrett Hedlund is 40. Olympic gold medal snowboarder Shaun White is 38. Model-actor Kaia Gerber is 23. Actor Jack Dylan Grazer is 21.