Daily List

Today in History, August 3rd

On August 3, 1492, Christopher Columbus set sail from Palos, Spain. Plus Calvin Coolidge's swearing-in and the Nautilus under the North Pole.

By Today in History Updated November 10, 2026 3 min read Sources checked

Published August 3, 2026 · Last updated November 10, 2026

August 3 is best known for 1492, when Christopher Columbus sailed from Palos, Spain, on the voyage that brought Europeans to the Americas. The date also saw Calvin Coolidge sworn in as president after Warren G. Harding’s death in 1923 and the submarine USS Nautilus pass under the North Pole in 1958.

The big story: Columbus sets sail from Spain (1492)

Columbus was not trying to find a new world. He wanted a shortcut to an old one. On August 3, 1492, he left the Spanish port of Palos with three ships, the Santa María, the Pinta and the Niña, hoping to reach China, India and the spice islands of Asia by sailing west. On October 12, his lookouts spotted land, probably Watling Island in the Bahamas, and Columbus claimed it for Spain. He kept reading the map wrong. Later that month he reached Cuba and decided it was mainland China. In December he landed on Hispaniola and wondered whether it might be Japan. He left 39 men there to start a colony and returned to Spain in March 1493, bringing gold, spices and Indigenous captives, and the court of Ferdinand and Isabella showered him with honors. Over four voyages he explored Caribbean islands, the Gulf of Mexico and stretches of the Central and South American coast. He died in Spain in 1506, never having found that western route to Asia.

More events on August 3

Year	What happened
1795	The Treaty of Greenville was signed, ending the Northwest Indian War.
1914	Germany declared war on France, one more step in World War I’s rapid spread.
1916	Sir Roger Casement was executed for his role in the Easter Rising.
1923	Calvin Coolidge took the oath of office as president after the death of Warren G. Harding.
1936	Jesse Owens won the 100-meter dash at the Berlin Olympics, the first of his four gold medals there.
1948	Before the House Un-American Activities Committee, Whittaker Chambers accused Alger Hiss of being a communist spy.
1949	The Basketball Association of America and the National Basketball League merged to form the National Basketball Association.
1958	The nuclear-powered submarine USS Nautilus traveled beneath the ice cap at the North Pole.
1982	Michael Hardwick was arrested under Georgia’s sodomy law, leading to his challenge of the statute in court.
1984	Mary Lou Retton scored two perfect 10s to win the Olympic all-around gold in Los Angeles, the first American woman to win an individual Olympic gymnastics gold.
1996	“Macarena” reached No. 1 on the U.S. pop charts.

Born on August 3

1900: Ernie Pyle, journalist famed for his World War II front-line reporting, born near Dana, Indiana.
1926: Tony Bennett, singer of American standards, born in Astoria, Queens, New York.
1941: Martha Stewart, businesswoman and lifestyle brand founder, born in Jersey City, New Jersey.
1977: Tom Brady, NFL quarterback, born in San Mateo, California.