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Today in History, September 9th

On September 9, 1776, Congress officially renamed the United Colonies the United States. Plus California statehood and Elvis on Ed Sullivan.

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

Published September 9, 2026 · Last updated November 10, 2026

September 9 is best known for 1776, when the Continental Congress made it official that the new nation would be called the “United States” instead of the “United Colonies.” The date also saw California join the Union in 1850 and Elvis Presley’s first appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1956.

The big story: Congress names the United States (1776)

Early in the Revolution, the people running it called their alliance the “United Colonies.” Even Richard Henry Lee’s resolution for independence, approved on July 2, 1776, and Thomas Jefferson’s Declaration used that phrase. But colonies belong to someone, and by late summer the delegates had stopped seeing themselves that way. The Declaration had been adopted, printed and sent to Britain. Patriot troops were fighting around Boston, New York and in Canada. So on September 9, 1776, Congress ordered that wherever “United Colonies” appeared in its commissions and official papers, the words would now read “United States.” It was a small piece of paperwork with a big message. A collection of separate colonies was presenting itself to the world as one new country. The name stuck, and the paperwork has been saying “United States” ever since.

More events on September 9

Year	What happened
1087	William the Conqueror, king of England, died of an injury he suffered while attacking the French town of Mantes.
1850	California became the 31st state, skipping the usual step of first being a U.S. territory.
1919	Boston police officers went on strike after the city refused to recognize their right to unionize.
1942	A Japanese floatplane dropped incendiary bombs on a forest in Oregon, the first air attack on the U.S. mainland during World War II.
1947	Engineers working on the Harvard Mark II computer, including Grace Hopper, traced a malfunction to an actual bug caught in the machine.
1948	North Korea was proclaimed as a separate state, setting the stage for the Korean War.
1956	Elvis Presley made his first appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show.
1971	Inmates took control of New York’s Attica Correctional Facility, beginning a four-day hostage standoff.
1976	Mao Zedong, leader of China’s Communist revolution, died.
1998	Independent counsel Kenneth Starr sent Congress his report on his investigation of President Bill Clinton.
2015	Elizabeth II passed Queen Victoria to become the longest-reigning monarch in British history.

Born on September 9

1754: William Bligh, English navigator who commanded HMS Bounty during its famous mutiny.
1828: Leo Tolstoy, Russian novelist of War and Peace and Anna Karenina, born at Yasnaya Polyana (New Style date; August 28 Old Style).
1941: Otis Redding, American soul singer and songwriter, born in Dawson, Georgia.
1966: Adam Sandler, American comedian and actor, born in Brooklyn, New York.