The arrest of five White House operatives sets off the Watergate scandal. The men were caught attempting to wiretap the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate office complex. The scandal ultimately led to U.S. President Richard Nixon's resignation.

Iceland becomes a republic. The Nordic island country had previously been included in the Norwegian and Danish monarchies. The republic's first President was Sveinn Björnsson.

The three Baltic states fall under Soviet occupation. While the world's attention was focused on the recent German invasion of Paris, the Soviet Union annexed Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania.

Amelia Earhart becomes the first woman to fly across the Atlantic. Wilmer Stultz piloted the Fokker F.VII aircraft, Earhart kept the flight log. They arrived at Burry Port in Wales, the United Kingdom, 20 hours and 40 minutes later.

The Statue of Liberty arrives in New York. Hundreds of thousands of spectators welcomed the emblematic statue, which was a gift to the United States from the people of France and has become one of the country's most recognized symbols.