What Happened on August 18?

August 18 is National Ice Cream Pie Day — a chilly celebration of dessert creativity — on the same date Tennessee ratified the 19th Amendment in 1920, John White found Roanoke abandoned in 1590, and Asaph Hall discovered Mars's moon Phobos in 1877.

• 1227 — Genghis Khan dies during the Mongol campaign in China

  On August 18, 1227, Mongol ruler Genghis Khan died while his armies campaigned against the Western Xia — ending the life of history's most expansive conqueror. Read the full story →

• 1587 — Virginia Dare is born on Roanoke Island

  On August 18, 1587, Virginia Dare became the first child born to English parents in the Americas — nine days after the Roanoke colonists landed. Read the full story →

• 1590 — John White finds the Roanoke Colony abandoned

  On August 18, 1590, Governor John White returned to Roanoke Island and found the English colony gone — with only the word "CROATOAN" carved as a clue. Read the full story →

• 1877 — Asaph Hall discovers Phobos, a moon of Mars

  On August 18, 1877, American astronomer Asaph Hall spotted Phobos — the larger and closer of Mars's two tiny moons — from the U.S. Naval Observatory. Read the full story →

• 1920 — Tennessee ratifies the 19th Amendment, securing women's suffrage

  On August 18, 1920, Tennessee became the 36th state to ratify the 19th Amendment — giving women's suffrage the final vote needed to become U.S. law. Read the full story →

Famous birthdays

Meriwether Lewis (1774–1809) · Roberto Clemente (1934–1972) · Patrick Swayze (1952–2009) · Antonio Banderas (1960)

Days & observances

National Ice Cream Pie Day · Helium Discovery Day · National Fajita Day · Never Give Up Day