What Happened on June 9?

June 9 is Donald Duck Day — celebrating the cranky cartoon duck who debuted in 1934 — on the same date Rose Mary Woods testified about erased Watergate tapes, Secretariat won the Triple Crown, and Joseph Welch challenged Senator McCarthy.

• 1534 — Jacques Cartier enters the St. Lawrence River and claims Canada for France

  French explorer Jacques Cartier sailed up the St. Lawrence River on June 9, 1534, opening the way for French settlement in North America. Read the full story →

• 1863 — The Battle of Brandy Station — largest cavalry fight of the Civil War

  Union and Confederate horsemen clashed at Brandy Station, Virginia, on June 9, 1863, in the biggest mounted battle ever fought in North America. Read the full story →

• 1934 — Donald Duck makes his screen debut in The Wise Little Hen

  The temperamental sailor-suited duck first appeared in a Silly Symphony cartoon on June 9, 1934, before starring in hundreds of films. Read the full story →

• 1954 — Joseph Welch asks Senator McCarthy: 'Have you no sense of decency?'

  During televised Army-McCarthy hearings on June 9, 1954, Boston lawyer Joseph Welch rebuked Senator Joseph McCarthy and turned public opinion against the Red Scare witch hunts. Read the full story →

• 1973 — Secretariat wins the Belmont Stakes and completes horse racing's Triple Crown

  The chestnut colt Secretariat captured the Belmont Stakes on June 9, 1973, finishing so far ahead that he became a legend. Read the full story →

Famous birthdays

Cole Porter (1891–1964) · Michael J. Fox (1961) · Johnny Depp (1963) · Natalie Portman (1981)

Days & observances

Donald Duck Day · National Strawberry Rhubarb Pie Day · National Friends Day · World Accreditation Day