What Happened on May 3?

May 3 is World Press Freedom Day — a UN observance protecting journalists — on the same date Margaret Thatcher won election in 1979, Japan's democratic constitution took effect in 1947, and Margaret Mitchell won the Pulitzer for Gone with the Wind.

• 1802 — Washington, D.C., is incorporated as a city

  On May 3, 1802, Congress passed an act incorporating Washington, D.C., giving the national capital its own municipal government. Read the full story →

• 1916 — Leaders of the Easter Rising are executed in Dublin

  On May 3, 1916, Irish rebel leader Padraig Pearse and others were executed by firing squad — turning a failed uprising into a catalyst for Irish independence. Read the full story →

• 1937 — Margaret Mitchell wins the Pulitzer Prize for Gone with the Wind

  On May 3, 1937, the Pulitzer committee awarded Margaret Mitchell's Civil War epic Gone with the Wind — one of America's best-selling novels ever. Read the full story →

• 1947 — Japan's postwar Constitution takes effect

  On May 3, 1947, Japan's new Constitution came into force — renouncing war, guaranteeing human rights, and establishing the country as a constitutional monarchy. Read the full story →

• 1952 — An airplane lands at the North Pole for the first time

  On May 3, 1952, U.S. Air Force Lieutenant Colonel William Pershing Benedict landed a C-47 at the geographic North Pole — the first aircraft to touch down there. Read the full story →

Famous birthdays

Golda Meir (1898–1978) · Bing Crosby (1903–1977) · James Brown (1933–2006) · Sugar Ray Robinson (1921–1989)

Days & observances

World Press Freedom Day · Constitution Memorial Day (Japan) · National Two Different Colored Shoes Day · National Garden Meditation Day