February 8 – After a record 84 days in
orbit, the crew of Skylab 4 returns to
Earth.
February 12 – U.S. District Court Judge
Geoerge Boldt rules that Native American tribes in
Washington state are entitled to half of the legal
salmon and
steelhead catches, based on treaties signed by the tribes and the U.S. government.
February 22 –
Samuel Byck attempts to hijack an airplane with the intent to crash it into the
White House and assassinate President Nixon. He commits suicide when police storm the plane.
February 28 –
Egypt and the
United States re-establish normal diplomatic relations.
March
March 1 –
Watergate scandal: Seven former
White House officials are indicted for their role in the
Watergate break-in and charged with conspiracy to obstruct justice.
March 4 – People magazine's first issue is published in the U.S., with
Mia Farrow on the cover.[2]
After 23 consecutive years on television,
Lucille Ball appears in the finale of Here's Lucy.
March 19 – First recorded crime, a ransacking in
Visalia, California, definitely attributable to
Joseph James DeAngelo, at this time a police officer, who will commit at least 13 murders, 51 rapes and 120 burglaries up to 1986; he will not be arrested until 2018.[3]
April 3 – The
1974 Super Outbreak, at the time the largest series of
tornadoes in history, occurs in 13 U.S. states and one Canadian province, leaving over 300 people dead, over 5,000 people injured, and hundreds of millions of dollars in damage.
April 20 – Voters in
Louisiana approve a new
state constitution, replacing a 225,000-word document which had first been adopted in 1921.
April 22 –
Hi-Fi Murders: Five people are brutally tortured by a group of men during a robbery at a home audio store in
Ogden, Utah, resulting in three deaths.
July 8 – Two weeks after the attraction's opening, an 18-year-old employee is crushed to her death while working on
America Sings at
Disneyland. This is the first employee fatality at a
Disney Park.
July 14 – In Issaquah, Washington, serial killer
Ted Bundy abducts Janice Ott and Denise Naslund in broad daylight at Lake Sammamish State Park.
July 15 –
Christine Chubbuck, television presenter for
WXLT-TVSarasota, Florida, draws a revolver and shoots herself in the head during a live broadcast. She dies in a hospital 14 hours later, the first person to commit
suicide on live television.
July 27–30 – Watergate scandal: The
House of Representatives Judiciary Committee adopts three
articles of impeachment, charging President Nixon with obstruction of justice, failure to uphold laws, and refusal to produce material subpoenaed by the committee.
August 8 – Watergate scandal: President Nixon announces his resignation (effective August 9).[6]
August 9 – Richard Nixon becomes the first
president of the United States to resign from office, an action taken to avoid being removed by impeachment and conviction in response to his role in the Watergate scandal.
Vice PresidentGerald R. Ford becomes the 38th president upon Nixon's resignation, taking the oath of office in the
East Room of the
White House.
September 16 – In Newport, Rhode Island, America's Cup defender "
Courageous", skippered by Ted Hood, wins over Australian challenger "Southern Cross".
October 8 –
Franklin National Bank collapses due to fraud and mismanagement (the largest bank failure at that time in the history of the United States).
October 15 – President
Gerald Ford signs a federal campaign reform bill, which sets new regulations in the wake of the
Watergate scandal.
November 8 – In
Salt Lake City, Utah, Carol DaRonch narrowly escapes abduction by serial killer
Ted Bundy. She goes on to testify against him at his trial.
Volkswagen's
Golfautomobile (known in the US as the Rabbit) first enters production, as the replacement for well-loved but antiquated
Beetle. VW goes on to sell more than 22 million Golfs, and the model, now in its 5th generation, is still in full-scale production as of 2008[update].
^Commire, Anne; Klezmer, Deborah, eds. (2001). Women in World History: A Biographical Encyclopedia. Vol. 9. Waterford: Yorkin Publications, Gale Group. p. 380.
ISBN978-0-78764-068-2.
February 8 – After a record 84 days in
orbit, the crew of Skylab 4 returns to
Earth.
February 12 – U.S. District Court Judge
Geoerge Boldt rules that Native American tribes in
Washington state are entitled to half of the legal
salmon and
steelhead catches, based on treaties signed by the tribes and the U.S. government.
February 22 –
Samuel Byck attempts to hijack an airplane with the intent to crash it into the
White House and assassinate President Nixon. He commits suicide when police storm the plane.
February 28 –
Egypt and the
United States re-establish normal diplomatic relations.
March
March 1 –
Watergate scandal: Seven former
White House officials are indicted for their role in the
Watergate break-in and charged with conspiracy to obstruct justice.
March 4 – People magazine's first issue is published in the U.S., with
Mia Farrow on the cover.[2]
After 23 consecutive years on television,
Lucille Ball appears in the finale of Here's Lucy.
March 19 – First recorded crime, a ransacking in
Visalia, California, definitely attributable to
Joseph James DeAngelo, at this time a police officer, who will commit at least 13 murders, 51 rapes and 120 burglaries up to 1986; he will not be arrested until 2018.[3]
April 3 – The
1974 Super Outbreak, at the time the largest series of
tornadoes in history, occurs in 13 U.S. states and one Canadian province, leaving over 300 people dead, over 5,000 people injured, and hundreds of millions of dollars in damage.
April 20 – Voters in
Louisiana approve a new
state constitution, replacing a 225,000-word document which had first been adopted in 1921.
April 22 –
Hi-Fi Murders: Five people are brutally tortured by a group of men during a robbery at a home audio store in
Ogden, Utah, resulting in three deaths.
July 8 – Two weeks after the attraction's opening, an 18-year-old employee is crushed to her death while working on
America Sings at
Disneyland. This is the first employee fatality at a
Disney Park.
July 14 – In Issaquah, Washington, serial killer
Ted Bundy abducts Janice Ott and Denise Naslund in broad daylight at Lake Sammamish State Park.
July 15 –
Christine Chubbuck, television presenter for
WXLT-TVSarasota, Florida, draws a revolver and shoots herself in the head during a live broadcast. She dies in a hospital 14 hours later, the first person to commit
suicide on live television.
July 27–30 – Watergate scandal: The
House of Representatives Judiciary Committee adopts three
articles of impeachment, charging President Nixon with obstruction of justice, failure to uphold laws, and refusal to produce material subpoenaed by the committee.
August 8 – Watergate scandal: President Nixon announces his resignation (effective August 9).[6]
August 9 – Richard Nixon becomes the first
president of the United States to resign from office, an action taken to avoid being removed by impeachment and conviction in response to his role in the Watergate scandal.
Vice PresidentGerald R. Ford becomes the 38th president upon Nixon's resignation, taking the oath of office in the
East Room of the
White House.
September 16 – In Newport, Rhode Island, America's Cup defender "
Courageous", skippered by Ted Hood, wins over Australian challenger "Southern Cross".
October 8 –
Franklin National Bank collapses due to fraud and mismanagement (the largest bank failure at that time in the history of the United States).
October 15 – President
Gerald Ford signs a federal campaign reform bill, which sets new regulations in the wake of the
Watergate scandal.
November 8 – In
Salt Lake City, Utah, Carol DaRonch narrowly escapes abduction by serial killer
Ted Bundy. She goes on to testify against him at his trial.
Volkswagen's
Golfautomobile (known in the US as the Rabbit) first enters production, as the replacement for well-loved but antiquated
Beetle. VW goes on to sell more than 22 million Golfs, and the model, now in its 5th generation, is still in full-scale production as of 2008[update].
^Commire, Anne; Klezmer, Deborah, eds. (2001). Women in World History: A Biographical Encyclopedia. Vol. 9. Waterford: Yorkin Publications, Gale Group. p. 380.
ISBN978-0-78764-068-2.