Events on August 14 in history

Rainey Bethea (August 14, 1936)

Rainey Bethea is hanged in Owensboro, Kentucky in the last known public execution in the United States.

Rainey Bethea (c. 1909 – August 14, 1936) was the last person publicly executed in the United States. Bethea, who confessed to the rape and murder of a 70-year-old woman named Lischia Edwards, was convicted of her rape and publicly hanged in Owensboro, Kentucky. Mistakes in performing the hanging, and the surrounding media circus, contributed to the end of public executions in the United States.

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Events on 1936

7 Mar

Treaty of Versailles
Prelude to World War II: In violation of the Locarno Pact and the Treaty of Versailles, Germany reoccupies the Rhineland.
29 Mar

Remilitarization of the Rhineland
In Germany, Adolf Hitler receives 99% of the votes in a referendum to ratify Germany's illegal remilitarization and reoccupation of the Rhineland, receiving 44.5 million votes out of 45.5 million registered voters.
9 May

Addis Ababa
Italy formally annexes Ethiopia after taking the capital Addis Ababa on May 5.
26 Jul

Spanish Civil War
The Axis powers decide to intervene in the Spanish Civil War.
7 Sep

Benjamin the thylacine
The last thylacine, a carnivorous marsupial named Benjamin, dies alone in its cage at the Hobart Zoo in Tasmania.

Events on August 14 in history

Rainey Bethea (August 14, 1936)

References

Choose Another Date

Events on 1936

Treaty of Versailles

Remilitarization of the Rhineland

Addis Ababa

Spanish Civil War

Benjamin the thylacine